Positively Anna: The Shem Women's Group

You may not get excited about an extended work day, but you aren't a Tibetan nomad.

Each month Dining for Women selects a charity to support through their web of giving circles. In September the charity was The Shem Women's Group of Tibet. "Shem" means charity and compassion in Tibetan. This organization is made up of educated Tibetan women who want to help improve the lives of other women and girls in their impoverished communities. These women have figured out the best way to provide the Tibetan people with what they need is not to depend on outsiders but to learn how to create development programs themselves. Having started relatively recently -- March 2005 -- The Shem Women's Group has already shown remarkable success, completing 72 projects, helping over 10,000 villagers.

40% of people living in Tibet are nomadic or semi-nomadic, the lifestyle necessary for a people who's main source of income is raising and selling sheep and yaks. They live at the mercy of the elements, and without electricity, so their days are strictly limited by the rising and setting of the sun. The Shem Women's Group figured out how to outfit many women with solar-powered electric generators. The generators allow the women to extend their work day without spending their hard earned money on kerosene and candles, which are dangerous and hard to come by. A longer work day for the women means more money in their pockets and lessens the labor burdens on the children, particularly the girls. This has allowed more girls to attend school and has generally raised the view of women in the community. Positively wonderful!

Each charity selected by Dining for Women submits a video to provide the members with a greater understanding of the women we are helping. The pictures in the Shem Women's Group video are beautiful and inspiring and I urge you to take a look at all of them. Here are a few of my favorites: