2014 Highlights…and We’re off on Blogcation!

2014 Highlights…and We’re off on Blogcation!

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Season’s Greetings Readers!

As the end of December approaches, so does the end 2014. We would like to thank YOU, for joining us and coming along for the ride over this past year.  You…sharing our posts, posting comments, and interacting with us on social media…THAT is what keeps us going!

This past year has been another amazing one for World Moms Blog (WMB).  As we touch on some highlights from 2014, you will see that these world moms get around!

After all that, we are getting ready to take a blogcation break to spend time with family, friends, and re-energize for 2015.  We hope that you will get the chance to do the same.  And if you find yourself looking for something to read, come on by and catch up on posts you may have missed in 2014!

Wishing you all a joyful end of the year.  Come back on Monday, January 5th to help us kick off 2015.

Cheers!

World Moms Blog

World Moms Blog

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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SOCIAL GOOD: Global Guide to Giving Good

SOCIAL GOOD: Global Guide to Giving Good

Screen Shot 2014-12-15 at 11.50.48 PM

In October, several #WorldMoms attended the  ONE Girls & Women AYA Summit at the Google Headquarters in Washington, DC. One of the many powerful panels we heard from was entitled Change Through Economic Opportunity, where both major fashion companies and small start-ups weighed in on how they  impact the lives of women through economic empowerment.  With the holiday season upon us, World Moms decided to share some of the ways we love to use our purchasing power to give back, and how you can too.

 

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 Sydney Price of Kate Spade NY  spoke about the Kate Spade On Purpose line at the AYA Summit panel.   Each piece in this collection is handcrafted in Rwanda creating sustainable economic opportunities for women and reshaping their community.

 

Screen Shot 2014-12-11 at 9.54.08 AMScreen Shot 2014-12-11 at 11.00.42 AMJane Mosbacher Morris , founder of To the Market, also participated in the panel on Change Through Economic Opportunity at the AYA Summit.  To The Market provides a marketplace for the beautiful handcrafted goods that give women survivors of war, disaster or abuse a chance to support themselves and their families.

fashionable copyScreen Shot 2014-12-11 at 11.03.40 AMWorld Moms Elizabeth Atalay and Nicole Melancon had the  pleasure of visiting the FashionABLE factory in Ethiopia this past summer and we have all been writing about and wearing the gorgeous scarves made in Ethiopia for years. It was great  to finally meet founder Barrett Ward at the AYA Summit this past fall where he participated on the panel as well. FashionABLE is now expanding operations to include products made in Kenya and a beautiful line of leather products, all while providing social service programs of health care, education in a trade, and assistance with child care for their artisans to help them build better lives for themselves and their families.

“Through your purchase, you are ABLE to provide opportunity, and a woman is ABLE to have a new choice.”-LiveFashionABLE

 

The Giving Keys provides jobs for those transitioning out of homelessness, giving them the opportunity to rebuild their lives.  The necklaces & bracelets are super cool as is the message of the Giving Keys:

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“When you get this Key, you must give it away at some point to a person you feel needs the message, then write us the story of why you gave it away. We employ those looking to transition out of homelessness.” -The Giving Keys

You can read Giving Keys stories of those who have given and received keys on their site.

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Shop the ONE Campaign store Holiday Gift Guide for some fabulous items where you know everything is fair trade and ethically sourced. By doing so  you support the ONE Campaign in it’s goal of eradicating extreme poverty.

Alex & Ani Bracelets

Alex & Ani Bracelets

Alex & Ani Charity by design products are another of our favorites. A percentage o profits goes back to designated non-profits. Their products are made in the USA from recycled materials, and spread the message of positive energy! They have branched out from bangles to key chains, and candles, wine charms & more!

 

 From South Africa, The Mielie bags employ women of the townships in South Africa.

Mielie Bag Made in South Africa

Mielie Bag Made in South Africa

Our mission is to design and produce innovative, export-quality hand-crafted products using reclaimed materials – with the aim of creating employment and restoring dignity and financial independence to South Africans.- Mielie

 

The Anchal Project Mission  merges design, business, and education to empower marginalized and exploited women living in India. Their scarves are gorgeous and the company was founded by two Rhode Island School of design Grads.

