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One By One, a nonprofit organization committed to ending fistula, and the Sierra Club have joined together to protect women and the environment, worldwide.
Obstetric fistula, a devastating childbirth injury caused by unrelieved obstructed labor, affects women and girls living in poverty in the developing world. As a result of their injuries, fistula sufferers leak urine, and sometimes feces, causing others to shun them. Most are relegated to the edges of society, unable to board a bus or share a meal with others. For those who can't access treatment, their suffering and isolation is life-long. But fistula is both preventable and treatable. On average, fistula repair surgery costs a mere $300. Such treatment enables women to return to society and teach other women about obstetric fistula and the importance of family planning. One By One and the Sierra Club recognize that women's voices and access to basic rights, including quality healthcare, are crucial to protecting our environment. When women have access to family planning information, they can more safely give birth to healthy children and often choose to have smaller families. Slowing population growth is key to long-term natural resource protection. When women are able to speak out about their bodies, they become advocates for their own rights, like ensuring that their water and soil are protected for their families. By hosting a Green-Pink Party and raising funds for fistula care, you unite two movements and help women with fistula find their voice to protect their health, their children's health and the earth. Host a Green-Pink Party and Receive your FREE Green-Pink Party Kit!
"You must not deal only with the symptoms. You have to get to the root causes by promoting environmental rehabilitation and empowering people to do things for themselves. What is done for the people without involving them cannot be sustained."
Photos courtesy of The Greenbelt Movement International (copyright).
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When a woman's voice and health are valued, she is better able to advocate on her own behalf for access to education about reproductive health and family planning and for the protection of the natural resources essential to her children's survival.
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