by World Moms Network | Nov 28, 2016 | 2016, Our Shop, Store
We’ve extended the sale! Today’s the last day to receive $5 off each Hope Bag (the grey one with the sari braided handles) when you shop today, Monday, November 28th, 2016, while supplies last! The Hope Bag, along with all of the products in our mini-shop are sourced from women’s cooperatives that provide jobs for sex trade survivors. Proceeds from the shop benefit World Moms Network and help us keep our site running! We think providing voices for women around the world is important. If you do, too, please consider purchasing from our shop to support our work!
Gorgeous Braided Repurposed Sari Handles — each bag is unique!
Happy Shopping!
World Moms Network is an award winning website whose mission statement is "Connecting mothers; empowering women around the globe." With over 70 contributors who write from over 30 countries, the site covered the topics of motherhood, culture, human rights and social good.
Most recently, our Senior Editor in India, Purnima Ramakrishnan was awarded "Best Reporting on the UN" form the UNCA. The site has also been named a "Top Website for Women" by FORBES Woman and recommended by the NY Times Motherlode and the Times of India. Follow our hashtags: #worldmom and #worldmoms
Formerly, our site was known as World Moms Blog.
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by Jennifer Burden | Nov 23, 2016 | 2016, Our Shop, Store
It is with tons of enthusiasm from around the world that we announce that our mini-shop is live and taking orders!
The World Moms have been talking about this for years, and we finally launched our mini-shop! The first products are sourced from women’s cooperatives in India and Cambodia that provide jobs for sex trade survivors.
From covering the stories that affect women and children around the world for over 6 years, we’ve come to know how our decisions can impact change. Sourcing our first socially responsible products with our friends at To The Market danced beautifully with our mission statement: “Connecting mothers; empowering women around the globe.”
We hooked up with Jane Knowles from To the Market at the ONE Campaign’s AYA Summit a few years back!
Proceeds from our first products will go towards our expenses to run the site and fund our World Moms Network Ambassador Training Program, which our contributors will be participating in online in 2017!
FEATURED PRODUCT: #HOPEBAG
With no further hesitation, I must introduce you to the Hope Bag! The story behind it goes like this: I called on my English friend from university, Hannah Ashton, who always had her nose in a fashion magazine and dragged me to shop after shop! I told her that we needed to source responsibly, but I needed help with the fashion part. She dove in and said that we must feature the bag with the gorgeous, repurposed sari handles. So, here we are months later!
World Mom, Hannah, chose a grey jute, which is confident enough to turn all eyes to the main show stopper of this bag: the handles. We were nervous when we sent the first payment for the shipment, but many of us screamed with enthusiasm when the shipment arrived!! They are exactly how we imagined, if not better! We hope you love them, too.
Multicolored with a punch of varying shades of pink and purple, the braided handles on the Hope Bag are a show stopper! The handles are made from washed, repurposed saris. Some handles are lighter, others darker, some brighter, and others more muted. Different colors. All gorgeous.
Example of the sari handles — each bag is unique!
Inside, the bag is lined with a charcoal cotton lining and has a zippered inner pocket.
Lined in charcoal cotton with a zippered inside pocket!
The handles were so much fun to photograph!
And here is one on the rack…
The Hope Bag in grey sells for $35 plus tax and shipping. Merchandise ships from the USA. Click on over to our mini-shop to purchase this bag or see what other finds we are featuring — a mini, yet thoughtful, selection of bags and bracelets…it’s a start!
This is an original post to World Moms Network from founder and CEO, Jennifer Burden in the USA.
Photo credits to Jennifer Burden.
Jennifer Burden is the Founder and CEO of World Moms Network, an award winning website on global motherhood, culture, human rights and social good. World Moms Network writes from over 30 countries, has over 70 contributors and was listed by Forbes as one of the “Best 100 Websites for Women”, named a “must read” by The New York Times, and was recommended by The Times of India.
