July 2010 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Welcome to our inaugural edition of WAAW Foundation's newsletter.

We value you as a WAAW friend, and hope that this newsletter will provide you with more information on our activities, progress and upcoming projects.

We look forward to the exciting times ahead of WAAW Foundation as we passionately pursue our vision to empower women in African through education. Do take time to read through our articles, visit our website, our facebook page and our blog and, please send us comments and feedback.

Sincerely,

WAAW Foundation

Announcing WAAW's New Initiative

WAAW introduces new Women of Vision Initiative under the Forum for African Women in Science and Technology (FAWST) program. FAWST is the newest program which will be officially launched by WAAW foundation in December 2010.

The mission of FAWST is to increase the number and impact of African women leaders in Science and Technology by creating avenues to network people and organizations from industry, academia and government sectors.

We are African women technologists. We use technology to connect our communities. We create technology to help Africa because we are intelligent, creative and passionate about Africa and about innovation.

We develop ideas and competitive solutions to our problems that impact our lives, our communities and our continent. We are changing the world for women and technology. Together, we are inventing a better future for Africa.

The annual FAWST Conference which will kick off in 2012 is designed to bring the research and career interests of African women in Science and Technology to the forefront. The vision of the Conference is to be the world’s largest gathering of African women in technology.

For our sponsors it will be a premier event to engage with Africa, recruit new talent, promote their organization and inspire their workforce. Contact us at fawst@waawfoundation.org if you would like more information about sponsoring this event. This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it if you would like more information about sponsoring this event.

Women of Vision

Our first initiative is the African Women of Vision Conference. The Women of Vision Awards Banquet, hosted by WAAW Foundation, honors women making significant contributions to technology. One winner is selected in each category: Innovation, Leadership, and Social Impact. To nominate someone, please email us at fawst@waawfoundation.org .

To join the forum mailing list, please click the link below and provide us with your email address.

Prof. Amekudzi on African Women Leaders

Dr. Adjo Amekudzi is an Associate Professor in the School of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech). Her research, teaching and other professional activities focus on civil infrastructure decision makng to promote sustainable development.

What has your experience been as an African woman leader in science and technology?

My work as a professor brings me in contact with hundreds of students every year with the opportunity to impact how they view themselves as agents of change and leaders who can apply engineering to improve the quality of life of their own communities and various communities around the world. My work also offer several opportunities to contribute evidence-based (scientific and engineering) information to affect government policies the shape the quality of life of various communities. And last but not least, my work offers me the opportunity to contribute to advancing various knowledge frontiers in civil engineering.

What you think about WAAW Foundation and the new FAWST initiative?

WAAW Foundation is an excellent example of the initiatives that are needed today to help women realize their vast and undertapped potential as a force for economic and social development, as well as environmental preservation. Emancipating women means emancipating entire communities. Investing in the education of girls and women breaks the cycle of poverty, and improves the quality of life of entire families, and therefore entire cities and nations. By promoting the education of girls and women in science and technology, the FAWST initiative is an important instrument for the sustainable development of communities at multiple levels (i.e., villages, cities and ultimately entire nations).

New Member Joins WAAW Executive Board

Jean Njoroge, a PhD Student at Texas A&M University in College Station, TX joins the Executive Board of WAAW foundation.

Jean holds a Bachelors Degree in Chemical Engineering from Prairie View A&M University. She is a recipient of the Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (LSAMP)/NSF fellowship. She is committed to empowering a future generation of African women leaders through projects that promote STEM education and create communities for partner organizations to easily locate and engage talent.

Please join us in welcoming Jean to our team!

WAAW Founder at Stanford's EPSE

From June 19th through July 2, WAAW Foundation's President and Founder attended Stanford University Graduate School of Business Executive Program for Social Entreprenuership (EPSE). Dr. Unoma Okorafor was inspired by the work of several great social entreprenuers around the world. The work of WAAW is even more crucial in elevating Africa out of poverty. You can read her thoughts on the EPSE program and what it means for WAAW Foundation.

For me, Stanford’s 2010 Graduate School of Business Executive Program in Social Entrepreneurship (EPSE) provided an absolutely phenomenal atmosphere for building skills and networking through amazing interactions with the faculty and the other program participants. I was really struck by the level of faculty engagement, the depth of instruction and the passion for their research and how they apply to the practicality of the non-profit world. The caliber of participants from all over the world, who are all leaders in their various endeavors and are doing really amazing things to tackle important global issues that will lead to major soial change, was very impressive.

