Category: News

At Move The World, we explore mindfulness practices and their impact on our Sustainable Development Goal of promoting good health and well-being (Goal 3). As a facilitator, my aim was to introduce these young minds to the power of being present, attentive, and kind towards oneself and others.

During one of our sessions in a primary six class, we delved into various mindfulness exercises such as deep breathing, body scans, and gratitude practices. The students were initially curious but also a bit restless, as sitting still and quieting their minds seemed like a difficult task. However, with encouragement and patience, they gradually began to embrace the practices, discovering the benefits they had to offer.

Little did I know that the impact of these mindfulness sessions would extend beyond the classroom walls. One day, an argument erupted between a group of students after the school closed. It started off as a minor disagreement but quickly escalated into a full-blown conflict. Voices were raised, tempers flared, and the situation seemed to be spiraling out of control.

In the midst of the chaos, one student who had fully embraced the mindfulness practices we had learned stepped forward. With a calm demeanor and a compassionate heart, reminded everyone to take a step back, to pause, and to take a deep breathe.

The effect was almost magical. As if under a spell, the students heeded their peer’s advice and followed suit. They took deep breaths, allowing themselves a moment of stillness amidst the turmoil. As their minds quieted and clarity emerged, they realized the insignificance of the argument in light of their shared goals and friendship.
Using the mindfulness practices they had learned, the students were able to resolve the conflict peacefully and restore harmony among themselves.

As a facilitator, witnessing this transformation was truly heartwarming. It reinforced the power of mindfulness practices in promoting good health and well-being, both individually and collectively. These primary six students demonstrated that mindfulness is not just a concept to be discussed in theory but a practical tool that can be applied in everyday life.

The impact of mindfulness practices on Goal 3 of Sustainable Development was appreciated in this class. Through a single intervention, a student stopped a potentially violent situation, fostering understanding, empathy, and peace. This serves as a reminder that practicing mindfulness not only benefits oneself but also has the potential to positively influence the world around us.

We have been incredibly fortunate over the years to gain support from people around the world and from various expertise.

So many companies now offer volunteering days and we would love to chat with you on how you can support us this coming year.

A few options to tell your company about are Matchable and Benevity. We have had volunteers and consultants from both and the best thing is its limited time – but of course you’re welcome to stay for longer and help us grow and expand!

The biggest thing you can do to support us is share the word but we love when our supporters have ideas for us and can bring them to life.
If you notice something on our website, social media or communications you think we could use an update in – get in touch! Let’s learn together.

If you think you can support with event planning or setting up a challenge to fundraise- get in touch!

We appreciate you, we value your support and commitment and we love to grow alongside you. 

If you’re interested in giving some of your time email Claire – hello@movetheworld.co 

Medaase paa

Michael Woma, also known by his day name, Kwesi, has been with Move the World since the very beginning and has been influential in developing programmes, strategic views and all around advocacy for the community.
Kwesi is currently studying Education at the University of Winneba and looking towards a future in supporting under-served populations in Ghana.

Educating my community on the sustainable development goals for this past years has made me realized how much knowledge I was able to impact in these young kids as well as myself!

Working with Move the world has given me the insight to understand that classrooms and outdoor engagement is very critical to effective teaching and there are many ways one can go about them. “Try different approaches until you find what is best for you and your students” is one of many lessons I took from MTW and this has been a part of me anytime am engaging learners.

Having more training and experience from MTW and being a lead facilitator, I have acquired so many skills sets as to the various roles a lead facilitator should play to make my class a lively one for all. The diversion of students attention to key points on a map and asking them to explain what they see in their own words and suggest ways to visualize their ideas differently is one of the skills that always keeps my class active and more interactive and this makes everyone feels comfortable contributing their opinions, even if it differs from those around them.

Also as a facilitator I have come to understand that every student has a learning style, some like to watch and listen, others like to read and write and some prefer hands on experiences. In my “books” the idea that people with disabilities are somehow less than their peers is not just offensive but also incorrect! I believe that everyone has a different level of ability and we should respect everyone regardless of their limitations or advantages. No one deserves to be treated unjustly because they do not fit into societal norms and this is why MTW never discriminate but includes everyone to learn in their diverse ways. Encouraging equal participation for both boys and girls in all activities and sessions we facilitates is very essential to us as an organization in order to promote gender-sensitive teaching in class.We as MTW facilitators have been trained to adopt gender-sensitive teaching methods that promote equality in the classroom. This includes using inclusive language and avoiding gender stereotypes.

