CanWaCH Newsletter: June 2024

Coming soon: Member Coffee Chats!

At CanWaCH, we are dedicated to creating a welcoming environment for our members to gather, share challenges and best practices, and exchange knowledge. Open to all CanWaCH members this summer, a pilot of virtual Coffee Chats will provide an informal setting for members to connect, discuss their work and share best practices on a specific, predetermined topic. Example topics could range from effective youth engagement, to helpful AI tools or anything in between. There are no expectations from participants other than being ready to engage by sharing a bit about your work, listening and learning from each other.

More information to come in our July newsletter! Please email [email protected] if you have questions or would like to suggest a topic.

Limited spots remaining: 101 workshop on menstrual equity for youth

CanWaCH is partnering with Free Periods Canada to facilitate a virtual and interactive workshop on menstrual equity for youth aged 30 and under in our network. Starting at 5 p.m. EDT on June 18, the workshop builds a deepened understanding of period poverty, helping to end the stigma surrounding menstruation and increase awareness about the challenges related to accessing menstrual products. Registration is limited to 30 participants on a first-come, first-served basis!

Learn more and register here

As we returned from last month’s Healthy World Conference: Dialogues on Health, Gender and Climate Resilience, where many sessions highlighted the impact of climate change and climate-related disasters on the health of women and girls, we published a blog on Write to Thrive focused on how climate change emerges as a central concern for menstrual health and hygiene.

National Indigenous History Month feature: The Indigenous Youth, Art and Water Initiative

In late 2023, the Centre for Indigenous Environmental Resources (CIER), One Drop, and young Indigenous ambassadors from regions across Canada gathered in Kananaskis Country to co-launch the Indigenous Youth, Art and Water Initiative (IYAWI). Captured by Wapikoni Mobile, this inspiring short film highlights the voices of young Indigenous leaders embarking on community art projects. These projects aim to address water issues that disproportionately affect First Nations, Métis and Inuit communities across Canada.

Pride Month feature: Talents Pluriels

Based in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Cuso International’s Talents Pluriels program helps to create decent, safe and inclusive jobs and entrepreneurship opportunities for LGBTQ+ young people, many of whom regularly face discrimination, isolation and/or violence. In a new blog, Cuso International highlights efforts alongside local partners Jeunialissime and Si Jeunesse Savait to create inclusive jobs and entrepreneurship skills for vulnerable youth in the cities of Bukavu, Kinshasa and Lubumbashi.

Call for nominations: The Paul Farmer lectureship and award

Through the Paul Farmer Lectureship and Award for Global Health Equity, the McGill School of Population and Global Health aims to identify, honour and promote champions who have dedicated their lives to achieving health equity in the most challenging circumstances. The deadline for submissions is Monday, July 15, 2024, at 11:59 PM EDT. All applications must be submitted by email as a single PDF package to Kevin O’Neill at [email protected]. Please include “2024 McGill Paul Farmer Award Nomination” as well as the name of the candidate in the email subject line.

Report to Parliament on the Government of Canada’s international assistance 2022-2023

Global Affairs Canada is pleased to share with you the 2022-2023 Report to Parliament on the Government of Canada’s International Assistance. The report provides an overview of Canada’s federal international assistance results achieved through the collective efforts of 21 departments and agencies, working with a broad range of Canadian and international partners around the world. Volume 1 of the report presents a whole-of-government overview of Canada’s federal international assistance activities, with Volume 2, under the leadership of the Department of Finance, reporting on Canada’s engagement with international financial institutions.