Emerge Blog

Posted by Raffaela on Tuesday, February 23, 2010

Here at Emerge Global, we're always looking for new ways to participate in the local community. This month, we had the opportunity to be the beneficiary of MIT's production of the Vagina Monologues! The Vagina Monologues brings together a diverse group of people from the MIT community, with vastly different backgrounds and interests, united under the common goal to stop violence against women. All proceeds from the MIT production go to local anti-violence organizations helping them to continue and expand their core work. Grassroots movements like V-Day have made significant progress to educate the public and raise awareness about the impact of violence against women. The Vagina Monologues joins their efforts. Hosted on Valentine's Day weekend, the MIT chapter of Emerge represented Emerge Global at the Vagina Monologues productions, selling Emerge jewelry and answering questions during the event.

We are happy to say that the Vagina Monologues was a huge success this year, selling many more tickets than last year and raising $8100 for Emerge Global! We also sold $253 dollars of jewelry and spread the word through a large stack of pass-it-on cards. The crowd consisted of dedicated Emerginistas as well as many new faces, so our story touched hundreds of new hearts. Our supporters loved our new, bold colors and tags, and were especially excited to hear that we had expanded our program! The Vagina Monologues volunteers staffed our booth on Saturday and Sunday and did an excellent job, with very little prep, so a huge "Thank you!"

Thank you to everyone who attended the event and to the production staff. Everyone at Emerge Global is so grateful for your support! Read more »

Pilates Class in Cambridge to Benefit Emerge Global- Saturday, Feb 13

Posted by Alia on Friday, February 12, 2010

Come support Emerge Global at FitLAB Pilates tomorrow (Saturday, February 13th) from 10am-12pm. There will be Emerge jewelry, tasty chocolates, and a fabulous Pilates mat with props class! (Honestly, it really doesn't get better than that!). Give yourself a little TLC for Valentine's Day. For more information on FitLAB Pilates, our wonderful host, see: http://www.fitlabpilates.com/Home.html

Labels: FitLAB, jewelry, Partnerships

Valentine's Weekend: MIT's Vagina Monologues to Benefit Emerge Global

Posted by Alia on Monday, February 08, 2010

For those of you based in Boston, we hope you’ll attend MIT’s The Vagina Monologues, being performed on Friday, February 12, Saturday, February 13 and Sunday February 14. This year, all ticket sales directly benefit Emerge Global! This is a great way to support the girls of Emerge while enjoying an evening out. Ticket sales and details can be found at: http://vagina.mit.edu/show.html

Based on V-Day founder Eve Ensler's Obie award winning play, The Vagina Monologues explores and celebrates women's sexuality -- its delights, pains, actualities, and vulnerabilities. Through intriguing testimonies from real women all around the world, the show has developed into a wonderful phenomenon that peers into women's fantasies and fears. Please see the V-Day Website at www.vday.org for more information about the international campaign.

Join the Emerge Global Team: Volunteer Opportunities

Posted by Alia on Monday, February 01, 2010

Emerge Global is currently recruiting highly motivated, creative, and passionate individuals to fill positions on our international team! As a young organization, this is a great opportunity to shape our evolving work.

If interested in a position described below, please send your cover letter and resume to: opportunities@emergeglobal.org by Friday, February 19th at 9pm EST.

Operations Director
Communications Director
Financial Officer
Sales and Administrative Officer
Sponsorship Coordinator
Strategic Partnerships Officer
Design Officer

Interested in going to Sri Lanka this summer?
We are excited to also be offering several volunteer positions with Emerge Lanka Foundation from June through August 2010. If interested in a position described below, please send a cover letter, resume, and volunteer application form to: opportunities@emergeglobal.org by Friday, March 12th at 9pm EST.

You can download a copy of our volunteer application form here:
Emerge%20Volunteer%20Application%20Form.doc

Summer volunteer opportunities:
Program Reintegration Volunteer
Fundraising Volunteer
Design and Sales Volunteer

You can download a PDF of all volunteer positions available here:
2010%20Emerge%20Global%20Positions.pdf Read more »

Emerge Sale in Michigan!