Since the inception of this program, I can gladly say that MTW has helped students benefit from these projects by gaining new skills and knowledge in economic growth, social inclusion, gender equality, quality Education, clean water and sanitation etc. and they are encouraged to think about the world around them and how they can make a difference. This however has made their confidence grow as they share their knowledge with others. With improved and unlimited supply of teaching and learning materials (TLMs) from MTW, learning becomes more easier for both facilitators and learners, classroom becomes more inclusive that no child feels left out. Resources like MTW passports, card games, gift bags and others allows students to be exposed to new learning skills and this creates safe spaces where students can discuss issues related to gender and sexuality without fear of discrimination or harassment.

Promoting quality education and gender equality is an ongoing process that requires commitment and effort. But by taking a step, i believe one  can make a positive impact on the lives of students and help to create a more equal and inclusive society.

Have a read from our incredible University of Bath Work Placement Intern, Anita Beljanina.
We are so fortunate to have her part of the team!

Since the launch of Sustainable Development Goals in 2015, free, equitable and quality education has been in the centre of social and economic development. During my postgraduate studies in University of Bath, I learned, however, that in many African countries the education system struggles and there are many inequalities between the rich and poor; girls and boys. For various reasons, governments alone in these countries are not able to provide accessible and quality education. This is why non-governmental organisations, charities and the private sector step in to ensure that every child can enjoy the benefits of education. 

It was February 2023 when I first learned about Move the World and the work they do in Ghana. As completing work experience is part of my degree, I decided to apply for the charity’s grants officer position. Soon after I was warmly welcomed into the team and assigned my first tasks. I’ve always been passionate about education and sustainability which is also one of the reasons why I was keen to support Move the World and its Global Citizenship Education programmes.  As part of the small UK based team, I help the charity with fundraising efforts, communicating with trusts and foundations, data entry, and other important organisational tasks. 

Move the World is made up of so many talented and kind women that inspire me everyday. We all come from very different backgrounds which makes working together so much more fun and motivating. I’ve spent most of my life in Estonia, a little country in Northern Europe, before moving to the United Kingdom for my university studies. Everyday life there is so much different to life in the UK, Ghana or even North America. Every culture has something different to offer and I love learning from my colleagues and friends about their experiences and traditions.

Being part of Move the World has given me the opportunity to grow as a person and as a professional, and to contribute to a meaningful cause that I care about. I feel lucky and grateful to be surrounded by such amazing women who support each other and share a common vision of sustainable community development. 

Emmanuel, Co-Chair, has been with MTW since 2017 when he came on board as our first MTW Ghana Director. He has since transitioned onto the board and now co-chair position.
Have a read of his journey – what an incredible human!

I became a trustee of Move The World almost 4 years ago, and currently in my second term of
service. The experience has been incredibly valuable and my decision to offer to extend my term
reflects the fact that the benefit has been two way. So, what has been my trustee journey.
The pivotal moment came in 2017 when I joined Move The World (MTW) as the Ghana Director after
magically discovering MTW on Twitter (yes, Elon’s bird app). After following activities of the
organisation for a few months, I found a recruitment ad for a Director position. I hastefully applied
and no I didn’t have to wait long before hearing back. The recruiting process was very organized and
prompt, which made me positive about my soon-to-be new place of work.
After working with the team and the Medie Community for nearly 2 years, I moved on to take up a
new position with the German Development Cooperation in Ghana. By this time, I had seen
colleagues and community members become family members because of the deep experiences we
shared. I was very humbled to be considered for a Trustee position as I saw this a validation of some
of the work that I had done earlier but also an opportunity to continue to actively belong and
contribute to this amazing Organisation.

Life Long Friends
Making lifelong friends through a team experience is one of the greatest benefits of being part of a
team. When you work closely with others towards a shared goal, you have the opportunity to form
strong bonds and create meaningful connections that can last a lifetime. Both as a Director and as a
Trustee, I had the opportunity to meet very great people who have achieved so much professionally
but are also extremely good people. If there is one thing MTW is blessed with, it must be attracting
good people. I have benefitted from the counsel and mentorship of local community members of
Medie but also Team members of MTW.
As a charity trustee, I have had the privilege of working alongside dedicated and passionate
individuals who are committed to making a positive impact in their communities. Serving as a
trustee has allowed me to contribute my skills and expertise towards a worthy cause, and to work
collaboratively with a diverse group of individuals to achieve our shared goals.

Leadership Journey
My leadership journey has taken many unexpected turns over the years, and I wouldn’t have it any
other way. I was fortunate enough to directly work with Claire and Megan as my bosses during my
time as a director. I observed and learned from the strategic thought process and “hands on”
mentality of the duo. The founders created a culture of flat hierarchy in the organisation leading to
growth opportunities and great office relationships. This fascinated me a lot considering the amount
of work we got done as this was a bit of a deviation from what I had been exposed to at the time. I
can say that these leadership lessons have shaped my mindset around leadership and has
fundamentally changed the trajectory of my life and career.
I am also constantly inspired by the resilience and dedication of the individuals and organizations
that we work with. Despite the challenges that they may face (particularly during the height of
COVID-19), they remain committed to their missions and are always seeking ways to improve and
grow.

Being a Sailboat
At MTW, we see ourselves more as Sailboats as opposed to speedboats. We focus more on long
term sustainable impact and less of short-lived effect. Being a sailboat challenges us to avoid chasing
after shiny objects but trusting in the cumulating power of baby steps over time.
One of the most rewarding aspects of being a charity trustee is seeing the impact of our work first-
hand. Whether it’s through providing support and resources in the communities we work in,
promoting awareness of important issues, or facilitating meaningful change within our communities,
the work that we do as trustees has the power to make a real difference in people’s lives.
It has been a significant development opportunity for me. I think most people think about
Trusteeships as an opportunity to give back, and it certainly is that, but it is a practical process, you
learn by doing it and the skills and competencies you develop as a result, in my opinion rival any
development training I could have been offered.
Overall, serving as a charity trustee has been a truly fulfilling experience, and I would encourage
anyone who is passionate about making a positive impact in their community to consider getting
involved in this meaningful work.

#FiverForHerFuture was an initiative we ran this past April to highlight our female facilitators. We wanted to share what these incredible women do outside of their work with Move the World. It was also intiated to encourage donors directly support our female faciliators and to ensure that more girls are enrolled onto the programmes, hence achieving more Girls and Women empowered.

Wave 2 of our GET GLOBAL and GET LOCAL sessions started this past week, and we hope that with what we have received so far, we can have more girls on the programmes.

Move The World through the #FiverForHerFuture has been able to raise £435 out of the £500 target set.

Thank you all for DONATING and helping MOVE THE WORLD achieve its WOMEN EMPOWERMENT GOAL!!

Now let me share with you all what it has been like being a Social Media Coordinator.

It’s been fun, it’s been challenging and it has been amazing!!

You know, waking up in the morning and having to find the right words to get attention, English is ‘hard’ haha, but to satisfy the audience and the target group, the right words are needed to match the picture or video being posted. Getting the right captions to post makes me feel fulfilled, knowing that people will just need to read the caption to know what the picture is trying to communicate is interesting.

All in all, I love what I do and I’m looking forward to bringing you all amazing people, the BEST of the BEST!!

-Hawa Tasala Gariba
Facilitator Extraordinaire and Social Media Queen

As an organization, Move The World is constantly learning and adopting new strategies that enhance the quality of our programs.

When Schools resumed after the Covid’19 shutdown, it has been a struggle to continue programmes implementation within our partnered schools and to partner with new schools.

The national school’s academic calendar was constantly shifting, students had missed almost a year of classes, and school administrators were struggling to make up for it. Because school administrators were unable to pay them, many private school teachers left to find new employment.

Amidst these challenges, Move The World is ever determined to continue the quality delivery of educational programmes as it became increasingly salient that students needed to be aware of and understand global issues in order to explore novel ideas and solutions.

However, based on our interactions with school administrators, it is understandable that their primary focus was on the national syllabus and how they will be able to complete the previous year’s missed work with the ongoing academic year. As a result, school administrators had difficulty finding time and space to include us in their school activities. 

We consequently brought their concerns into our design process and created the HeadTeachers’ Forum to serve as a platform for school leaders to support one another by actively discussing challenges, looking into tried-and-proven solutions, and learning from stakeholders within the sector. 

