Empowering Female Refugees in the Netherlands

Dear Friend,

We hope this message finds you and your loved ones safe and well.

Thank you once again for your generous donation to Empowering Female Refugees in the Netherlands through GlobalGiving. It’s truly made a difference.

We want to make sure you see the impact of your donation. Here are some highlights on what we’ve been able to accomplish thanks to your support:

She Matters’ Lotus Flower Programme (LFP) i.c.w. Nike – It’s a wrap!

We successfully completed our joint LFP i.c.w. Nike! Through this partnership, we joined forces to empower 10 female newcomers with future proof skills, female mentorship, and employment opportunities that will ultimately support their integration in the Netherlands. 

Here’s a snapshot of our milestones: 

• The Nike Tech Team generously donated 10 MacBook Pros to Stichting She Matters. The MacBooks were loaned to our participants to support their successful completion of the programme, and will continue to be available for our future participants.
• We wrapped up week 5 with a self-defence workshop delivered by Synthia Stoffer and JUNO Self Defense! A pioneer in self-defence training, JUNO teaches women how to protect their personal boundaries, prevent unwanted situations from happening, and defend themselves when necessary.
• As a cornerstone of the LFP, our participants successfully passed their Coursera course for Python 101. Moments like these are our WHYs – and we hope yours too!
• On Friday, 24 September 2021, we celebrated the hard work and achievements of our LFP graduates with a grand ceremony, highlighting their success and bright futures ahead. The ceremony was held at the NH Collection Amsterdam Grand Hotel Krasnapolsky, and guests included the Nike Core Team, workshop facilitators, mentors, and of course, our powerful graduates.

This wouldn’t have been possible without our partnership with Nike, specifically the Nike Women of EMEA Network, and YOUR financial support. A huge thank you for believing in our mission!

So what’s next for our graduates? Job placements via She Matters B.V. Much more to come, so stay tuned!

She Matters joins forces with Patagonia!

She Matters is proud to announce its new partnership with outdoor company Patagonia! With a mission to save our home planet, and its commitment to corporate social responsibility, we’re proud of this partnership and what it will mean for the employment of female newcomers in the Netherlands. Thank you to Patagonia for believing in our work and your continued efforts for social impact.

Success stories

Our partnership with Patagonia has already proven to be a success! Our recent LFP graduate Marwa has landed a job at Patagonia and is now working with the company’s executive management team. Stay tuned for more updates on job placements!

She Matters is 1 of the 10 initiatives selected by Rikx

She Matters was 1 of 10 social enterprises selected to pitch their initiatives to potential investors at the Rikx Starter Event at Venture Café Rotterdam. None other than the mayor of Rotterdam, Mr Aboutaleb, gave a speech and showed his support for Rikx and the initiatives. 

Rikx is a platform that helps to create an impact for the city of Rotterdam. On the Rikx platform, you’ll find various beautiful projects focused on helping Rotterdammers who need a hand-up with finding employment.

We’ve already received some initial investments, and several meetings are planned to discuss partnering with She Matters as a preferred recruitment supplier for Diversity & Inclusion. To view our profile, click here.

Legal support from NautaDutilh via Pro Bono Connect

As part of NautaDutilh’s cooperation with Pro Bono Connect, David den Blaauwen, Naud van Doorn, and Boudewijn Smit provided She Matters with legal advice on our gender-specific recruitment policy, and in particular, inclusivity of trans women, intersex, and non-binary people. This has already resulted in the first trans woman completing our LFP, we hope many more will follow.

For more information on what we’ve been able to achieve thanks to your generous support please visit our website and click the links below.

Thank you once again for being a part of our journey and supporting our work – we couldn’t do what we do without you!

Gratefully yours,
Christina Moreno
Founder & Chairwoman, Stichting She Matters

One last thing – sharing our project with your friends and family helps us to spread the word about our work and continue to grow our community of supporters like you. Please consider sharing our story with your network, we’d be incredibly grateful.

Links:

• The LFP Graduation Ceremony
• Rikx: She Matters' profile

Dear Friend, 

We hope this message finds you and your loved ones safe and well.

Thank you once again for your generous donation to Empowering Female Refugees in the Netherlands through GlobalGiving. It’s truly made a difference.

We want to make sure you see the impact of your donation. Here are some highlights on what we’ve been able to accomplish thanks to your support:

She Matters Joins Forces with Nike, Inc.!

She Matters is proud to announce its new partnership with Nike, Inc.! Through this partnership, both parties will join forces to empower women who have a refugee or forced migration background (female newcomers) with future proof skills, mentorship and employment opportunities. All this will ultimately support female newcomers’ integration into the labour market in the Netherlands. The partnership will focus on supporting and growing She Matters’ Lotus Flower Programme. This 7-week career readiness programme will provide hard and soft skills training to 10 female newcomers and aims to complement their journey with mentorship and employment opportunities.

Lotus Flower Programme (LFP)

In collaboration with Nike, Inc., our upcoming LFP is underway! Our open call for applications is officially closed and our interviews with applicants have concluded. We’ve selected 10 participants who will start this exciting new journey in June 2021. 

Due to COVID-19 restrictions, the majority of the programme will be held virtually although we aim to have some in-person workshops in line with government guidelines. Stay with us to follow our journey!

To stay updated, follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

She Matters Joins the Refugee Academy’s Project on Refugee Inclusion

We’re thrilled to be a part of the Learning Crossroads for Refugee Inclusion project, an initiative of the Refugee Academy. It’s a learning trajectory that uses participatory methods to help civil society organisations to become more sustainable and create a platform where they can learn from each other, nourished by existing scientific knowledge and the contribution of experienced experts who themselves have a refugee background. To view our profile, click here. 

Ongoing Support for Our Graduates

We continue to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic and support our graduates. It’s become clear that female newcomers are experiencing a unique set of social and economic challenges raised by the health and economic crisis. With sisterhood at its core, our support goes beyond the scope and timeline of the LFP. We continue to support our LFP graduates with ongoing practical and emotional support – from advice on housing to employment. This ensures that they’re well supported to overcome this challenging time.

For more information on what we’ve been able to achieve thanks to your generous support, including outreach initiatives, please visit our website and click the links below.

Thank you once again for being a part of our journey and supporting our work – we couldn’t do what we do without you!

Gratefully yours,

Christina Moreno
Founder & Chairwoman, Stichting She Matters

One last thing – sharing our project with your friends and family helps us to spread the word about our work and continue to grow our community of supporters like you. Please consider sharing our story with your network, we’d be incredibly grateful.

Links:

• She Matters joins forces with Nike, Inc.
• Learning Crossroads for Refugee Inclusion: She Matters' profile