She was also invited to Uganda to view UNICEF’s family health programs with Shot@Life and was previously named a “Global Influencer Fellow” and “Social Media Fellow” by the UN Foundation. Jennifer was invited to the White House twice, including as a nominated "Changemaker" for the State of the World Women Summit. She also participated in the One Campaign’s first AYA Summit on the topic of women and girl empowerment and organized and spoke on an international panel at the World Bank in Washington, DC on the importance of a universal education for all girls. Her writing has been featured by Baby Center, Huffington Post, ONE.org, the UN Foundation’s Shot@Life, and The Gates Foundation’s “Impatient Optimists.” She is currently a candidate in Columbia University's School of International and Public Affairs in the Executive Masters of Public Affairs program, where she hopes to further her study of global policies affecting women and girls.
Jennifer can be found on Twitter @JenniferBurden.
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by World Moms Blog | Oct 5, 2016 | 2016, Africa and Middle East, Birthing, Health, Kenya, Maternal Health, Mission Motherhood, Pregnancy
Jennifer Burden, Founder & CEO of World Moms Network
As part of World Moms Blog’s collaboration with BabyCenter’s Mission Motherhood®, our World Moms are writing posts on maternal health around the world. In today’s post, Jennifer Burden writes about Jacaranda Health’s impact on maternal health in Kenya.
“Whether you are thinking about getting pregnant, currently pregnant, or a seasoned birther, there is one thing that we can all agree about avoiding. Lines in the maternity ward!! Big ones. HUGE. Because, hey, when a mother’s gotta birth, a mother’s gotta birth, right? Get out of our way, we’re coming through!!!
Long lines are the reality for moms who seek to give birth in public clinics in Kenya. Add lack of good procedures to prevent infection, being disrespected by health workers, rushed care, and overlooked emergencies to the mix; and Kenyan women report having bad experiences at public clinics. Giving birth can be frightening and dangerous for moms here. The Kenyan government is committed to help; however, there is little oversight or training to make the improvements needed…”
Read the full post, Maternal health worth traveling miles for in Kenya, over at BabyCenter’s Mission Motherhood®!
World Moms Blog is an award winning website which writes from over 30 countries on the topics of motherhood, culture, human rights and social good. Over 70 international contributors share their stories from around the globe, bonded by the common thread of motherhood and wanting a better world for their children.
World Moms Blog was listed by Forbes Woman as one of the "Best 100 Websites for Women 2012 & 2013" and also called a "must read" by the NY Times Motherlode in 2013. Our Senior Editor in India, Purnima Ramakrishnan, was awarded the BlogHer International Activist Award in 2013.
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by World Moms Blog | Dec 23, 2015 | 2015, Blogiversary, World Interviews, World Moms Blog
In 2010 World Moms Blog launched from 3 countries. Today, we write from over 30 and have over 70 contributors. In five years there has been awards from the UN Correspondents Association for “Best Reporting on the UN” to Forbes Woman for “Best 100 Website for Women.” Our mothers have gone on reporting and/or speaking fellowships with the International Reporting Project, the UN Foundation and BlogHer.
World Moms Blog has sponsored a panel at the World Bank on the right to a universal education for all. The New York Times Motherlode and the Times of India has recommended our site to their readers. World Moms have been thanked in person by the UN Secretary General, invited to the White House, and have had conversations with royalty and global leaders on a variety of issues such as eradicating poverty, the Syrian refugee crisis, AIDS, the importance of study aboard and more.
We attribute the success of the site to having to solve a problem very early on: Who was going to run the blog while our founder was going to have her second baby?
At that point Jennifer Burden, our founder and CEO, had to become quickly comfortable with handing over responsibility. Kyla P’an, Purnima Ramakrishnan, Kirsten Doyle and Eva Fannon all volunteered to help out in February 2011. And guess what? They are ALL STILL editing for World Moms Blog! Add on our current managing editor, Elizabeth Atalay; social media manager, Sarah Hughes; and relationships manager, Cindy Levin, and we are rocking it! Not to mention our awesome social media team: Nicole Morgan, Karyn Wills, Nicole Melancon and Amy Pohl!
