Happy, healthy & hot (Darshini)

Darshini talking about the role empowerment and comprehensive sexuality education play in HIV prevention.

♥ Mothers (Maya)

"Every young person aspires to break away and find hers or his own place in the world. However, we always feel connected to that magical place called home. It is not a building, nor a city, nor a country...it is the place where you are accepted the way you are, where you feel that special type of warmth, embracing and protecting you.

And though home can be defined by many descriptions, mothers are irreplaceable and crucial part of it. It is no wonder that they are called the fireplace of the house. Though often connected to gender roles and stereotypes, this term actually holds so much more to it. And I am really proud to call my mom the fire in our house. And no, she is not a housewife. She is well educated, working woman, who managed to take good care for her two daughters and her husband for more than 20 years. Though I admire her for all her strength and her achievements, what makes my mom so special is the unconditional love and support she has given me throughout all my life.

And is no wonder that while packing my suitcase this autumn, preparing to go so study abroad, miles away from home, the item that was at the top of my list was a cardigan. And it is a very special cardigan. Have you guessed? It is my mom’s old cardigan. For all I know it could be as old as me. I remember her wearing it when I was a little girl. I can still picture her in it, the perfume she wore, the soft touch while cuddling in her. It reminds me of home, all the moments I spent with my mom and all the lessons she taught me. Once gifted to me, I still wear it and it serves me well. It keeps me physically and emotionally warm. Mom, thank you for all the love and affection."

Maya

Jayne ♥ Being a Woman

Jayne telling us that the most important thing in the life is to belong to yourself.

♥ Mothers (Luīze)

"The day after my 20th birthday I realized that, although I was over 18, semi-independent and living in a foreign country, my mum is still the person I turn to when something goes wrong. And the one I call to express my joy about a new pan I've got.

I have no doubt about her role in letting me become what I am now. She's brilliant and I do feel really lucky for having this extremely open, honest and supporting relationship with her.

Her example has shown me many things I believe to be true about what being a woman human should be about: doing with your life what you feel like doing, being serious about your education and your job, taking the responsibility, knowing that it's not really about physical appearances and that the real strength comes from inside."

Luīze

♥ Mothers (Tove)

"It's interesting how you, without really noticing it, become just as your mum. It's slowly coming to you the older you get and I guess you can't avoid it. Once, I stood and waited for a train and it struck me that I was standing just as my mom often stands. Another time, when I was talking, it struck me that I used the same expressions as she does. When I have friends for dinner, I almost force them to eat a lot and take more food, just as my mom does. Though, I don't know if I really mind, it's quite amusing when I think of it. I guess that I also got a lot more from her that I don't notice so specific, e.g. her kindness, her consideration and her strength."

Tove

Amanda ♥ Being a Girl

Amanda tells us what is that she ♥ about being a girl.

Dorota T ♥ Being a Girl

"I love being a girl, because it means being myself.

Generally, I do not perceive people as "men and women", instead trying to see individuals. That is why it saddens me to talk to girls who do not feel comfortable or are bullied just because they are not "girly". They prefer baggy clothes and short hair, and playing football. They feel like girls inside, and accept their sex, but they are not accepted by others.

Want to know what I tell them? I'll share my secret with you.

What is truly admirable, is the courage to stay true to yourself. To maintain your individuality. "Being a girl" is not about "looking girly". People - both women and men! - are different, of every possible kind. You all have the full right to be who you feel you want to be - it is your life, not anyone else's. If people only followed those around them, would we have Maria Skłodowska-Curie, who was a brilliant scientist when it was extremely difficult for women to get university education? Would we have Agatha Christie, who wrote mystery books instead of romances and "slice of life" novels? Many women broke the stereotypes of their eras, staying true to themselves - and that is what we all should admire.

