Visit our website at http://www.gov.ns.ca/staw
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NEWSBYTES - for Friday, May 18, 2007
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Newsbytes is a members’ electronic newsletter. Each story is introduced in this plain-text e-mail message, with hyperlinks to the full article or related topics when applicable. The newsletter, can also be accessed from the NSACSW website at http://www.gov.ns.ca/staw/newsbytes.htm
CONTENTS AT A GLANCE
/1/ Our New Website
/2/ ZONTA Club of Halifax's Young Women in Public Affairs Award
/3/ Nova Scotia Elder Abuse Awareness Day - June 15, 2007
/4/ Womenomics Revisited
/5/ Because I Am a Girl
/6/ Family Law Information Centre
/7/ If Mothers Mattered
/8/ Focus Group on Breast-feeding - Halifax June 4th
/9/ Did You Know?
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/1/ OUR NEW WEBSITE
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Writing, design, site development, database construction, and testing are the basic elements of a new website. But those words don't convey the creativity, excitement, and challenges underlying a large project like this, nor do they hint at the pride we now feel as we virtually unveil (at last) our new site.
We wanted our site to be more welcoming for women who haven’t visited before and more user-friendly for researchers and everyone seeking information on women’s equality in Nova Scotia. To accomplish this, we updated our look, improved the flow of ideas between topics, and made our library catalogue accessible to the public.
We’re now at www.women.gov.ns.ca.
If you’ve bookmarked our old site, change your bookmarks, although for a few weeks, you’ll be redirected automatically. We’ve also got a new general e-mail address: women@gov.ns.ca .
We hope you like what we’ve done to increase our visibility.
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/2/ ZONTA CLUB OF HALIFAX'S YOUNG WOMEN IN PUBLIC AFFAIRS AWARD
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The Zonta Club of Halifax (part of Zonta International, a worldwide organization of women executives in business and the professions working together to advance the status of women) recently awarded the 2007 Young Women in Public Affairs Award to Kaitlin Whitehouse, a Grade 12 student at Sacred Heart School. To encourage women to pursue careers where they can influence policies that affect women’s lives, the ZONTA CLUB OF HALIFAX gives the award to a final-year high school student for outstanding commitment to the volunteer sector, leadership achievements, and dedication to the advancement of the status of women.
Kaitlin was chosen as “head of house” by the dean of students to provide leadership and mentoring to students from grades 7 to 12. Her activities range from team sports to school yearbook and prom committee. Under her leadership, the school’s fundraiser for the Heart and Stroke Foundation raised $5,800. Kaitlin is also a Girl Guide leader.
In presenting the Award, Her Honour, Lieutenant Governor Mayann Francis commended Kaitlin on her leadership and her time-management skills. The Advisory Council also congratulates Kaitlin Whitehouse, and we look forward to watching her progress.
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/3/ NOVA SCOTIA ELDER ABUSE AWARENESS DAY - JUNE 15, 2007
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To recognize the 3rd annual Nova Scotia Elder Abuse Awareness Day and the 2nd World Elder Abuse Awareness Day, the Nova Scotia Seniors’ Secretariat is encouraging communities across the province to get involved in raising awareness of abuse of older adults. To support your efforts, the Secretariat is pleased to offer the following:
Elder Abuse Awareness Day Information Kits - including posters, brochures and posters on elder abuse (general), brochures on financial abuse of older adults, and kit folders with a series of fact sheets. Kits will be sent out the first week in June and are available in English and French.
Elder Abuse Community Awareness Activity Contributions - Contributions of up to $250 will be given to offset costs of planning or implementing an activity in their community that raises awareness of abuse of older adults. The Awareness Activity Contribution Application Package is available on the Seniors’ Secretariat’s website or by contacting the Secretariat. The deadline to apply is May 23rd.
To request an Information Kit or a Contribution Application Package, please call the Seniors’ Secretariat at 424-0065 or toll-free at 1-800-670-0065 or e-mail stopelderabuse@gov.ns.ca
For more information on elder abuse and Elder Abuse Awareness Day, visit the Secretariat’s website at www.gov.ns.ca/scs/elderabuse.asp
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/4/ WOMENOMICS REVISITED
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Women's share of the workforce is much higher than it was a generation ago, and they comprise the majority of university students in some countries. Nevertheless, it is still a man's world.
Recent studies suggest that if there were more women in paid employment, the world would be better off. A report by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific concludes that sex discrimination costs the region $42 billion-47 billion a year by restricting women's job opportunities. A gap of 30-40 percentage points between men's and women's workforce participation rates is common. The poor state of girls' education costs a further $16 billion-30 billion.
