Category: Girl Effect

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We built a chatbot!

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It’s been a busy few months at Girl Effect for me. I got promoted (yay me) and now lead content strategy across the organization. We also rolled out the first social campaign for the Nutrition International project and most exciting we launched my passion project for the last few months Big Sis, Girl Effect’s first ever chatbot!

Big Sis uses guided conversation to answer girls’ questions about sexual health. Girls are guided through entertaining, informative content with quizzes (you know I had to have quizzes), to test their knowledge on sex, sexuality, contraception, and relationships.

Learn more about the iterative User Centered Design process we employed to build Big Sis here.

We recently showcased our pioneering girl to experts at the Global Digital Health Forum in Washington DC. The forum is the leading networking event for global public and digital health experts from more than 100 countries. 

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Empowering Girls with Mobile breakfast panel

Screenshot 2019-03-14 at 14.50.32.pngLast week I hosted a breakfast panel launching Girl Effect and Vodafone Foundation’s  #girlsandmobile research to the development community! The event was a preview of one of the biggest studies ever conducted on girls and mobile. Later that day I had the pleasure of participating in the public launch at the Social Good Summit, where 16-year old filmmaker Zuriel Oduwole introduced the report with a fantastic presentation that had us all on our feet!

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Our insights and evidence colleagues worked very hard on this, so well done team!

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Springster partners with Nutrition International

Less than a year after launching as a global brand Springster has landed, it’s first big donor partnership. Over the next two years, we will be working with the amazing Canadian non-profit Nutrition international to target malnutrition among adolescent girls in Indonesia using our thriving mobile community.

We all gathered at the Canadian Embassy recently for the launch of the partnership

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(yeah that’s me in the red listening intently to our CEO Farah’s speech….hi mom)

Read more about the event here and you can watch our super cute video that gives an overview of the work we’re doing below.

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I spoke at the SBCC Summit

I spoke at the 2018 International Social and Behavior Change Communication Summit exploring the thorny oxymorons that the development sector routinely wrestles with as it integrates digital platforms into behavior change work.

The panel was moderated by Laura Baringer, Senior Manager Girls Connect (Girl Effect)  and included Kecia Bertermann, Senior Manager Evidence, Girl Effect, Linda Raftree, Independent Consultant, and Samantha Jackson, Managing Director, Percolate Galactic

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We discussed how we can we both enable greater voice and participation while still ensuring that we are protecting young people and their privacy. We shared how on Springster we collect the data needed to be able to adapt platforms and content to users needs and interests while minimizing the data we collect, so that we are respecting privacy and reducing the potential for data breaches. We also explored how we use our data to understand the contribution of mobile and online platforms to behavior change whilst complying with privacy laws and regulations.

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Launching Girl Effect’s first global brand, Springster

facebook-header-3.2e16d0ba.fill-790x400After 2 and half years as the digital content mama on Girl Effect Mobile (GEM) working with the amazing media non-profit Girl Effect, I’m excited to finally be able to reveal our new rebrand as global girls digital brand Springster!

We traveled to 5 countries to talk to girls about what they wanted from GEM and girls told us they wanted to be part of something, as well as support and celebrate each other. We listened and responded with Springster, a brand that aims to build a community-focused identity and attitude, celebrating the diverse, inspirational and convention-defying experiences of all girls.

The branding is beautiful and it was an amazing collaborating with the incredible team at Design Studio in London. But it’s not just our new illustrations (all done by an amazing female team we handpicked from almost every corner of the world) and fun UX that made this an amazing project for me, it was seeing how we’ve grown and evolved and learned with girls to bring them an even better version of our platforms.  I have to give us all a pat on the back… we did good!

You can learn more about Springster in our factsheet

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Springster series Hara Huru Dara featured at YoutubeFest

fanfestWe hooked up with Youtube to create a ten-episode web series for Springster Indonesia!

The show adapted some of our most popular on-site content into a fun, conversational format covering everything from a takedown of catcalling culture to tips on preparing for job interviews, to a light-hearted deconstruction of harmful period myths.

The series was hosted by an inspiring group of young female influencers including actress and pop sensation Sheryl Sheinafia.

Thanks to our incredible Indonesian creative team Percolate Galatic we were able to secure some of Asia’s coolest creative talent including award-winning director and filmmaker Lucky Kuswandi, and we even scored a jingle by rising 18-year-old Indonesian singer-songwriter Heidi Nasution!

 

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Women and Girls Speak Up and Stay Safe: Media and Mobiles

vodafone 1.jpgI was invited by the Vodafone Americas Foundation and Internews, to be part of a panel discussion about empowering women and girls with tools to make their voices heard, but also we explored how we can keep girls and women safe in these digital spaces.

Alongside me on the Panel was Kat Duffy, Vice President of Global Technology Programs at Internews, Emily May, co-Founder of Hollaback!, Alli Maloney, the News and Politics Editor at Teen Vogue, and Solange Nyasoso, a human rights advocate and journalist from the Democratic Republic of Congo.

They are all inspiring women who are doing great work to amplify the voices of women and girls online, and I was honored to share a platform with them!

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Digital content for financial literacy

I worked on a really cool Girl Effect project with Save the Children in Indonesia recently.

As lead content strategist on the Dooit app, a financial literacy tool targeted at girls in school between 16-18 years old.

We wanted to adapt the successful Save the Children’s Skills to Success program curriculum into a fun mobile-friendly experience for girls.

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Using User Centered Design we worked with girls to design a product and content that would help them save money and reach their financial goals.

Understanding the constraints of low-income girls for whom banks are inaccessible or untrusted, it made sense to create a personal money mentor. Dooit guides girls in setting financial goals and then helps them to track savings.

Plus, it wouldn’t be a Khwezi content strategy for girls without fun quizzes, and games.  Dooit encourages and supports girls while helping them to shift behaviors and improve their financial literacy.

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GEM shortlisted for prestigious Mobile World Congress GLOMO award

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This article was originally published on Girl Effect.Org

 

In recognition of mobile innovation in emerging markets.

Girl Effect Mobile (GEM) has been shortlisted for a Glomo (Global Mobile) award for its work on connecting girls to important information, engaging content, and to one another.

GEM has been nominated for the ‘Best Mobile Innovation for Emerging Markets’ award in the Social and Economic Development category. The awards will be presented at this year’s Mobile World Congress in Barcelona.

Contin…