A Letter From The Board

Dear Friends of Sierra Leone Adolescent Girls Network,

Today is the International Day of the Girl. As we celebrate the vital role that girls play in every community around the world, we want to take this opportunity to share with you the critical work that the Friends of Sierra Leone Adolescent Girls Network is supporting and let you know what we have been up to since the last time you heard from us.

Shortly after the devastating floods of Freetown, Sierra Leone in 2015, through your support we began to support asset-building programs in a community known as "Mile 6". Mile 6 (literally 6 miles outside of Freetown) is a displaced-persons community for those who were affected by the flooding. Through this generous funding from individual donors, small grants, and partnerships we have been able to support the innovative work being carried out by 2 local NGOs, Child Welfare Society and MATCOPS. Through their girl platforms they are testing and implementing new technologies such as solar lights and clean rocket stove technology to enhance the social capital of adolescent girl networks in Mile 6. In fact, our first grant helped establish and support four girls clubs in this community.

As funding to support these platforms has run dry, we are beginning a month-long campaign to raise funds to make sure the programs can continue uninterrupted and stronger than ever before. Between October 11 and November 11, our goal is to raise $8,000. This specific effort will allow these girls continued access to a safe space for almost one full year. We hope that you'll join us in helping make this International Day of the Girl a bright one. To donate, you can click on the image above, or you can follow this link.

Help us Raise $8,000 for Girls in Sierra Leone

To join us in this campaign, simply click on the image above or follow this link. Contributions of all sizes are welcome!

Organizational Updates

FoSLAGN is pleased to announce that we have been engaged in intensive strategic planning, and are continually aiming to redefine our mission and vision. Our organization started as a response to the Ebola crisis, but we see a broader and longer-term role that we can play in supporting girl-focused programs in Sierra Leone and beyond. As we move forward, our website and possibly even our organizational name will reflect any changes to our mission.
We also recently brought on a new and highly-skilled board member, Philippe Lust-Bianchi. Philippe comes to the board with a wealth of programmatic knowledge after 5 years of living in Sierra Leone. Fun fact: Philippe actually wrote the charter for the Salone Adolescent Girls Network!
This summer, we hired our very first graduate intern, Stephanie Martinez, to conduct a literature review on adolescent girls and protective, productive, and green technology. To date, this is the only known literature review that exists on this particular topic. The output from her activities will play a critical role in guiding our work moving forward. Additionally, we believe this work will serve as thought leadership in this important niche. We are excited to share this research with you in the coming weeks. Stay tuned!
Thank you again for your continued and generous support of FoSLAGN, but more importantly your keen interest and support of girls. On all days, but especially today, we are aware that there is so much to be done in addressing the needs of adolescent girls. But with your help in supporting networks that are on the ground and working with these youth in communities like Mile 6, we know that the future is bright.

Thank you!

The Board+

(Chernor, George, Judith, Barbara, Philippe, Stephanie, Ruth, Jody, Jonathan)