Anchal Scarf

Anchal Scarf

Anchal is an Indian word that means shelter, or refers to the edge of a woman’s Sari used to provide comfort and protection for loved ones.-Anchal Project

 

Kids Books from Little Pickle Press, a B Corporation, are some of our favorite books for kids!

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Lollie Beads Bracelets are created from fair trade recycled glass beads made in Uganda. So they are not only gorgeous (the glass beads look and feel like sea glass) but they are good for the environment AND help support sustainable living in a developing country.

Tom’s keeps its designs fresh while still managing to provide shoes and glasses to those who need them. We love their One for One business model (and pledge to support it with as many shoes as we can get away with!)

 

 

1000 Shillings Ugandan Paper bead necklaces.  The women artisans earn capital for their own small businesses by making limited-edition products for 1000 Shillings. Each product sold through 1000 Shillings helps a woman establish a small business, which enables her to support her family. They also aim to tell the in-depth story behind each artisan.  The company works with six single mothers in the Namatala slum, Uganda.

 

A Gift As A Gesture:

Sometimes it is hard to find the perfect gift for someone who has every material thing they desire.  Still you want to give something as a token of your appreciation to them and the below gifts are the perfect solution that everyone can feel good about.

Photo by Elizabeth Atalay

 Heifer International :

“Heifer International’s mission is to work with communities to end hunger and poverty and care for the Earth.  It all started with a cow.  Moved by the plight of orphans and refugees of the Spanish Civil War as he ladled out meager rations of powdered milk, Dan West, an Indiana farmer, volunteer relief worker and Church of the Brethren member, grasped that the people needed “a cow, not a cup”—cows that could produce milk so families would not have to depend on temporary aid. From that simple idea, Heifer International was born.” – From the Heifer International Website

Screen Shot 2014-12-16 at 7.09.31 AMSave two lives, those of a mom and her newborn baby, with CleanBirth.org and the perfect holiday gift of Bags of Love and Miracles,  a handmade bag with a beautiful full-sized honor card inside ($20) and 4 mothers in Laos will receive birthing supplies and safe birthing education.

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Mom2Mom Africa is a Canadian Not-for-Profit Organization, established to help empower women and children through education. The benefits of education and global awareness apply to us all. Your gifts this season will help to buy books, school uniforms and school supplies for the Mom2Mom Africa students in Tanzania.

Wishing Happy Holidays to You All,

May You Give As Good As You Get!

 

Do you know other organizations or shops that belong on this list?

Elizabeth Atalay

Elizabeth Atalay is a Digital Media Producer, Managing Editor at World Moms Network, and a Social Media Manager. She was a 2015 United Nations Foundation Social Good Fellow, and traveled to Ethiopia as an International Reporting Project New Media Fellow to report on newborn health in 2014. On her personal blog, Documama.org, she uses digital media as a new medium for her background as a documentarian. After having worked on Feature Films and Television series for FOX, NBC, MGM, Columbia Pictures, Warner Brothers, 20th Century Fox, and Castle Rock Pictures, she studied documentary filmmaking and anthropology earning a Masters degree in Media Studies from The New School in New York. Since becoming a Digital Media Producer she has worked on social media campaigns for non-profits such as Save The Children, WaterAid, ONE.org, UNICEF, United Nations Foundation, Edesia, World Pulse, American Heart Association, and The Gates Foundation. Her writing has also been featured on ONE.org, Johnson & Johnson’s BabyCenter.com, EnoughProject.org, GaviAlliance.org, and Worldmomsnetwork.com. Elizabeth has traveled to 70 countries around the world, most recently to Haiti with Artisan Business Network to visit artisans in partnership with Macy’s Heart of Haiti line, which provides sustainable income to Haitian artisans. Elizabeth lives in New England with her husband and four children.

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SOCIAL GOOD: Behind AIDS – Perspectives from Canada and Tanzania

SOCIAL GOOD: Behind AIDS – Perspectives from Canada and Tanzania

nancy sumari and alison fraser

I am by no means an expert on HIV or AIDS. In fact, other than knowing some basic statistics and facts on transmission, I have never really given much thought to the social implications of living with the virus.  This wasn’t intentional, but most likely the result of the small bubble in which I was living for most of my life; a bubble that did not include any friends or family directly affected by the virus. That all changed, last November, when I visited Arusha, Tanzania to meet some of the students in the Mom2Mom Africa Organization, a small not for profit that I founded several years before. I knew some of our students came from families in which some members were positive. Some were left orphaned by the disease. But what I didn’t realize was how this impacted these children in terms of treatment by their local community, regardless of their HIV status. I learned of children who were shunned by the church because the deaths of their parents was attributed to AIDS. I learned of other families shunned by their own relatives for the same reason. In some instances, the children were not even aware of why their parents died. It was hidden to protect them.

