Project Didi Australia
  • HOME
  • ABOUT
    • What we do
    • Why we do it
    • How we do it >
      • Family Based Care
      • Scholarships and Training
    • Our Story
    • Our Board
    • Our Partners
    • Our Strategy
    • Our Reports & Policies
    • Contact Us
  • YOUR IMPACT
    • Achievements
    • Stories
  • GET INVOLVED
    • Donate
    • Join our team
    • Advocate to end slavery
    • Connect your school with Nepal
    • Stay updated
  • Travel to Nepal
  • Shop
  • NEWS

This Easter, choose chocolate that's good for people and the planet with the 2025 Chocolate Scorecard

7/4/2025

0 Comments

 
Picture
Easter is coming, which means we all have the perfect opportunity as consumers to shop with our values and support efforts to end modern slavery. Project Didi is here to help you do that as we are members of an Australian coalition campaigning against modern slavery and supporting the work of our friends and powerful advocates, Be Slavery Free, by promoting the 2025 Chocolate Scorecard.  
The Chocolate Scorecard will help you buy better, so you don’t unknowingly support brands that rely on modern slavery in their supply chains.

Unfortunately, the cocoa industry is a hotbed for interconnected issues that precipitate and perpetuate modern slavery, including child labour, and failing to pay cocoa farmers a living wage, even though they believe that living income is a human right.

Read More
0 Comments

We are committed to representing survivors' stories in a respectful, dignified, accurate and empowering way.

30/7/2021

0 Comments

 
That's why, on World Day Against Trafficking in Persons, we've signed Freedom United's My Story, My Dignity Pledge.
Picture
Raising awareness of the lived experience of modern slavery and human trafficking is essential if we are going to make progress to end it, but too often, survivors' stories are told with disempowering language and images. 

These images and lanuage can unintentionally create or reinforce stereotypes and further victimise survivors.
We commit to the principles of the My Story, My Dignity pledge: ​
  • Choose respectful images that are representative of the issue
  • Use strength-based language that accurately represents the story, avoiding sensationalist language
  • Respect survivors' right to privacy and dignity
  • Obtain prior consent to using a personal story or photograph, be transparent and accurate about the process and how it will be used
How are we putting the pledge into practice?

Read More
0 Comments

Thank you for supporting I AM BELMAYA!

6/7/2021

0 Comments

 
Picture
We would like to thank all of you for supporting Project Didi and our partner Asha Nepal through the purchase of tickets for the screening of I AM BELMAYA.

We sold over 70 tickets and raised more than $1,600!

Belmaya and her daughter will also receive a portion of your contributions.

We hope you enjoyed the film produced by this inspiring young woman who was determined that her daughter would be able to ‘walk the right path’, through education. Her determination and resilience, along with the courage to challenge tradition and pursue the opportunities of filmmaking, has made her an amazing role model for other young women.

Here is what you thought of the film:
Picture

​"I loved, loved, loved the film! I was completely engrossed."

"It will inspire many women and girls to reach higher throughout the world."

"Wonderful film. Had me in tears but ended in such joy." 

"A powerful story of a brave young woman, taking charge of her life and future, despite the prejudice and limitations. Inspirational!"
If you missed Project Didi’s Q&A with Director Sue Carpenter, you can access the recording at the link below.
Watch the Q&A
0 Comments

COVID-19 in Nepal + finding joy!

26/3/2020

0 Comments

 
Clare Bartram
Namaste our friends - how are you?
What a question in this unbelievable time. It goes without saying, we’re all adjusting to a new kind of normal. We hope you and your families are staying healthy, navigating the anxiety, confusion and enormity of COVID-19 and finding some social solidarity in the isolation. 
We’re concerned for our colleagues and friends in Nepal, who like us, are working out how to move forward. Nepal has only 2 confirmed cases, but some say this number reflects a lack of tests. There is a strict stay-at-home order in place, with schools, businesses and government offices closed and domestic and international flights grounded. 
Picture
Durbar Square, Kathmandu. Image: The Mercury News.
Nepal has also closed its land borders with India and China. When one of our co-founders, Sarah, left Nepal over a week ago there were already queues for petrol, gas and cooking oil, with fear of fuel and food shortages, much of which comes from India and China. ​
The women and girls and our colleagues at our partner, Asha Nepal, are all healthy. They have closed the office and are continuing to support the family care homes and families in the community with the team working from home where possible. The family care homes are well stocked with food, toiletries and basic medical care. Asha has purchased induction heating stoves in anticipation of a shortage in cooking gas. With schools closed, the family care mothers are considering creative ways to make the time productive and not too disruptive for the girls. They have been reading, cooking together, playing indoor games, doing art and watching movies. 
These are heartbreaking times for so many and especially for already fragile communities. For those already vulnerable from violence and precarious livelihoods, unable to rely on an affordable or adequate healthcare system, COVID-19 will be devastating. There are no stimulus packages in Nepal. 
Picture
It’s also a testing time for our global community and the shared connections we have built across cultures and borders, as we, by necessity, turn to our here and now. 
After a cooking class with one of our groups in Nepal last year, Mina*, who along with a number of the family based care mothers have set up a catering business, said
“I felt really joyful while conducting the cooking class."
So in the spirit of finding joy where we can and remembering we are part of a global community, the Project Didi team have decided to cook a number of the mothers’ recipes.