"Being a girl" is to be proud of who you are and not be afraid to admit it, whether you wear dresses and make-up or baggy trousers and shirts. It is to have strength to do the things you love doing, and to be beautiful and special in your own, unique way. Always have this pride, and remember - the only person who can limit you in any way is yourself. If you are brave enough to admit who you are in your mind, it means that you are also brave and strong enough to fight for it. Always strive for self-development and improvement. However, never let the world forcibly change you. Instead, you change the world and prove them all wrong!"

Dorota T

+ as a soundtrack suggestion: True Colors by Cyndi Lauper

I ♥ Being a Girl, the movie

The short with fragments of interviews made at the International AIDS Conference in Vienna this summer.

Empowerment recipes (Maya)

An article about graffiti artists who happen to be girls in the man's, man's, man's world of street art.

Published in Stylist.co.uk magazine.

Dorota W ♥ Being a Girl

"I like being a girl because I can dress nicely and put on some make-up. What's more, I can change my look whenever I want - according to my mood. I like to look nice. What I detest is that some guys (especially those you can meet at the disco) think they can treat girls like an object only because they’re good looking. Just imagine me/you/any girl spanking some nice fellow as he passes... Ups, sorry man that was an accident [puppy eyes]. You want to buy me a drink? No way!

To be honest, I like when a guy takes my jacket or opens the door before me. And I don’t mind being accompanied by some decent man on my way home. Of course it doesn't mean I couldn't make it on my own. But for me it's just about showing respect as well as being polite, simply. And you know what, I absolutely adore receiving flowers! I accept my sensibility, the right to show my emotions without being judged. But sometimes people think girls use emotions to reach theirs goals. In my case it's just not true. I’m full of emotions. I’m proud of it, because I can take each moment of my life as an unique one.

In my country, especially in little villages, women are still expected to have a husband, children, to be a perfect housewife... and nothing more. Some people just don't see that every girl (just like every boy) has ambitions or skills they want to develop. And although things are getting better nowadays, some of my girlfriends are still asked about their family plans during job interviews. That’s why being ‘a city-girl’ is a kind of relief for me!

I was brought up in the community where talking about sexual life and sexuality wasn’t something usual. Still, this is very important part of every girl’s life. In my opinion everyone should decide for oneself about this aspect of life according to some personal system of values.
One of the most beautiful things about being a girl is for me the ability or rather the privilege to give a birth to a child. I’d love to show the world a new human being, to raise him or her up. That’s why I think it’s so important that this moment will come when I’m really ready for it.

Being an independent woman is what I appreciate very much. That gives me the possibility to build my future with someone who will rather be a real partner not a guardian or a protector. Of course I like to be hugged or caressed; sometimes I even wish to feel like a little girl in stronger arms, to hear that I’m nice or pretty, just to be accepted. Some girls are under much pressure, “you have to be strong, independent”! However, it doesn’t necessarily mean that you have to be a guy. We’re different and it’s beautiful, it doesn’t make any of the sides better or worse.

In my opinion, the need of being loved and understood doesn’t exclude being independent. There are lots of girls very well known who inspire me. My biggest inspiration is my mom. She’s strong, independent and pretty. She gave me something very special: self- confidence. She rebelled when someone wanted to decided about her life.

I never wanted to be a boy. I didn’t even think about it. Maybe because I had luck to develop in the way I wanted. I’ve never been discriminated because of my sex/gender. All in all, I’m proud to be a woman!"

Dorota W

Girls & Books (Dorota W)

"The book that made great impression on me is Emily Brontë's Wuthering Heights. It was first published in 1847 under the pseudonym Ellis Bell. In this 19th century family saga the main protagonist is faced with tragic choice. Cathy has a strong personality and many ways she resembles a contemporary woman. Passionate as she is it is hard to control emotions. Choice between love to savage-like Heathcliff and well-mannered Edgar...

I also admire the author - a girl from Yorkshire who wasn't afraid to be an individual in not very woman-friendly times. Althought born and raised during Victorian age, Emily was neither a Victorian woman nor a Victorian writer."

Dorota

Girls & Books (Katarína)

"Since my ultimate favorite childhood book Pippi Longstocking is already taken (♥), I will go with this one..

I discovered Promiscuities by Naomi Wolf in my university gender and psychology class. Despite the fact that the book received a lot of negative comments, I liked it a lot, especially the way Naomi puts in the light coming-of-age of young women. All the stories describing what is going on in heads of young girls, how they cope with all the overwhelming and contradictory messages about sexuality, how they discover their bodies, emotions and sexual feelings, fall in love, struggle with the virgin/slut dichotomy, decide when and how they will lose their virginity and many more, combined with cross-cultural views on different theories, made me think about the way girls are depicted and perceived in the society and what do they have to overcome to become strong, empowered, confident women."

Katarína

Girls & Books (Luize)

"Pippi Longstocking has always been my favorite princess - she was strong, confident, fun, didn't really respect authorities just for being authorities and wasn't afraid of anything, had great sense of style and the prefect look (red hair + freckles)...


...though my first books on women that changed a lot overnight were both German (by a weird coincidence) - Ute Ehrhardt's Good Girls Go to Heaven, Bad Girls Go Even Farther and Sabine Werz's Best Friends, Best Enemies that I read when I was 13, I guess (the translations being my Latvian to English translations of titles I knew them by). These were fun popular books for somebody not really introduced to any feminist consciousness yet - raised the basic awareness about the existing gender norms / barriers / inequalities and told me that I am allowed to ignore what people expect from me as from a girl if I please so. And that's what I've been trying to do since that."

Luize

Girls & Books (Tove)

"I think every girl should read something by Jane Austen, preferably Pride and Prejudice first published in 1813. Jane writes about a time in English history when it was really difficult being a girl, everything was about finding man you could first and foremost marry for money so that he could support you. Still, in almost every book, the main character is a strong and powerful woman trying to be as independent as possible.

And when you've read the book, don't miss the BBC mini-series from 1995 with Jennifer Ehle and Colin Firth. :)"

Tove

+ Feel free to enjoy also quotes from works of wonderful Jane.

Empowerment recipes (Katarína)

"What empowers me as a girl:

My independence. My skills. That I can do both „female“ and „male“ work. The ability to take care of myself. And the ability to help my close ones.

My beloved ones. The way they support me. The way they make me feel special. How they lift me up when I´m down. Just having them in my life.

My education. And intelligence. How it makes me curious. That need to look deeper, search for answers. Ability to speak about things that matter.

My body. The way it´s shaped. How it´s unique. Its little imperfections. Softness of the skin. Its abilities. And yes, the multiple orgasms."

Katarína

Girls & Contraception (Decision by H.E.R.A.)

A short on girls and myths and truth about contraception produced by H.E.R.A.

Empowerment recipes (Stephanie)

"Maya Angelou once spoke of “how important it is to recognise and celebrate our heroes and she-roes”. It is the stories of inspirational people that empower me. Those women who stand up and fight for their rights and the rights of others; they are reproductive justice activists, writers, advocates, feminists, political activists, and trade union activists. Women throughout history such as Emma Goldman, Elvia Carrillo Puerto, Hanna Sheehy-Skeffington, Mairéad Farrell, Comandante Ramona, Eufrosina Cruz, Maire Drumm, Simone de Beauvoir, Rosemary Nelson, Rosa Parks…the list is endless, and their stories are both amazing and powerful.

However it is not only the stories of these people that are empowering. Empowerment also comes from the ordinary women of our communities who give sound advice, strength, solidarity and friendship. The women who listen, write and engage with others. The women who lead, collaborate, and advocate for others. The women who vote, protest, petition and march. The women who teach, educate, and learn. They are our mothers, daughters, grandmothers, sisters, friends, wives, girlfriends, partners, mentors and teachers.

And they are truly empowering."

Stephanie

Alicja ♥ Being a Girl

"Being a girl means being myself to me - to do things which I love and fulfilling myself in the way I want to. What empowers me the most every single day, are people who care about me. They give me huge kick to do what I love to and make my eyes smiling and my face laughing.

I really love being so complicated, because it's never boring, however sometimes irritating ;) And…what is the most important, my smile is the best and the most powerful, because it's a girly one ;) I just have to admit, that as a girl I feel quite unique when guys act like gentlemen and do some things for me. I think it is a feature of Polish boys, because for instance Japanese aren't that generous. I accepted being a girl and I enjoy it with pleasure (: "

Alicja

Natasha ♥ Being a Girl

"My feminine smile, the power of seduction, just being"are the reasons why Natasha LOVES being a girl

Empowerment recipes (Daniel)

"Annie Lenox and her SIGN campaign is empowering, her work worldwide and her leading role is amazing. She is showing than one women can lead a powerful movement, to deliver strong messages and to make changes happen"

Daniel

Here you can find more info of what and how Annie is doing!

Empowerment recipes (Tove)

"What really empowers me are my girlfriends. I feel privileged to have such strong, beautiful and intelligent women around me. They are all very certain females!"

Tove

Empowerment recipes (Ada)

World's Fastest Woman, 100M, Carmelita Jeter saying that the greatest competition that there is is the one she has with herself.

Empowerment recipes (Maya)

Shania Twain Man! I Feel Like A Woman

"I somehow always thought that this song is perfect for the blog"
Maya

Empowerment recipes (Luīze)

Sweet Fawn Coma Love

"Sweet Fawn is my latest belle-pop discovery (thanks to Agnese Putna) and this video has as many as two things that I find especially empowering and inspiring - the reclaiming of dresses (adore!) and quote that to me sounds like finally taking a step beyond the prejudice that love (existent or the lack of it, preferably one that lasts forever, though) is the only thing that fills heads of the girls, finally there are girls that say that

Just coz' you love me doesn't mean that I don't have plenty of shit to worry about."

Luīze

Empowerment recipes (Ada)

"I feel empowered by moving across the world on my own to pursue my dream. I love the feeling of being able to run a marathon as the youngest person and know that my mind and body is strong enough to do it."

Ada

Girls & Contraception (Renata)

"It's easy now to choose your method of contraception what you want to use because there is lots of information – researches online, but… when it come to talking about it… its not so easy. I can talk with my closest friends about contraception, I can explain almost everything, but when I have to talk with others – strangers, like writing here… mmmm… it becomes a bit uncomfortable… because it's personal, some people can look at you very negatively… it is still a taboo, and that refrains many girls from talking about contraception openly.

We live in 21st century and it shouldn’t be like that. It is sad but not all girls can access internet to read about different methods or get the prescription from doctor because they live in small communities or they are scared of something. But Sex happens! We have to protect ourselves, It’s our bodies and we have to love it! So it’s much better play this game securely, than have big headache after that. Girls let's talk about Sex, and let's talk Contraception!!!"

Renata

Girls & Contraception (Marius)

"I asked some girlfriends “what’s the first thing that pops to mind when they hear the word contraception?”. To be more exact I asked 57 girls this question.

• 22 said “condom”
• 25 said “sexual protection”
• 7 said “the pill”
• 3 said “no babies”

Those 7 girls that said “the pill”, they’re all in a relationship. They trust their boyfriend so they consider this being the best contraceptive method for their sexual relationship.

From the 22 girls who said “condom”, 13 of them have a boyfriend, but they prefer this method of contraception. When I asked why, 4 of them told me because “taking the pill can get you fat” and they don’t want that. The others said they haven’t discussed the subject with their boyfriend, they just started with the condom and kept on going with it.

Myths exists, and they influence peoples decision. Taking the pill doesn't get you fat. It's true some of them can increase your appetite for food, but that can be controlled.

I asked the girls who said “sexual protection”, what do they mean by this? The majority said protection against STI’s and unwanted babies, but there were 6 that focused only on the unwanted babies, on the STI’s part, they weren’t very concerned. They had the idea that "it won’t happen to me. I don’t know anyone who had/has an STI.”