I left Tanzania with a heavy heart, but it was made heavier by the stories of the struggles of some of our students because of the AIDS pandemic. I had suspected that discrimination existed but I now had little faces associated with that discrimination haunting me, making it more real. Students are accepted into Mom2Mom Africa regardless of HIV status…I can think of operating no other way.  In fact, we only request medical information so we can provide the appropriate health care.

I was now beginning to understand that this virus was not only killing people, but leaving behind families to deal with the shameful treatment by society.

Our affected students not only required extra medical attention, but also more emotional support.

I began to wonder if those affected by HIV/AIDS in Canada feel the same degree of isolation. Did being HIV positive in Canada carry with it the same stigma as in Tanzania? I decided to find out. Speaking to the AIDS Committee of Cambridge, Kitchener, Waterloo & Area (ACCKWA), I learned that, unfortunately, Canadians often face the same discrimination and stigma. Although laws are in place to help prevent discrimination, it still occurs. Many of those affected by HIV are judged, and often blamed for their HIV status. Thankfully, there are support groups such as the ACCKWA that provide a safe place and much-needed services to those living with HIV  in our local community.

After speaking to ACCKWA, I contacted my friend, and fellow World Moms Blog contributor, Nancy Sumari to discuss what support services are in place for those living with HIV, and their families, in Tanzania. Nancy is part of the “I am Positive” Campaign in Tanzania. The campaign was established in response to reports by those living with HIV of being discriminated against and, in some cases, being physically assaulted and emotionally abused because of their HIV status. The campaign has several main objectives, but the one that hit home the most was:

“To live with HIV/AIDS is NOT to live without human rights and dignity”.

The power of that message is not only incredible, but universal. Regardless of what country you live in, what part of the world you live in, and what your HIV status is, you have the right to basic human rights and to live with dignity. We ALL deserve this.

As I reflect on this past year, and what I have learned about the realities those living with HIV face each and every day, I can’t help but dream of a day when the stigma no longer exists; a day when judgement and discrimination are replaced with support and understanding.  Or better yet, I dream of a day when HIV and AIDS move from pandemic status to curable infection.  But, until then, I hope that empathy prevails for all those living with HIV, as well as for their families.

This is an original post written by Alison Fraser for World Moms Blog.

Alison Fraser

Alison Fraser is the mother of three young girls ranging in age from 5 to 9 years old. She lives with her family in Cambridge, Ontario, Canada. Alison works as an Environmental Toxicologist with a human environment consulting company and is an active member of the Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry (SETAC). She is also the founder and director of the Canadian Not for Profit Organization, Mom2Mom Africa, which serves to fund the school fees of children and young women in rural Tanzania. Recently recognized and awarded a "Women of Waterloo Region" award, Alison is very involved in charitable events within her community including Christmas Toy and School Backpack Drives for the local foodbank.

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SOCIALGOOD: Reflecting on the #AYASummit

SOCIALGOOD: Reflecting on the #AYASummit

World Moms at AYASummit

It has been almost two weeks since I attended the AYA Summit in Washington DC at Google’s offices with ONE, and I still feel a flood of emotion each time I think about the experience. As I wrote on my blog last week, the words to explain such a powerful and inspiring event are hard to come by.

The AYA Summit focused on issues facing girls and women in the developing world, with a special emphasis on Sub-Saharan Africa. The name AYA comes from an African Adinkra Symbol, which means fern and symbolizes endurance, resourcefulness and growth.

I, along with fellow World Moms Blog contributors Jennifer Burden, Elizabeth Atalay, Nicole Morgan, Nicole Melancon, Kelly Pugliano and Cindy Levin, sat in a room of about 80 bloggers and listened to inspiring panel after inspiring panel. In addition to thought-provoking conversations about human trafficking, the importance of vaccinations, electrifying Africa, making change through economic opportunities and the dire need to end Ebola in West Africa, we witnessed incredible performances by a young poet named Marquesha Babers and actress Danai Gurira.