The EPSE program left me inspired and energized, ready to conquer the world! The collaboration and exchange of ideas was truly refreshing, and the interpersonal relationships with my colleagues helped me get out of my own paradigm and gave me a different perspective on challenging my norms and ideas.

I am very excited because I can see how the tools I gained at EPSE will have immediate, practical and long lasting benefits to WAAW Foundation: from ideas for rapid prototyping to taping the social capital market, to engaging the power of social media and personal story telling, each day at EPSE brought several “aha” moments for me.

To cap it off, two weeks of world class gourmet cuisine at Stanford with impeccable service … priceless!

I am very very excited about the next phase of growth for WAAW Foundation as together, we transition into a Global Social enterprise creating significantly more impact in the lives of African women.

Unoma

July 2, 2010

Click here to read IndegoAfrica's Senior Vice President, Ben Stone's review of Stanford's EPSE program.

June 2010 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Welcome to our inaugural edition of WAAW Foundation's newsletter.

We value you as a WAAW friend, and hope that this newsletter will provide you with more information on our activities, progress and upcoming projects.

We look forward to the exciting times ahead of WAAW Foundation as we passionately pursue our vision to empower women in African through education. Do take time to read through our articles, visit our website, our facebook page and our blog and, please send us comments and feedback.

Sincerely,

WAAW Foundation

Texas Instruments Donates to WAAW

Texas Instruments Education Technology Group has donated 60 CAS graphing calculators to WAAW Foundation to help support its planned 2010 girls camp.

The gently used graphing calculators which were donated in April will enhance the understanding of math and science concepts for girls in secondary school through hands on activities, multiple representation of concepts, visualization of ideas, as well as assist with teacher evaluation.

WAAW Foundation plans to use the units in its first girls camp planned for later this year in Abuja Nigeria. We still seek donations of items as school supplies, computer and office equipments, textbooks, cuurriculum development and training.

A big thank you to Texas Instruments for supporting our work.

Speaking at WISE

WAAW founder Dr. Unoma Okorafor spoke at the Women in Science and Engineering (WISE) Conference at Texas A & M University in February 2010. The goal of the conference is to provide a forum for the exchange of information on the challenges women face in preparing for and pursuing successful STEM careers.

In her talk, Dr. Okorafor presented methods for achieving win-win negotiations, and introduced the vision and work of WAAW foundation.

WAAW in Markurdi

WAAW Foundation board member Ruth A. Aisabokhae took the initiative to organize a motivational seminar for women in Nigeria in collaboration with WAAW Foundation and other organizations. She recounts her impactful experience in her own words.

"Finally back to the grind, I want to share with you my brief but very fulfilling experience while back home in Nigeria. After some deliberations with the Deputy Vice Chancellor Academics of my undergraduate alma mater, the University of Agriculture, Makurdi (UAM) and using mostly the travel/ conference portion of my Faculty for The Future grant, I organized a one-day motivational-themed conference for young ladies 18+ and captioned it "Project Empowerment”.

Five well-respected and admired women who are achievers in their fields of endeavor with ages ranging from 29 to 55 (including my Mum!) were invited to join me on a panel where each of us spoke, shared part of our own personal experiences and answered a few questions. We had planned for a maximum of 150 but there were close to 300 participants though only 237 formally registered. It was said that this event was the first of its kind and never in the history of that town had people arrived that early and sat through an entire program.

The Nigerian Academic Staff of Universities Union (ASUU) had been on a nation-wide strike for several months and this situation was meant to be a deterrent to getting UAM female students to attend the event, nonetheless, it turned out to be for the better since we could make it open to the general public and therefore hosted ladies from over 10 institutions (currently attending and having attended). Everyone I have learned is a leader to her own unique group and when we realize how we influence and make an impact on those around us, it becomes a humbling but very enriching experience. This event was meant to be a small package to give back and of course an opportunity to visit with my family after almost three years but it turned out to be an experience of a lifetime."

2010 Scholarship Update

WAAW foundation's 2010 scholarship program is on course. Applications have closed, and the Scholarship committee is reviewing all applications. This year, we hope to offer three $500 scholarships. Scholarship recipients will be announced soon. Thank you for your support as we expand our scholarship program.

Amara Okafor, WAAW Scholarship Commitee Chair