At the forefront of many of our initiatives is conservation education because we know that we are only as healthy and happy as the environment we live in. We regularly conduct conservation education seminars with our women’s groups and incentivize them to take care of natural spaces by buying the products they make from recycled and second-hand goods. In doing so, we’re empowering them to find financial stability in maintaining a clean environment.
Plastic waste is a huge problem throughout Tanzania. To tackle this problem, our women’s groups recycle plastic bottles into chairs that they can then sell to increase their household income.
To prevent continued waste of textiles, our Dare women’s groups give new life to second-hand clothing and scrap cloth that would otherwise end up in the landfill. In the process, the women make crafts they can sell and teach one another to sew.
Dare provides the botanical knowledge associated with seed collections and garden maintenance to encourage women to grow and sell fruits and vegetables that they’re able to cultivate and harvest on their own land.
When it comes to education in Tanzania, there are many gaps in the curriculums for topics like nutrition, menstrual hygiene, and mental health. We hold regular seminars in our various communities to address these topics and bring awareness to as many people as possible.
We conduct seminars to teach communities about exercise, healthy eating, and health science. We also sponsor local soccer, bicycle, and horse racing programs by providing instruction and materials for teams to operate.
During menstruation, young girls and women without menstrual products are unable to leave the household, meaning that they miss school and work opportunities. We work with our women to educate them about their menstruation cycles and teach them how to make products like reusable pads so that they’re empowered to leave the house even while menstruating.
Mental health infrastructure within Tanzania is virtually nonexistent. To help address this, Dare works with communities to educate them about mental health and basic strategies of stress reduction. Additionally, we conduct regular seminars within primary and secondary schools to teach educators about learning differences and difficulties like ADHD and dyslexia.
The Mzee Boka family is just one of many examples of the types of families we offer support to. Sisters Ramba and Latifa live with microsephalis, a condition that stops brain growth, while their cousin Abu dropped out of school due to his struggles with dyslexia. We work with this family to provide resources, capital, and encouragement as they combat learning difficulties within a system that doesn’t yet accommodate such differences.
Dare Women’s Foundation collaborates with Maggie’s Tour Company to promote community-based and sustainable tourism within the areas surrounding popular safari destinations. As a part of this collaboration, Maggie’s Tour Company brings clients to meet the various Dare Women’s Foundation Women’s Groups. By bringing travelers to the group’s Saturday meetings, we are able to provide a market to which the women can sell their clothing, jewelry, and other goods.
In the event that one of our women is involved in a case of domestic abuse or infidelity, we provide support and assistance to help our women maintain their dignity. Whether they need advice for counseling, support through the divorce process, or a place to stay away from an abusive household, we help however we can. Husbands and children are invited to participate in Dare programming and by involving and educating the entire household, gender equity education is spreading through the community by the example of men as well as women. As husbands watch their wives provide income to the household and run their own businesses, mutual respect grows and the make-up of gender relationships begins to reach a balance.
We implement many of these programs with our four Dare Women’s Groups across Tanzania. Our groups are the Malala, Amsha Amsha, Votauvizu, and Daresana Dare Women’s Groups. Such groups offer women a place to have community with one another and engage with the programs outlined above. Though we also work widely throughout the country outside of our women’s groups, they are self-sustaining operations that work day-in-and-day-out to achieve the goals of Dare.