Tears were shed. We were all moved and left wanting to do more for women and girls around the globe.

Why invite only bloggers to such a powerful event? According to this article from WUSA9 who covered the event, the combined audiences of our blogs exceeds 45 million and 28 states. As it was noted, “that kind of reach is priceless.”

There was a general theme of storytelling throughout the event. As bloggers, we have the ability to tell the stories of girls and women around the globe that the mainstream media simply cannot duplicate. We use our experiences as women, mothers and global citizens to lend our voices to those who don’t have a microphone and help others join in the conversation. We personalize the stories, talk about our concerns, and amplify the issues that media may not even be fully aware of or willing to devote the time to cover.

As Ginny Wolfe, Senior Director, Strategic Relationships at ONE, said at the very start of the AYA Summit, “We’re not asking for your money, we’re asking for your voice.” If you are reading this post, you can lend your voice too.

Though it is still hard to put into words what the AYA Summit meant to me, I thought I would share the highlights and key takeaways through a series of tweets during the event:

Read what other World Moms are writing about the event:

For more on the AYA Summit and the work that is coming from the event, visit and follow the AYA Summit 2014 Flipboard.

This is an original post written for World Moms Blog by Jennifer Iacovelli who also writes at www.anotherjennifer.com.

How will you or do you use your voice to stand up for those who are unable to speak up for themselves?

Jennifer Iacovelli

Jennifer Iacovelli is a writer, speaker and nonprofit professional. Based in Brunswick, Maine, she’s a proud single mom of two boys and one Siberian husky.  Jennifer is the author of the Another Jennifer blog and creator of the Simple Giving Lab. Jennifer is also a contributing author of the book The Mother Of All Meltdowns. Her work has been featured on GOODBlogHerUSAID ImpactFeed the Future and the PSI Impact blog. Her latest book, Simple Giving: Easy Ways to Give Every Day, is available everywhere. Her passions are writing, philanthropy, her awesome kids and bacon, though not necessarily in that order.

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SOCIALGOOD: World Moms’ Top Highlights at #2030NOW

SOCIALGOOD: World Moms’ Top Highlights at #2030NOW

Melinda Gates being interviewed at the Social Good Summit in New York City on September 22, 2014.

Melinda Gates being interviewed at the Social Good Summit in New York City on September 22, 2014.

“The Social Good Summit is the Grassroots equivalent of the UN General Assembly” – NY Times Journalist and author, Nicholas Kristof

Five editors from World Moms Blog attended the Social Good Summit in New York City this past weekend. So, what’s the best way to get a wrap-up of the event? We asked them all to tell us their highlights from the weekend.  Here’s what they had to say…

Kyla P’an of “Growing Muses” and WMB Managing Editor responds, 

Since I started writing and editing for World Moms Blog four years ago, I’ve been hearing about the Social Good Summit. Since the first time WMB founder, Jen Burden, attended — outfitted with baby sling and infant–back in 2011, I’ve been curious. Curious about the format, curious about the attendees, curious about the messaging. Today, I assuaged that curiosity by attending day two of the two-day summit. In concert with the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA to industries insiders), the Summit pulls together journalists, bloggers, foreign press,  grass-roots activists and social entrepreneurs.

Together with fellow Sr. Editors, Elizabeth Atalay, Nicole Melancon and our tireless founder, Jen burden, we attended social enterprise boot camps, UN Foundation Fellows workshops, panel discussions and keynote addresses, interviews with philanthropists and entrepreneurs. The day was a series of sound bites. Presenters spoke for as little as five minutes or as long as 37. The topic and hashtag was 2030 Now but why that was chosen remains a bit of a mystery to me. And though I did not walk away from the actual summit feeling changed, I didn’t walk away unaltered.

Here are my three highlights: Robin Roberts interview with Melinda Gates; the Ugandan rappers Weasel and Radio who performed at the Every Woman, Every Child reception; and the exclusive briefing with Save the Children, the ONE Campaign, the Gates Foundation and actor Idris Elba. So would I drive eight hours round trip for 24-hours of Social Good again? In a heartbeat!