Posted by Ellen on Thursday, January 28, 2010

There will be an Emerge sale this Sunday, January 31st, after each service at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Greater Lansing in East Lansing, Michigan. The Unitarian Church, with its emphasis on social justice and equality, is excited to hold an Emerge sale to help the girls in Sri Lanka. The Emerge sale will be run by Ann Sojka, who has participated and volunteered in various Emerge functions since 2008. She is currently an Urban Planning Junior at Michigan State University, and after she graduates she plans to pursue a career in Transportation Planning. Her activities include the Women's Glee Club, NSCS and the Honors College.

Ann heard about Emerge from her sister Ellen (aka me), who has been very involved in the non-profit over the last several years. Ann was touched by the stories of the girls from Sri Lanka, and decided to do something to help. She has participated in Emerge events, assisting her sister in selling jewelry, taking photographs, and spreading the word.

Labels: events, jewelry, sales

Kulturasia DBA Bead Express Donates $3500 of Beads to Emerge Global

Posted by Alia on Saturday, January 09, 2010

I always look forward to coming home for the holidays- not only because I get to see my friends and family, but because I get to visit some long-time Emerge Global supporters who run a bead company here in Asheville, NC. Kulturasia DBA Bead Express isn’t your traditional bead store- it’s are a store on wheels, peddling its beautiful jewels across the country. Will and Hae, who run the company, live in my hometown and their basement stores their incredible inventory. Having loved beads since I was seven years old, seeing the shelves and shelves of sparkling beads makes me feel like a kid in a candy store. I wish I could bring the girls to see the way they manage their inventory!

For the third year in a row, Kulturasia DBA Bead Express helped us sustain our Bead Program by making an extremely generous in-kind contribution to our work. In fact, they were so generous that I’ve been carrying more than 200 pounds of shiny and colorful beads (that’s right — 200+ pounds) in the back of my mom’s car for the past two weeks, waiting to ship them off to Sri Lanka. These beads, bundled in five large boxes, take up the entire back seat! (Thanks mom, for your patience).

I spent much of today cataloging and sorting the donated beads, dividing them into spring and fall colors for 2010 and separating out the new styles that the girls haven’t worked with before (they are going to LOVE having some of the new material to work with). We have some beautiful new types of beads so get ready for some new products coming this spring! Stay posted for some blog updates on new product design soon.

In the meantime, a big thank you to Hae and Will Saxon for supporting Emerge Global through their bead business for their third year in a row!

Labels: beads, Donations

A Year in Review: 9 Images from 2009

Posted by Alia on Thursday, December 31, 2009

We know the following images are a little small, so feel free to download your very own pdf of our Year in Review document here: http://emergeglobal.org/files/Emerge_9_Images_from_2009.pdf

"We’d like to dedicate this year’s work to the first class of 18 girls we worked with, more than four years ago. Without them, Emerge would never have existed. Their input, participation, growth and struggles have informed us and inspired us to make Emerge what it is and what we hope it one day will be--a grassroots organization that supports young women around the world.

In 2009, we..."

"Built our foundation: Emerge Global became a non-profit in the US and Emerge Lanka Foundation was registered as a charitable organization in Sri Lanka"

"Developed our curriculum: We finished the first draft of our Bead Program booklet, with particular emphasis on business planning. We also launched our life skills series."

"Expanded our Program: In addition to working at Ma"Sevana, with the help of a past participant, we now also work at a center run by the Sri Lankan government."

"Increased our sales: We sold #34,500 of jewelry, started our Emerge Agent program, and bolstered our online store (nearly tripling our fourth quarter online sales)."

"Created a community of university supporters: In the United States, we launched our first five student chapters."

"Partnered with a US designer: We worked with Gorjana to create a lotus charm necklace that symbolizes the strength of our participants and benefits Emerge Global."