OTD News Volume VII, Issue 2

3 Community Presentation By: Mirtha Whaley, Ph.D., OTR/L “Empowering Women Around the World” On March 23, 2016, and as part of several events in observation of National Women’s Month, Dr. Whaley was invited to present to faculty, staff, and stu- dents in our Tampa Campus on the topic of women and empowerment. Dr. Whaley’s presentation, Empowering Women Around the World , was both timely and consistent with her views on social and occupational justice as an occupational therapist and an individual. Empowerment speaks of strength, of self-confidence, especially around issues related to the amount of control we have over our lives, and how capable claim- ing our rights we feel. For women, lack of empowerment is a kind of global ep- idemic, and one that creates and supports disparities in education, health, per- sonal safety, and economic opportunities. Factors such as lack of parity in edu- cation and employment, cultural beliefs, and moral judgments, affect women’s health, reproductive choices, and protection from victimization. These factors range in intensity and risk from those we experience in the United States, to more severe forms of restrictions and abuse which actually endanger women’s lives around the world. Dr. Whaley shared some sobering facts about young girls and women world- wide. For instance: One in three women worldwide are victims of gender vio- lence in their lifetime (USAID, 2015). Over one quarter of a million women worldwide die from complications of pregnancy and childbirth; 15 to 20 million experience impairments related to their pregnancies; approximately 225 million who would like to postpone preg- nancy lack access to contraceptives (World Health Organization, 2015) 50% of individuals infected with HIV are young girls and women between 15 and 49 years of age (United States Agency for International Development, 2012). In developing countries, 25% of girls are unable to obtain an education. Among those girls and young women able to attend school, there is an increase of 10 to 20% in their earning power for every year of secondary education they are able to complete (Rodriguez-Perez, 2016). Page 8 OTD News, Volume VII, Issue 2