Jennifer Burden, Founder & CEO of World Moms Blog, says,

1.  The Social Media Fellows lunch with Adepeju Jaiyeoba, a human rights lawyer and activist from Nigeria. Adepeju founded motherskit.org, which has distributed over 7,000 birth kits to mothers in Nigeria. Her passion for rocketing my interest in advocating for the health of women was contagious, tearful and inspiring all at the same time. And, yes, I know what you are thinking — we immediately connected her to World Moms Blog contributor, Kirsten Zalota of Cleanbirth.org, who distributes birth kits in Laos. They are planning a Skype chat already!

2. I found the conversations that came up in our Social Media Fellows session with MAMA on the topic of family planning important and sad. My wish is that more woman can have control over when they have babies and how many they have, which leads me to my only regret about the Summit — not being able to stay later in the evening for the Engender Health event, which launched the “WTFP?!” campaign, meaning, “Where’s the Family Planning?”.  Engender Health has been working for decades towards maternal health and family planning, and this campaign focuses on women’s health in the developing world. I hope to hear more about their work on family planning in the future!

3. Seeing the Summit for the first time this year through the eyes of World Moms, Kyla P’an and Sarah Hughes. Kyla has been integral to the editing of our site for years, and I am thankful she joined us in NYC to experience the global conversations we both, report on and contribute to.  Sarah, also new to the event, has been a social media editor at World Moms Blog. She covered the Summit on Sunday on our World Moms Blog Facebook page, and I can sum up her enthusiasm in a picture:

World Moms Blog Editor Sarah Hughes

Awwwww! Go, Sarah, go!

World Voice editors, Elizabeth Atalay and Nicole Melancon, seasoned Social Good Summit attendees, were (as always!) active and important parts of global conversation!

Sarah Hughes of “Finnegan and the Hughes” and WMB Social Media Editor, writes: 

I loved everything about Social Good Summit!!  The air was filled with excitement and possibility.  The overall vibe of changing the world was apparent and obvious. Here are my top three highlights from the event!:

1. Meeting Susan Can, Director of Corporate Equity in the Global Marketing for Johnson & Johnson.  Susan and I had breakfast together and chatted about the importance of maternal health.  We chatted about J&J mobile health iniative Text4Baby and how it is helping underserved mothers in the US.

2. Listening to Graca Machel telling us we must NOT leave any woman behind!! Hearing her speak with such authority and assertiveness in her tone really left me feeling like we CAN do this and we MUST!

3. I left feeling sad after the session on maternal and infant health and how far off we are on reaching MDG 4 and MDG5.  My passion is maternal and infant health and it just seems like we are failing our world mothers by not doing better.  Yes, some are trying but it’s just not enough and I want to know how to do more and WHAT to do!

Elizabeth Atalay of “Documama” and WMB Senior Editor, writes:

I had to stop and think when a friend asked what it was about the Social Good Summit that I loved so much. “Was it the connections, the panels, or the events surrounding it?”,  she wondered. I decided that most of all it was the culture of the event, where the room is full of innovators and change makers that I find so inspiring.

The Social Good Summit makes me feel like I have a finger on the pulse of the Social Good movement.

I confess to at times being torn between socializing with all of the amazing people there doing cool things, sitting in the auditorium taking notes and hanging on every word of the amazing speakers in the line up, or catching sound bites, and photo ops in the media lounge. It is always refreshing to spend the couple of days with like minded global optimists as passionate as I am about making a difference in the world.

My highlights this year were:

1. Attending the Every Woman Every Child #MDG456Live event where we ran into our friend Phil Carroll from Save the Children, danced to Ugandan pop stars and then got to catch up with other World Moms and friends at an amazing South African restaurant.

2. Sitting in with the Social Good Fellows and Shot@Life director Devi Thomas to learn about another UN Foundation initiative the Mobile Alliance for Maternal Action referred to as MAMA.

3. Listening to my hero Melinda Gates talk about her plans for putting women and girls on the forefront of the global agenda and just being in close proximity to her greatness.

4. Getting a debriefing at a round table discussion with ONE, Save The Children and the Gates Foundation on the Ebola crisis from Actor Idris Elba,  President of Save The Children Carolyn Miles, Jamie Drummond co-founder of ONE, and Dr. Chris Elias President of global Development for the Gates Foundation. Discussing the “Trillion Dollar Scandal” report on transparency, and the continuing Syrian refugee crisis.

As always I leave the Social Good Summit completely inspired and at the same time a bit overwhelmed with information. Amazing, powerful, and hopeful information.