The thing is that you can't tell if a person has an STI just looking at him/her, and sadly people lie. Ignorance it's not the way.

The 3 girls that said “no babies” are concerned in both ways, unwanted pregnancies and STI’s, but they said no babies, because getting pregnant would complicate their life a lot more. As what contraceptive they use, they all said the condom.

Contraceptive methods are there, and if you're informed enough you can decide which method you want to use, which one is best. They don't necessary take the pleasure away, they can even change the mood sometimes. From different condoms to pills, you can decide which one you want to use, but always take in account the risks that you are putting yourself to if you don't use one."

Marius

Girls & Contraception (Ada)

"Girls have very different experiences and stories to tell when it comes to when they first find out about contraception. Often times these stories come from learning about the pill and not so much about emergency contraception or negotiation to use a condom. Being able to feel comfortable to admit that, as a girl/young women, we have sex and then to be able to feel comfortable to talk about which contraceptive methods we would like in order to prevent pregnancy or an STI still seems like an ideal situation for girls.

We aren’t having sex to prevent these outcomes of sex, we are having sex for other reasons. Still, it is important that girls have contraceptive knowledge and choice and that girls can feel comfortable to talk about this.

I come from a family of all girls, and I asked my sisters the question, “when did you first learn about contraception?” Interestingly, we all had different answers and different stories around this question. Here’s my slightly funny and a little depressing story of my first memory of learning about contraception:

My school sex education (not about sexuality at all), similar to many young people, focused on abstinence only scare tactics as well as the biological/anatomical background of sex. During sex education we were shown huge pictures of STIs to know what some STIs, i.e. chlamydia and warts looked like. We ended up saying things like ‘eww gross’ and shielding our eyes and in utter disbelief that that could actually happen to someone. The message from this was supposed to be to either not have sex or wear a condom. The teachers never really thought that young people will never admit to having an STI if there is so much stigma around having one. For some reason, the school decided to address this topic in the same week as wearing a safety belt when in a car – the pictures for this one were major trauma car accidents on what has happened to people who don’t wear their seatbelts…. The message was clear: never have sex and never get in a car!

Luckily for me, talking about getting on birth control was an easy discussion to have. I do remember girls saying “yes, but I’m only on the pill to prevent acne and so my menstrual cramps aren’t so bad”. We still have a lot of work to do to help support girls who want to have sex, feel good about their choices and live healthy sexual lives that protect themselves."

Ada

Girls & Contraception (Maya)

"Contraception gives me control over my life and future, over my health, family status or work aspirations. And what is most important about it - IT GIVES ME A CHOICE!

How and when to protect myself it all up to me. And remember, there is a method for everyone. The pill and the female condom offer girls the chance to be independent and make their own decisions while the condom can help generate trust and security between partners. So make good use of your right of choice and enjoy yourself safely!"

Maya

Girls & Contraception (Luīze)

"I find so weird to be the one insisting that it’s going to
be either with a condom or nothing is going to
happen. Why would it have to be a fight and negotiation?
As if it would be only about me..." (Luīze)

Girls & Education (Tove)

"I was about 9 year old when I started reading English at school. As I guess everyone does when you’re that age, we sang songs for children in English to learn the language better. I especially remember one song that went like this:

Do you like my car?
Yes sir!
Do you like my car?
Yes sir, yes sir!
Do you like my car?
Yes, sir, it’s a beautiful car!

Do you like my dress?
Yes miss!
Do you like my dress?
Yes miss, yes miss!
Do you like my dress?
Yes, miss, it’s a beautiful dress!

Quite silly and pointless song and I didn’t really thought of the lyrics until I got older. What I really love with being a girl in 2010 is that nowadays it’s OK for me to have a car and it’s ok for me to ask: do you like my car?

Though, still it’s not really ok for a boy to have a dress and ask: do you like my dress? But hopefully we get there someday."