These women have been the backbone of World Moms Blog, and without them, who knows where we’d be! The site has certainly been a group effort from very early on and the World Moms have been part of the decision making behind the blog.
In commemoration of 5 years of World Moms Blog, we’ve asked our contributors about their favorite moments of being a part of World Moms Blog. Here’s what they’ve had to say:
Maureen Hitipeuw of Indonesia:
“Definitely meeting Ruth Wong (Singapore) and Susan Koh (Singapore) last June. It was chaotic at first with me getting lost in their huge airport, and then we had so much fun.”
World Moms, Ruth Wong of Singapore, Maureen Hitipeuw of Indonesia and Susan Koh of Singapore are all together for the first time at the Singapore airport in 2015. Maureen had a layover and called on her fellow World Moms!
Tara B. of the USA:
“I love having Karyn Wills (New Zealand) as a FB friend on the opposite side of the globe. I love her winter posts during my summer, and her warm sunny summer posts brighten up my dark PacNW winter. Plus every evening when I check my social media before bed, she is posting to start her day. It reminds me of the great big world chugging along out there. Plus Karyn is funny as all get out.”
Meredith of the USA:
“I love reading the comments when I have a post run. It makes me feel like I am not alone in what I am feeling as a mother.”
Martine deLuna of the Philippines:
“Definitely one of the best parts was meeting Ruth Wong in Singapore two years ago!”
World Moms, Martine deLuna of the Philippines and Ruth Wong of Singapore, meet for the first time in 2013!
Sarah Hughes of the USA:
“The day I met Jennifer Burden at her house to drop off hats after Hurricane Sandy!!! xo”
World Moms, Jennifer Burden and Sarah Hughes, distribute hats for victims of Hurricane Sandy in 2012.
Michelle Pannell of the UK:
“My highlight was my introduction to WMB & that was meeting Jennifer Burden and Cynthia Changyit Levin at the first night of the #AYAsummit, which was the social. As the only Brit in the room, I didn’t really know anyone, but you ladies embraced me and made me feel welcome and a part. That night encapsulates all of what WMB is about. Mums/moms coming together, sharing, laughing, being real, sharing their hearts for a broken world and extending a hand in friendship/ kindness. I actually feel quite teary now! Sincerely thank you. x”
Nicole Morgan of the USA:
“I am so blessed to know many of the WMB moms in real life … and they count amongst my very best friends. I clearly remember meeting our fearless leader in San Diego so many years back, and am so grateful for our friendship. We have shared late night conversations, countless meals, and even a bed at a conference since. With this amazing group, I have attended multiple events, supported dozens of causes … had so much fun with our #posseofpossibilities … we have even had a slumber party in Jenn’s basement! These girls are my rock .. and for those in far flung places … who check on me and share love from afar .. yes Karyn Wills (New Zealand), Purnima Ramakrishnan (India) and Maureen Hitipeuw (Indonesia)… the love is endless.“
World Moms at a ONE event in NYC in September 2015 pose for a “Strengthie” with Neha Misra of Solar Sisters.
Frelle of the USA:
“Meeting so many at BlogHer12!”
World Moms at the BlogHer conference in NYC in 2012.
K10K of Belgium:
“Meeting Mirjam Rose (Netherlands), Olga Mecking (Netherlands), Tinne De Beckker (Belgium) and Jennifer Burden (USA) in Antwerp, Belgium!”
World Moms met for an afternoon in Antwerp Belgium in 2014! Olga Mecking of the Netherlands, Mirjam of the Netherlands, Jennifer Burden of the USA, K10K of Belgium and Tinne of Belgium.
Julie Dutra of Portugal:
“Meeting Martine De Luna (The Philippines) on Skype and getting my blog revamped with her help!