Nicole Melancon of Thirdeyemom and WMB Editor says: This was my third year attending the Social Good Summit and each year it gets better and better. After two, highly intense and emotionally charged days I walk away inspired to use my voice to promote good and help change the world. For me, the key highlights were the fact that we are fortunate to live in a world where we have a voice so let’s use it. Let’s engage in the issues that mean the most to use, and use our voice to disrupt the system and ignite change. So many people around the world do not have this power and freedom to use their voice and now it is more important than ever to be heard. Where do we want to be in 2030 is up to us. So what kind of world do we want? It is up to us.

World Moms, Elizabeth Atalay, Kyla P'an and Nicole Melancon at the Social Good Summit in NYC.

World Moms, Elizabeth Atalay, Kyla P’an and Nicole Melancon at the Social Good Summit in NYC.

World Moms Blog

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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SocialGood: What if…You Now Know What You’re Missing?

SocialGood: What if…You Now Know What You’re Missing?

Mom2Mom Africa Lunch

Two months ago, I travelled back to Arusha, Tanzania as part of my work with Mom2Mom Africa. Each time I am in Arusha, I make sure to stop by a local outdoor restaurant frequented by many tourists. The restaurant resides on a beautiful piece of property, and offers free Wifi to connect back home to loved ones. I consider this to be a real luxury in the areas I work in Arusha so take full advantage of this establishment whenever possible.

On my last trip, I decided that I would take several of our Mom2Mom Africa students to this restaurant as a “treat”. What was originally planned as a small group outing with 5 or 6 children, ended up turning into a van full of children, and my colleague Aloyce. It was absolutely priceless to see me walk through the grounds followed by 12 little Tanzanian children, and Aloyce at the rear to ensure we didn’t lose any along the way! The other restaurant patrons could not stop staring!

I had questioned this dinner outing for days before making a decision to go ahead with it. Many believe that exposing those in poverty-stricken areas of the world, to ‘luxuries’ is unjust; a tease. I didn’t want to be that white foreigner.

But, after much thought, I decided to go ahead with our big dinner date. What influenced my final decision was the fact that the same holds true for my three little girls in Canada. As a mother, I often treat my girls to little extravagances. These are not every day occurrences, and in fact are more rare than common. And my girls understand that. If they could be treated each and every day, there would be no argument on their part. But, they know that even though that might be the reality of other little girls their age, it is not their reality. And they are ok with that and simply choose to enjoy the times that they do get to experience trips or dinner at fancy restaurants. I used this experience with my girls as the deciding factor in Tanzania. After all, everyone likes to be treated!

Seeing the kids eat pizza until their bellies were full, drinking pop, and laughing with their friends was one of the highlights of my time in Tanzania. When they noticed the playground with swings and teeter-totters, I lost them in play for 2 hours! They were beyond happy. And, that made me beyond happy. And, at that point, I thought to myself that I had made the right decision. I left the restaurant on cloud nine, with twelve happy little ones singing all the way home in the van.

All had gone as planned, until one little girl said out loud in the van…”I now know how mzungus (white people) live”…and my heart broke.

The restaurant is staffed with locals but caters to tourists, most of whom are white. Instead of this being a fun night out for all, Canadians and Tanzanians alike, the take home message was that white people deserve and live in a world of luxuries. My plan back-fired on me with a vengeance. It has been two months since that night, and that little voice from the back of the van still haunts me. I guess my mommy instinct was off this time. We all worry about making decisions that may negatively affect our own children’s lives. I now worry constantly about my decisions and how they may impact the lives of so many who call me “Mama Alison” in Tanzania.

Do you think it’s better to know what you are missing or not?

This is an original post written for World Moms Blog by Alison Fraser. Photo by Alison Fraser.

Alison Fraser

Alison Fraser is the mother of three young girls ranging in age from 5 to 9 years old. She lives with her family in Cambridge, Ontario, Canada. Alison works as an Environmental Toxicologist with a human environment consulting company and is an active member of the Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry (SETAC). She is also the founder and director of the Canadian Not for Profit Organization, Mom2Mom Africa, which serves to fund the school fees of children and young women in rural Tanzania. Recently recognized and awarded a "Women of Waterloo Region" award, Alison is very involved in charitable events within her community including Christmas Toy and School Backpack Drives for the local foodbank.

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