Stricken with polio since age two, Neema Namadamu is now a determined activist running a women's rights organization in the Congo. As the founder of Maman Shujaa Hero Women of Congo, Namadamu trains women to be digital activists by sharing their stories and solutions for change online.
Namadamu emphasized that technology is an especially crucial communications tool for women with disabilities like herself on stage at the Social Good Summit on Sunday.
"Telling each other’s stories. Together we have made a solution," said Namadamu.
Namadamu works in partnership with World Pulse, a women's empowerment network that connects nearly 60,000 women in more than 200 countries. World Pulse's CEO and co-founder, Jensine Larsen, discussed the importance of female grassroots leaders like Namadamu creating global dialogue online and partnering with other like-minded organizations.
"We need to create this vocal uprising. A massive movement of women across the world will be like the Arab spring," Larsen said.
Larsen mentioned a recent World Pulse campaign aimed at ending the brutal practice of breast ironing in Cameroon, where women's breast tissue is physically harmed to halt development. Through World Pulse 12,000 female activists vowed to end the practice in an online petition.
World Pulse has partnered with more than 40 organizations, including Maman Shujaa, which was founded by Namadamu. "Maman Shujaa" translates as "hero women" in Swahili, and through grassroots activism and digital empowerment, women are organizing against domestic assault, rape and other issues in one of the most violent and silenced regions in the world. The efforts of Maman Shujaa and other activists led to the Obama administration assigning a special U.N. envoy to the Congo in July.
About Social Good Summit
The Social Good Summit is where big ideas meet new media to create innovative solutions and is brought to you by Mashable, The 92nd Street Y, The United Nations Foundation, The United Nations Development Programme, The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and Ericsson. Held during U.N. Week, the Social Good Summit unites a dynamic community of global leaders to discuss a big idea: the power of innovative thinking and technology to solve our greatest challenges.
Date: Sept. 22 through Sept. 24
Time: 12 to 6 p.m. each day
Location: 92nd Street Y, 1395 Lexington Ave., New York, N.Y.
Tickets are sold out, but tune into the Livestream.
BONUS: 10 Empowering Apps for Social Good
Image: Mashable, Casey Kelbaugh
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