Tove, YSAFE Steering Committee member

Girls & Education (Luīze)

"I am so happy that education in my life
has never been a struggle,
a fight or an unfulfilled desire,
it has been something normal
and obvious, just one step more in my path.
I happen to be so lucky!" (Luīze)

Girls & Education (Jacek)

"Its cool to be girl these days, but it was not always this way. Lets speak about education – nowadays equal access to education seems obvious to all, and in many states women are generally better educated than men are. But think about old times when education was only "men thing". Times when women were perceived as having to fragile brains to receive proper education. Think about this world of inequality where men had such gigantic educational advantage over women, making them feel inferior and really dependent.

Think about all brave women witch stood up to fight for this right, remind yourself about Maria Skłodowska-Curie – studying physics, chemistry, and mathematics at Paris Sorbonne, she was treated as „freak”. Woman studying sciences was something really unusual at that time.You can imagine all the social pressure against her, all those comments, and silly smiles suggesting that she should rather choose other way of life. All those people trying to neglect all what she was doing, turning that into
joke.
But she didn't gave up, she became first woman awarded a Ph.D. in research science in Europe and first woman professor at the Sorbonne. She continued her work, and soon she became first woman awarded a Nobel Prize and first person awarded Nobel Prizes in two different scientific disciplines. Showing all the people how wrong they were, and presenting that a woman with an education can achieve results as impressive as can a man with an education.

It is important to be brave, and to stand for your rights, its the only way to make your dreams come true. But it is also very important to be well informed to make proper,
responsible choices. Be brave, be open minded and eager to learn, so you can really enjoy being a girl, a girl aware of her rights, able to defeat all obstacles.

But there are still places in this world where young girls, are denied right to education, and that's not right, remember them!"

Jacek, YSAFE Chair

Girls & Education (Katarína)

Katarína shares with us a "fun and positive and old song" called When I'll Be a Teacher One Day (Až raz budem učitelkou) sung by Dara Rolins, now a very famous Slovak pop-star.

"There will be a lot of singing, singing everywhere
I will teach the teachers how to sing “weeee”
In the classes of singing, singing, singing
Everyone will have to know every HIT

An when we will finish with the singing,
I will start examining in those grammar exceptions,
And large multiplication tables
So they won’t think
That I’m just like any teacher."

First takes: Jennifer

YSAFE member Jennifer sharing how does it feel to be a girl in XXI century and how to deal with some hard issues.

First takes: Maya

YSAFE Steering Committee member Maya sharing how working with SRHR has empowered her.

First takes: Tove

YSAFE Steering Committee member Tove sharing on what to do at moments when being a girl might not be that amazing.

More Than Make-up

Almost half [of girls surveyed] admitted the worst part
about being females is the feeling that they
have to look attractive.

A video-teaser for the Girl Guiding UK Girls' Attitudes 2010 survey,
you can find survey's official website here and an article resuming it in the Sun here.

Katarína ♥ Being a Girl

The amazing YSAFE intern-coordinator Katarína talks about what is that she LOVES about being a girl (although it's not that easy sometimes), as she says:

"It's NOT OK to expect a girl just to shut up and smile prettily!"

I ♥ Being a Girl, because... II

We had a long-long conversation with girls volunteering at the Latvian Association for Family Planning & Sexual Health and they ♥ being girls, because being a girl to them means being able to:

• trust your intuition
• have a spice-sense
• have unlimited fantasy
• come up with wacky jokes
• enjoy lacy things
  
• be interested in all kinds of feminine stuff
• have that amazing shape of the body
• be beautiful
• use make-up
• enjoy female solidarity
• smile while walking down the street
• wear sparkly crowns (Ms. Universe gets a crown while Mr. Universe does not)
• be a muse
• inspire
• be boyish
• let others carry your heavy stuff
• tease
• be forgiven more
• let to walk you home
• show your vulnerability
• be taken care of

"all those cool words that are feminine
in Latvian by their grammatical gender,
like inspiration, idea, thought, wisdom, state…"

The beautiful word cloud created with Wordle.

