Read about Graded's Ilha do Cardoso project featured in the Veja SP, a local news online magazine. The article written by Carolina Giovanelli celebrates the volunteer work encouraged by American schools in Sao Paulo. She highlights the work done over the last twelve years by Graded students to uplift the lives of the inhabitants of Ilha do Cardoso. Great job Graded.
Left to Right: Julie Foudy, Amy Flindt, Ange Molony, Brandi Chastain
On Thursday the 23rd of May at Pacaembu stadium, Ms Flindt and I turned into giggling teens bursting with the excitement of meeting a couple of our childhood heroes. Julie Foudy and Brandi Chastain were members of the US Women's soccer team throughout the 1990s and rose to fame after the World Cup win in 1999 (Chastain's celebration became as famous as the goal she scored).
Foudy and Chastain spent the week in Sao Paulo training coaches about ways to incorporate and encourage girls to join and then remain involved in soccer. In addition to this, the stars worked with about 125 junior girls in soccer clinics throughout their week long stay.
On Thursday evening a panel was held at Pacaembu to discuss the hurdles that Brazil faces in trying to attract more women (and support of women) to sports. Both Foudy and Chastain spoke about the struggles that the US faced in the 70s to get women into sports and that this struggle for equality in sports in not a new one. They encouraged the attendees to come together to come up with strategies to get the sports clubs, media and the government on board. I was shocked at some of the numbers that were presented to us: 13 million women/girls in soccer in the US vs Brazil's 400,000. Even if you consider that Brazil might not be able to get accurate results the difference in numbers is still alarming.
So, what can Graded do?
First - Graded girls you gotta keep playing sports!
Second - Create opportunities for girls in our community to get involved in sports.
Starting in August I would like to see our Graded Basketball and Soccer Cares clubs make an effort to attract more girls to these groups. It would be great to start with more Graded girls helping out (Gabriella M is already on board) and then we need to come up with creative ways to get the visiting girls to change their mindsets a little about sports, hopefully this will happen by having fun! Girls who play sports gain confidence, stay healthy and develop leadership skills, three awesome reasons to make sure this happens.
Check out this video aimed at keeping girls on the field:
This past weekend Graded hosted the Global Issues Network Conference of the Americas and it was an amazing learning event for all involved. The planning committee of Leo Sabo, Edu Ramos, Eliana Keinan, Carlos Krell, Pollo Suarez, Jennifer Gadsen-Carpenter, Geoff Carpenter, Caitlin LaFrance, Mark Engstrom, and David Bair has been working for over a year to organize this event. Over 300 students participated from 27 different schools and another 70 of Graded's students volunteered to support the event. Daisy Krell, Lika Kishino and Aleandro Oliveira also provided valuable support. The team built the theme around Wangari Waathai's story "I will be a humingbird" and each participant was asked, "What's your drop?" GIN takes community service and lessons on sustainability to a new level. A level which our students certainly deserve and need for today's world. It's not about holding bake sales to raise money for community service, it's about looking at how local groups can tackle issues related to J.F. Rischard's book, "High Noon: 20 Global Problems, 20 Years to Solve Them." It's clear that everyone involved in this weekend's conference left inspired by the learning and with hope for the future. GIN is an event for all ages. So, what are some of the takeaways for students this weekend?
Students learned from their peers through team workshops. These workshops provided participants with ideas and solutions that can be taken back to their schools. Some of the examples included:
working to eradicate lion fish from the Dominican Republic reefs
eliminating disposable plastic on various campuses
reforestation projects in Quito, Ecuador
organizing and running summer camps for children
promoting peace at UAS
creating beautiful hanging gardens using plastic bottles
The students also had access to passionate professionals who have decided to dedicate their lives to improving the world. While typically a keynote speaker will come to a conference, speak and then leave, at GIN, the speakers are accessible to students throughout the conference. Imagine being able to speak to Mike Furdyck, John Liu, Rob Burroughs, Linda Ragsdale, Lori Kumler, Sammie Raynor and Bruno Massote. All are excellent role models for our students because they are not just talking about addressing sustainability issues, they are taking action. Here are just a few of the interesting tidbits that students may have
Linda Ragsdale
Mike Furdyck decided to start TakingITGlobal, a not for profit organization designed to connect youth from around the world instead of seeking fortune as an entrepreneur in the information technology industry.
Linda Ragsdale promotes peace and the idea that we all have a choice how how we act. This after being shot in the terrorist attack in Mumbai.
Lori Kumler shared information on Brazil's water policy and how it is helping clean up rivers.
John Liu who is working with governments to rehabilitate ecosystems gave us all a wake up call to act and change our ways.
Rob Burroughs decided to use his passion, football, to stop the spread of HIV in Africa through Grass Root Soccer. Rob is currently a senior in college but he is a alumni of GIN conferences.
While students can certainly collect waste for Terracycle, Bruno Massote showed them that his company is using sophisticated technology to reuse and recycle very hard to recycle trash.
Sammie Raynor showed how young people were able to create, Lumana, a micro-finance corporation that helps small business owners in Ghana succeed.
On Friday and Saturday the Junior IB Diploma candidates attended the first ever IB Core Retreat. The retreat focused on ToK, Extended Essay and CAS and was organized by Ms. McClelland, Ms. Hunt, Amaral, Maggie and Mr. Berg. Students embarked on a 2-year journey during this 24 hour event where the boys slept in the black box theater and the girls in the library.
Mr. Berg's ToK Students Kicked off the Retreat
"Good evening ladies and gentlemen, this is your captain speaking. Thank you for choosing Berg Air, the airline with fewest in-flight bear attacks. This is flight IB 2014 with destination to the IB diploma. Flight attendants will be coming around shortly serving refreshments. Please note that electronic devices must be turned off, due to IB Federal Protocol 1. Estimated flight time is approximately 2 years, so make yourselves comfortable. Please place your physical and emotional baggage either under the seat in front of you, or stow it in the overhead compartments. Note that emotions and attitude towards the IB diploma may shift over the course of the flight. Also note that the “procrastinate” sign has been turned off. While it will be turned on later in the flight, we suggest that you remain in your seat with your workload securely fastened, even if the sign is turned on. On this journey to the completion of the IB diploma, there will be some minor turbulence as we pass through an Extended Essay storm, but the flight staff is here to assist you with any fears or problems you may have. On behalf of all those at Bergland Travel, allow me to say welcome, and enjoy your flight."
by Adam Fertig
Thanks to Mr. Potter, Ms. Petersen, Ms. Fernandes, Mr. Shackelford, Mr. Jensen, Ms. Stoneman, Ms. Panunzio and Ms. Zeidenberg for also contributing to this wonderful event.
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