The countries with most to do are Italy and Japan. But by the same token they also have most to gain. In Italy, even on recent trends, an extra 0.3 points a year of GDP growth may be had. Japan is heading for only an extra tenth of a point, but could gain half a point a year if policies changed. Men run the world's economies; but it may be up to women to rescue them!
Read more: http://www.economist.com/finance/displaystory.cfm?story_id=9038760
Source: The Economist, April 19th 2007
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/5/ BECAUSE I AM A GIRL
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Millions of girls are being condemned to a life of inequality and poverty according to a new report. “Because I am a Girl: The State of the World's Girls” 2007 publication, highlights the appalling situation in which girls find themselves - sometimes through poverty, sometimes because they are young, but often simply because of their gender.
The report is the first in a series of global reports on girls to be published over the next nine years. Timed to be released on the United Nation's International Day of the Family, ‘Because I am a Girl’ raises awareness of the threats and broken promises that blight the lives of millions of girls.
The report presents global statistics highlighting the scale of the problem. For example:
- 62 million primary school-aged girls are not in education
- childhood malnutrition has led to stunted growth in an estimated 450 million women
- more young women aged 15 to 19 years die from unsafe abortions and birth complications than from any other cause
- more than 100 million girls, some as young as 12, are expected to marry over the next decade despite international legislation outlawing early marriages
To learn more visit: http://www.crin.org/resources/infoDetail.asp?ID=13351
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/6/ FAMILY LAW INFORMATION CENTRE
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The Family Law Information Centre (FLIC) located in the Supreme Court (Family Division) in Halifax and Sydney provides valuable free family law information to members of the public, whether or not they have started a court case, and helps clients of family court to learn more about the court process. It also provides basic assistance with such family law topics as family violence, child support, divorce, court processes and forms, and how to find a lawyer. When necessary, staff will make referrals to community agencies and programs; however, staff at the centre will not provide direct legal advice. Reading materials and videos, e.g..”Your Day in Court”, are also available.
Hours of operation: Mon - Fri, 9am -12 pm, and 1pm - 4 pm. Direct phone: 424-5232.
See the list of workshops scheduled for May on your Events site at: http://www.gov.ns.ca/staw/events.htm
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/7/ IF MOTHERS MATTERED
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Come to watch the new documentary The Motherhood Manifesto (US, 2006). The screening will be followed by a report back on the National Association of Women in the Law 2007 conference entitled Mothering the Law: Defending Women’s Rights and a facilitated dialogue on how society and governments can better support the important work done by mothers. There will also be a presentation by the new organization Equal Voice, getting more women elected to every level of government. Organized by the Atlantic Advisory Committee on Maternity and Parental Benefits-Nova Scotia, the Halifax West NDP Riding Association, and Equal Voice.
Visit our website http://www.gov.ns.ca/staw/events.htm for further details.
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/8/ FOCUS GROUP ON BREAST-FEEDING - HALIFAX JUNE 4th
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Eastern Research is presently looking for people to participate in a focus group discussion being held on behalf of Nova Scotia Health Promotion & Protection.
TOPIC - Breastfeeding, including the opinions of new mothers, mothers-to-be, intending mothers and family/friends of new mothers/women intending to become a mother within the next year.
The following is required for this research:
1) Moms have at least one child under the age of two years that is primarily formula feed. Annual household income of less than $40,000 is required.
2) Mother/in-law/aunt/grandmother (family member who is in regular, direct communication with a woman who is pregnant; intending to be pregnant this year OR has had a child in the past 2 years). Annual household income of less than $40,000 is required.
Similar research will take place in Truro, the Valley, Yarmouth, Sydney and Port Hawkesbury.
Persons who have participated in a focus group discussion within the last 6 months cannot be included. Also, persons who know one another cannot participate in the same research session.
If you or someone you know is interested in participating in this session, please call 435-2434 or email eastern@accesswave.ca
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/9/ DID YOU KNOW...
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That the Mi'kmaq “Online Talking Dictionary” project is more than half way to its goal of creating a 6,000-word language resource for the Mi'gmaq language. The project takes advantage of technology to preserve and support the language that it is not just written, but spoken and heard.
Here is how it works: three speakers record each word. Multiple speakers allow one to hear differences and variations in how a word is pronounced. Each recorded word is used in an accompanying phrase spoken by a single speaker. This permits learners the opportunity to develop the difficult skill of distinguishing individual words when they are spoken in a phrase. Learn more at http://www.mikmaqonline.org/.
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Next Issue of NEWSBYTES – June 1, 2007
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