On the Role-Play Game Called Life

"Imagine that life is a role-play game where the plot develops as a result of the decisions you have made and the puzzles you have solved.
So how could you win this game? What happens if someone starts interfering and making the decisions for you? Is it still your game, and are you really playing it?
Barriers to the individual are barriers to progress
Prejudice, stigma, discrimination, pressure and many more social forces are barriers that lots of people face in the game called Life. Gender role is a maze that girls in particular are often trapped in. Though gender roles vary significantly around the world, they are often demanding and oppressive. Whether they involve the pressure to become a housewife, to have many children, or to starve just to get into a 0-sized dress, they can deprive women of a major human right: to enjoy being who you truly are.
Women all around the world need equal rights, freedom of choice and universal access to services, especially the ones related to sexual and reproductive health. But in order for all of those components to really work, women also need to overcome the self-stigma and the barriers they set themselves. Finding your true identity and being able to express feelings and opinions is at the very basis of making a difference..."

That's how Maya's article Girls, Love Yourselves and Win the Role-Play Game Called Life on what I ♥ Being a Girl is all about starts. Go to Conversations for a Better World and read the rest of it!

Behind the scenes XI

Closing the chapter on AIDS 2010 stories... yes, we are still drooling over the memories from Vienna.

Created with flickr slideshow from softsea.

Behind the scenes X (Peek-a-boo)

Keeping it playful!

Created with flickr slideshow from Softsea.

I ♥ Being a Girl, because... I

Girls that were present at our session It's Great to Be a Girl just LOVE being girls, because being a girl to them means being able to:

• feel beautiful
• be more sensitive
  
• be sensible
  
• be strong & sensitive at the same time
  
• be daddy’s girl
  
• be a girl guide
• chose to wear skirts or trousers (and it’s OK)
• cry
• go to the pub with my mates
• wear skirts
• have boobs
• like pink
• reach out more
• enjoy that fight for the equality

The beautiful word cloud created with Wordle.

The Girl Effect

The amazing-amazing The Girl Effect video a friend of ours reminded about.
For more check out their YouTube channel.

Gender as a Tool (animated)

An animation on Gender from lina + ole on Vimeo, found via Genderfork.

Behind the scenes IX

Yes, we are still missing ALL the fun and stress we got at the AIDS conference, we do...

Created with flickr slideshow from softsea.

Embrace Your Inner Girl

This Eve Ensler's TED talk "Embrace Your Inner Girl" has been our major inspiration, becuse we love, love, love being girls!

Gender, what?

Inspiring: CocoRosie bending the gender and we dare to guess that they quite ♥ being girls too.

Behind the scenes VIII

That's how a normal food-break looked like at AIDS 2010, at least that wasn't a cheese sandwich...

Behind the scenes VII

It's all about supporting and entertaining each other...

It's great to be a girl!

Created with flickr slideshow from softsea.

Before and during the It's Great to Be a Girl session in Women's Networking Zone,
21 July 2010

Memorabilia

Some souvenirs we brought home from AIDS 2010:
a pin given by our wonderful Y-Peer friends,
an IPPF pin reminding that it's time to stop the criminalization of HIV,
a Women's Right = Human Rights pin
and few I ♥ Being a Girl pins that we've managed to hide for ourselves and not to give away to all those people who were demanding them...

Oh, popularity is so tough, we should've taken more of those with us!

Behind the scenes V

That's how we do the interviews...
and eat CHOCOLATE!

Behind the scenes IV

Time by time we even eat and sleep...

Behind the scenes III

Not only our fabulous t-shirts are making a trend in the International AIDS Conference 2010, we have also pins to be attached and proudly worn... EVERYWHERE!

Behind the scenes II

Maya with our new best friend HDR-FX1E

Behind the scenes I

That's the process...