Kyla P’an of the USA:
“A highlight for me was stepping in as interim editor in chief just a few months after WMB started because Jennifer Burden needed to take a little “maternity leave” after having Jess. Nothing gives you insight to the crazy mechanics of an organization like running it. I love our network of mothers around the globe. Forget the sentiment that it takes a village to raise children, for me, it takes a World.”
World Moms meet in Washington, DC in 2012! Dee Harlow, Kyla P’an, Jennifer Burden and Nicole Melancon.
Karyn Wills of New Zealand:
“All of what everyone else said about the friendships and getting to know people from other places but unexpected consequence of that is having contact with people actually living stories we hear of (or don’t hear of) in the media from a local perspective. From attacks in Israel to the every day effect of the fires in Thailand on countries close by, and everything in between, I feel like I have a far greater understanding of what’s going on thanks to the friendships I’ve made here.”
Ruth Wong of Singapore:
“I agree that the friendships forged here have been such a blessing, and it’s amazing to have friends all around the world through WMB. I dream that one day, we’ll all get to meet in person!”
Aisha Yesufu of Nigeria:
“When darkness falls in the middle of the day, when at the precipice of depression, when one loses all hope in humanity, a single word, smile, hug sent across continents from a World Mom just sets the world right for me. This community also gives the voiceless one the voice to be heard by many across the world.
‘Indeed we are good people.’ That’s the message I get from my World Moms Blog family. Thank you for bringing me in touch with humanity.”
Jennifer Burden of the USA:
No doubt, meeting my fellow World Moms is so meaningful — on Skype, on the phone and in person! This community of women has meant so much to me. Behind every strong woman is a community of strong women! I look forward to finding ways in which we can make more of these offline meetings happen in 2016!
World Moms Blog is an award winning website which writes from over 30 countries on the topics of motherhood, culture, human rights and social good. Over 70 international contributors share their stories from around the globe, bonded by the common thread of motherhood and wanting a better world for their children.
World Moms Blog was listed by Forbes Woman as one of the "Best 100 Websites for Women 2012 & 2013" and also called a "must read" by the NY Times Motherlode in 2013. Our Senior Editor in India, Purnima Ramakrishnan, was awarded the BlogHer International Activist Award in 2013.
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by Aisha Yesufu | Oct 8, 2015 | 2015, Africa, Inspirational, Nigeria
World Mom, Aisha Yesufu in Nigeria, has an incredible amount of drive. From humble beginnings, she worked hard at her education and it became her family’s ticket to a better life. We’ve had the chance to join her virtually on World Moms Blog’s panel at the World Bank on the right to a universal education in April, and she is truly, an inspiration.
Just in time for International Day of the Girl on Sunday, get ready, women and girls everywhere, to reach your goals and make things happen!…
If you want to reach your goals, start a business, or start doing anything else for that matter, it has to start in your mind. You have to believe in yourself. You have to believe that you can do it, and this is where most times we have a problem. We start something without actually believing that we can do it. Sometimes we just start certain things without truly believing in ourselves.
We are either pressured into doing it, or doing it because others are doing it; and its expected of us. We start never truly believing in ourselves. You just go ahead to start something, and even you, yourself, are not sure you can do it. You don’t believe you can do it and along the way things begin to fall apart and you begin to blame external forces.
There are no external forces affecting us. The problem is our mindset. What is your mindset when you are about to start? That is something that we can change.
Other times we never start something because in our minds we do not think we are worthy of it or capable of it.
You have to realise your mind does not know the difference between reality and what is not real. Let me give an example. You are just sitting down having a nice time and all of a sudden you hear bad news. You know what happens when we hear bad news? Everything changes, and we begin to cry or scream or feel sad. Your whole body, your whole mind, everything changes. What happened? It’s only that the news got to you!
You don’t even know if what you just learned is true or not. Have you confirmed the bad news? Fact checked it yet? No! You just heard the news and that’s it. That’s the mind. It does not ask for confirmation whether the news is true or not, it goes into the mode it’s fed. That means your mind does not know the difference between truth and a lie. It is reactionary.
