Nepal's Government gets it Wrong...Again.

Widows in Nepal are treated like second class citizens. Upon their husband's death they are ostracized by their community and literally referred to as "husband eaters." In Nepal, there are thousands of young widows, who have no job opportunities or assistance from the government. To remarry a widow is considered taboo- many widows, some as young as 9 years old, stay single for the duration of their life and carry a social stigma they can never live down.

In the following press release from Women for Human Rights, a NGO in Kathmandu working for widows and single women, we see that the government has implemented a monetary incentive for men to marry widows. If a man marrys a widow he will recieve over $700 from the government, a huge sum of money in Nepal. This is not a step forward and obviously a policy thrown together with no thought for a longterm solution to the appalling status of widows in the country. It is blatantly offensive and dehumanizing to widows in Nepal.

This is an issue Global Daughter has been very involved in from the beginning. We work with many artisans who are widows. We engage them in a positive way and allow them the opportunity for stable and sustainable employment so they can continue to provide for their families and get out from under the thumb of their in-laws. This builds confidence and serves as an example to communities that widows are contributing members of society with the same desires and needs as anyone else.

The way forward is empowering women, not incentivizing men.

Dear All,

In the Budget speech of the Government of Nepal dated Ashad 29 2066 B.S., under the social security schemes, it has been mentioned that a person who gets married to a widow will be given a reward of NRs. 50,000 ($700+) as motivation. Women for Human Rights, single women group (WHR) would like to say that this policy of Government of Nepal has further humiliated and insulted single women of Nepal. This decision will further bring about unwanted social impacts and bad consequences in society. It seems that Government has failed to take into consideration the long term impact of the monetary incentive. Because of this, WHR strongly condemns this decision of government and urge the government to immediately nullify the monetary incentive mentioned for remarriage of single women and rather should focus on removing age bar while getting monthly allowances, reservation in health and education facilities, tax exemption while registering property in the name of single women, provision of ration card and job opportunities.

GD now in The Wine Shack in Cannon Beach!

Some of you may not know that among many of our handmade gifts are the beautiful and eco-friendly wine bags. On a recent trip down the Oregon Coast I stumbled into the adorable and earthy Wine Shack in search of the perfect Pinot Noir. Not only did I end up with two unique Oregon Pinots, but a new client who now carries all three of our wine bag styles. Our Lokta wine bags are the perfect compliment to the design of The Wine Shack and the quality selection of local wines. Erin and I could not be more thrilled to be in Cannon Beach, the town in which the idea for Global Daughter began, and we hope next time you are there you'll stop by and enjoy some wine!

Global Daughters Unite!

Erika came up to Seattle from LA for a week of Global Daughter fun and frenzy. It was a week of spreading the word and uniting our Global Daughter forces! We have found that when we are together we are an unstoppable team of strength, passion and creativity. The train is moving....all aboard!

We were able to do our first Fair Trade Home Parties together and connect with new and old GD supporters. Thank you to Karl, Bev, Steffen and Caryn for hosting parties and lending their beautiful homes to Global Daughter for the afternoon. Summer is in full swing and people are ready to celebrate and join in on the fun with Global Daughter! To get involved, click here to book your party today and receive a free Om Copper Tray and 25% off your ENTIRE order!

Thank you Bev!

Thanks, Kaaaaaarl!

GD now in Palo Alto at Amrithika!

248 Hamilton Ave, Palo Alto, CA

Excited for our 1st CA store!

The I Don't Do Plastic Bags already sold out!

Right in the middle!

Don't Just Give a Gift....Tell a Story Palo Alto!

Global Daughter is ecstatic to announce that we have made our way to Palo Alto, California and are now featured in the amazing store, Amrithika.

After visiting the store and Stanford University area in June, I knew this location was a perfect fit for our product. They have all eco-friendly, fairly traded product from local and international artisans. They also have an amazing art gallery with bi-monthly events featuring local artists. We are so pleased to partner with such a wonderful business and look forward to providing Northern California with their signature Global Daughter gifts.

Please check out their website for more information, and if you have friends in the San Francisco or Bay area, please pass this along!

Where do you get your water?

In a project I did for Women in Environment in Nepal, we rebuilt and repaired artisan wells, dams and road culverts for 5 districts in the southern Terai region. In these areas we made field visits to see how new water sources and pumping methods would benefit the community. The following pictures are what we found.

When was the last time you had to walk two miles for water? (water so contaminated it could literally kill you.)