We’ve shared a recipe below, so we hope you’ll join in our Nepali feast and find joy in the food and connection to our didis in Nepal. 
Mixed Vegetable Curry
You will need:
  • 250g green peas
  • 250g carrots, chopped into sticks
  • 500g cauliflower, chopped into pieces
  • 250g green beans, chopped into diagonal pieces
  • 250g potato, chopped into bite size pieces
  • 1 cup of chopped tomatoes
  • 1 medium onion, chopped finely
  • 1 pinch fenugreek seeds
  • 1⁄2 tsp turmeric powder
  • 2 spring onions, chopped
  • 3 cloves garlic
  • Finger size bit of ginger
  • 2 tsp cumin powder
  • 1 zucchini chopped
  • Salt to taste
  • 60ml oil​
You can swap these vegetables to use those that are in season.
Pound garlic and ginger into a paste.

Heat a large pan and add the oil. When hot, fry the fenugreek seeds until they turn red.

Add the onions and fry until they turn brown.

Add the tomatoes, ginger and garlic paste and cook for 2 minutes.

Add the vegetables and turmeric powder. Stir occasionally and cook until tender.

Then add the spring onions, cumin powder, salt and cook for 5 minutes.

Enjoy! 
Picture
*Name changed to protect privacy.
0 Comments

A new decade of bright futures for women & girls.

9/1/2020

0 Comments

 
Chloë Spackman
A reporter once asked A.J. Muste, a Dutch born American clergyman and
pacifist who protested against the Vietnam War, “Do you really think you are going to change the policies of this country by standing out here alone at night in front of the White House with a candle?” Muste replied softly,​
“Oh I don’t do this to change the country.
I do this so the country won’t change me.”
In a world so complex, so overwhelmed with systemic poverty and injustice, it can be flummoxing and down-right exhausting deciding where your precious effort and resources should go, and even more so, understanding whether you are having any real impact.

​2019 was my first year formally involved with Project Didi as President of the Board, and this role has been my own lit candle: the time I give and the work I do is my act of service to what I think is truly important. It has kept me tethered to the legacy I want to create in my life. I imagine it is the same for our supporters and the Project Didi community broadly.
Picture
There are many important causes in the world, and we as individuals cannot address every single one. What is important is that something about Project Didi’s mission resonated with you as it does with us. And you made the conscious decision to allocate your time or energy or resources to this community. 
You, like us, understand how precious women and girls are to this planet. How critical education is to the lives of women, their families and their communities. You understand how critical it is to address the urgent crisis of trafficking and modern slavery. How central child rights are to a flourishing world. How everybody loses when gender inequality goes unchallenged.
Picture

Read More
0 Comments

A look back at our 2019 highlights...

8/1/2020

0 Comments

 
We expanded our trips offering two new opportunities to travel to Nepal
Picture
We were thrilled to partner with Fernwood Tuggeranong, a female gym and health club in Canberra, to run a trip in March. We ran our first Women Empowering Women trip with nine women from across Australia. These trips provide valuable funding for critical care for survivors of trafficking and abuse, but they also are an opportunity for our community to gain an understanding of Nepal and the complexities facing women and girls through meeting Nepali community leaders, artisans and entrepreneurs. Travel with us in 2020! Read more about our trips over on our blog & sign up below to be the first to know about this year's trip.
I want to travel to Nepal!
We continued our strong partnerships in Nepal
We're proud to mark 5 years in our partnership with Asha Nepal. We supported the development of the growth of the women-led catering program with new women undertaking training. The women also landed a catering booking for a 5-day local government training session for over 30 people! Both our women's trips to Nepal enjoyed cooking alongside the women in their homes. 

Read More
0 Comments

Women empowering women

4/12/2019

1 Comment

 
It’s been a week since we waved goodbye to these 9 brilliant women who joined us on our women empowering women trip, making it the 7th trip we’ve taken to Nepal. 
Picture
We’re grateful that they chose to travel this way. Through the trip's contribution to our work in Nepal and through the women-led organisations we support through our tourism, the trip opens opportunities for women and girls, who have experienced adversity, discrimination, trafficking and violence. 

But who is empowering who? It is our intention that it goes both ways, that the trips are a shared learning experience.

​You can think of it a bit like Nepal’s roads where everything and everyone is going all directions (with the occasional cow added into the mix!). Despite the different destinations, the shared journey is the fun bit! 


Emerging unscathed from the Nepali traffic, here's what we learnt on our most recent trip. 

Read More
1 Comment

Female, fantastic, Fernwood in Nepal!

9/4/2019

0 Comments

 
“Amazing”, “spectacular,” and “sensational” were just a few of the words our Fernwood Tuggeranong trekking group used to describe their recent trip to Nepal with us.
 