If you have continously been told you would amount to nothing all your life and you feed your mind that same notion, well, then, guess what? You may think this is true about yourself! You have to free yourself from the shackles of mental bondage.
You can always trick your mind. For example, you can tell your mind you are the greatest business person in the world. In fact you are at par with Dangote, a billionaire and businessman in my home country of Nigeria. Your mind doesn’t know whether it’s the truth, or not. It’s going to accept it, but the thing you need to do now is to begin to do what smart business people do. I listened to Dangote once on a live interview on TV sometime in 2001 or 2002, and he said he goes to work around 9am and doesn’t close before 9pm.
For me that was a wake up call. I had one of my “Aha!” moments then. When I first saw him I thought, “If only God will bless me the way he has blessed this man.” And when I heard he works 12 hours a day, for me, that was a wake up call.
If you trick your mind into thinking that you are among the ranks of the leaders, and you begin to work as they do, you may begin to set bigger goals for yourself. You can run with the best of them, but you have to BELIEVE it.
When you are trying something new with the mindset of negativity, it could impede your progress. At that point, you may not want to even bother starting. It failed before it took off because it failed in your mind, if you did not have the right mindset. But I believe this thinking can be changed.
World Mom, Aisha Yesufu, speaks out in Abuja on August 17, 2015 against anti-corruption in Nigeria.
Business and goal setting starts in your mind and you need a lot of patience. Business needs patience, patience and more patience. There is nothing like overnight success.
It’s a whole lot of hard work starting something new and having the right mindset. Persevering, focusing on what you are doing. Setting goals and moving on. This does not come easy, but I believe if you keep going that is what leads to that “overnight ” success that a lot of people see. Our mindset is very important and often times when you talk to people the mindset is just not positive. We are looking at our past and looking at who we were and not who we could be.
Where I grew up, we didn’t have anybody. We were born into less privileged homes. It didn’t matter. Whether you are a billionaire; the child of a billionaire; the child of struggling parents making ends meet or from a rich neighbourhood or the slums; it doesn’t really matter. It’s your mindset that matters and determines who you are at the end of the day.
If you don’t believe you are a star you can never be a star. If you don’t believe you are a success you can never be a success.
You can never be greater than your mind.
You have to set your mind higher. Give it goals. Give it targets. Give your mind something to work on. Trick yourself into thinking positively. It doesn’t know the difference between truth and a lie. Tell your mind a good lie. “You are a big time business person.” “You are a billionaire.” “You are on Forbes list.” Let your unconscious mind even when you are sleeping work on that.
Our mindset is of such utmost importance and most often we neglect it. We don’t work on it. There is a need for us to work on our mindset to project ourself mentally where we want to be before we begin to work on that.
Some use Affirmation like repeating to yourself…
I AM THE GREATEST BUSINESS PERSON. I AM THE GREATEST TEACHER. I AM THE GREATEST ASTRONAUT. I AM THE GREATEST CHEF. I AM THE GREATEST POLITICAL LEADER. I AM THE GREATEST MUSICIAN. I AM THE GREATEST FRIEND. I AM THE GREATEST PEACEKEEPER. I AM THE GREATEST HUMANITARIAN.
You can keep saying that repeatedly so it becomes engraved in your mind. Whatever you want to be, you need to let your mind know.
Once you have a positive mindset and believe you CAN, you can start thinking about setting goals to achieve something in your heart. Something that you would ordinarily look at as impossible, but because of your mindset you don’t see the impossibility. You see the POSSIBILITY. You just strike out the ‘im’ and you move on.
Have a positive mindset. Believe you can do it. Why not you? Why can’t you achieve it? If people are achieving it why not you? The difference between the achiever and the non achiever is the MINDSET. Go get ’em, World Moms!
This is an original post to World Moms Blog by contributor Aisha Yesufu in Nigeria.
Photo credit of Aisha to the author. Images to World Moms Blog.