Seeing Everest, learning to cook a traditional Nepali dinner and experiencing first hand the work being done to support survivors of trafficking and abuse were just some highlights.
Picture
We were blessed with perfect weather and the adventure kicked off with a trek along the first leg of the Everest Base Camp trek where the group got a taste of village life in remote areas of Nepal, spent a day in the traditional Sherpa trading centre of Namche Bazaar, and saw spectacular views of the Himalayas, including Everest and Lhotse.

Most had never travelled to Nepal and many hadn’t trekked, overcoming personal challenges they never thought possible, such as a fear of flying in small planes (we flew into Lukla to start the trek), walking along suspension bridges and completing a relatively challenging trek.  
Picture
Back in Kathmandu the group spent time at our local partner, learning about the issues of trafficking and abuse in Nepal and the work being done to support survivors.  We were also treated to a traditional Nepali lunch prepared by the team at our partner. Delicious!
 
The following day the group learnt how to cook a traditional Nepali dinner of dahl baht and vegetable curry in our partner's family based care homes, small family units for children who have survived trafficking or abuse with a mother who is a survivor herself. The cooking class is a recent Project Didi initiative to provide income generation opportunities for the mothers. A visit to the home also allowed the group to see first hand the positive impact family based care has for survivors. Read more about our family based care.
Picture
Picture
Other highlights included tours of the UNESCO World heritage Bouddhanath, Durbar Square and the Ason Tole markets in Kathmandu.
 
The tour was a huge success and judging by the feedback enjoyed by all - so much so that plans are already underway for another Fernwood Tuggeranong tour next year!
Picture
We would like to thank Fernwood Tuggeranong and the participants for making the trip so enjoyable and memorable, enabling us to raised funds to continue our work in Nepal and most importantly raise awareness of the issue of  trafficking.
Come to Nepal with us in November!
Words & images: Leonie Keogh, Project Didi co-founder and Board Member
0 Comments

3 ways you can join the fight to end human trafficking!

31/1/2019

0 Comments

 
This month, the UN released its Global Report on Trafficking in Persons that examines the prevalence of trafficking, including forced labour, sexual exploitation and forced marriage across 142 countries.
​

It wasn’t good news for women and girls. Trafficking disproportionately affects women and it’s only on the rise, particularly for young girls. The report found that since 2014, there has been an increase in traffickers targeting girls below the age of 18.
Picture
The young girls we work with in Nepal, survivors of trafficking, have missed their childhood. They’ve missed critical years of schooling. Stigma often prevents them from finding employment and independence. Their confidence and self-worth has been shattered by years of degradation and violence.
​

These lives seem far away from our reality, but we are hold more power in Australia than we might think to prevent trafficking and ensure that all women and girls have safe, dignified futures.
It's not too late to make a New Year's Resolution. Today, for the last day of January, commit to standing up for the freedom of our sisters with these 3 simple steps.
Picture
A lack of transparency in fashion supply chains (your t-shirt might pass through hundreds of stages to get to you - from the cotton picking to the printing and packaging!) and a demand for new, cheap and more has fueled forced labour and exploitative, unsafe working conditions for the garment workers, many female, who make our clothes.

We hold power in our wallets. Use the Good on You app to look up brands that respect their workers, pay them a fair wage and have no child or forced labour in their production. 
Picture
On your next trip, take 4 photos of your hotel room and upload them to TraffickCam. The app’s database of photos are used by law enforcement to locate traffickers who are selling women into sexual slavery using online advertisements taken in hotel rooms.
Picture
Get involved with organisations, like us, that work to prevent trafficking and support survivors to rebuild their lives!

Could you put one of our donation boxes in your office or local cafe? Would you like some of our beautiful cards for your shop? Could you help us run an event? Or are you an admin whizz? We’re always looking for volunteers to support our work with women and girls in Nepal!
Get in touch
Author: Clare Bartram
Images: Project Didi & Unsplash.
0 Comments

    Archives

    March 2023
    February 2022
    October 2021
    September 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    February 2021
    June 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    April 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    August 2018

    Categories

    All
    Education
    Events
    Family Based Care
    Get Involved
    Modern Slavery
    Our Partners
    Our Team
    Stories From Nepal
    Travel To Nepal
    Youth Ambassador
    Youth To Youth Program

    RSS Feed



Project Didi Australia is committed to restoring hope, dignity and independence to women and girls in Nepal, who have experienced trafficking and gender-based violence, through trauma-informed care, family strengthening and reintegration, education and employment pathways.
Picture
ABN 68 320 267 277
Project Didi's Privacy Policy

Weebly Disclaimer & Privacy Policy
  • HOME
  • ABOUT
    • What we do
    • Why we do it
    • How we do it >
      • Family Based Care
      • Scholarships and Training
    • Our Story
    • Our Board
    • Our Partners
    • Our Strategy
    • Our Reports & Policies
    • Contact Us
  • YOUR IMPACT
    • Achievements
    • Stories
  • GET INVOLVED
    • Donate
    • Join our team
    • Advocate to end slavery
    • Connect your school with Nepal
    • Stay updated
  • Travel to Nepal
  • Shop
  • NEWS