Prior to this, the team was constantly debating whether or not the head teachers would attend the forum—that is, whether or not they would take time (that was needed in school) away from school to attend the event. We included head teachers in deciding what will work best for them, they proposed a 2-hour session and recommended a community-based location that was easily accessible to everyone. It turned out that including head teachers in the decision-making phase and sending invitation letters a month in advance worked wonders!

Our Maiden Head Teacher Forum Edition on the theme: ‘Integrating Global Citizenship Education Within Schools; the what, the whys and the how” took place on 9th March 2023. Dare I say that; it was a huge success!

We are extremely grateful for the fantastic collaborations with Joyce Larnyoh of International Child Development Program and Joseph Afangbe of Young Visionary Leaders Ghana who successfully engaged with school leaders to gain practical knowledge and understanding of the GCED concept and how school leaders can practically implement the Cognitive, Socio-Emotional and Behavioural Domains of GCED.

We have received very positive feedback from head teachers on the relevance of GCED and its domains and the commitments of school leaders in modifying school procedures and policies to reflect these new learnings.

“ The [forum] was awesome, and we are very grateful to Move The World. We have learnt so many things. We pray that this forum is organized everyday, every week, every month. We want to say thank you. In fact we feel like we are now going to start all over again because we are now students from today. We will take it to our schools, make results in the society, the country and the world at large. Move The World, God bless you and we wish to see you very soon in our schools.”

One of our facilitators was delighted sharing her feedback on her recent engagement with the headteacher of Medie International School when she went in to deliver a Get Global session.  

“The HeadTeacher’s forum has changed the perspective of HeadTeachers about our programmes. Some schools that were not very welcoming, now receive us with smiles and they tell us to keep up with the good works. At a session in Medie International School, after the HeadTeachers’ Forum, the headmaster approached me to thank Move The World, in his words he said “Thank you for the forum organized for the headteachers, we really learnt a lot and we hope you keep doing what you’re doing” ”

Global Fund for Children deserves our deepest gratitude. Through our recent partnership with GFC and as a member of the Partnership to Educate All Kids (Peak) Initiative Ghana Cohort, we easily were able to collaborate with International Children Development Programme and Young Visionary Leaders Ghana.

It is truly empowering when organisations effectively collaborate to open up opportunities for positive impacts to spread into the communities we serve.

We have jumped onto the new KujaLink platform and were honoured to be one of their charity spotlights this past month.

Join us to celebrate Ghana’s 66 years of independence!

We have some fun things planned for the evening and all from the comfort of your own home.

So whether you are in Ghana, UK, Canada, America or…. ANYWHERE in the world — Come and join us!

This year we are celebrating a day after the official day of independence (6th of March) as our team will be celebrating with friends and family members. However, we think its worthy of a 2 day celebration don’t you?

Event Details:

• 7th of March 2023
• 7pm – 8.15pm GMT
• Zoom
• Tickets by donation here

As with any Move the World that you have come to love and enjoy, get prepared for some interactive activities such as a quiz and Twi Language Lesson.

We can’t wait to see you there!

Do you get a kick out of writing grant applications, securing monies for small and mighty charities but can’t commit full time?
We have the job opportunity for you!

 Grants Manager 

• Move The World, International Development Education Charity – with operations in Ghana Remote working with access to London  
• £26,000- 29,000 Annually (based on experience)
• Pro-rata Permanent, Part-time, 2 days (16 hours) a week to be worked flexibly
  NB: Potential for role to be increased pending funding

Who We Are

Move the World is a UK-registered charity and registered NGO in Ghana founded in 2016, focused on community development and global citizenship education in the Ga West Municipality of Ghana, West Africa. Our mission is to educate youth in Ghana to be active global citizens. We work alongside schools and communities to deliver our global citizenship education programmes, Get Global and Get Local using the UN’s 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as learning themes. Since our 2019 pilot 914 students, 15 young adults and 9 teachers throughout 12 different schools have engaged with each other in experiential activities to build life skills whilst learning about local and global issues. 

Job description 

We’re looking for a Grants Manager to join our small UK team to help us reach out to new donors particularly trusts and foundations.

Move The World is growing, and this role will be dedicated to continuing this trend. Although the role will focus on raising funds from trusts and foundations, as a small international development charity, we work dynamically, adjusting to the most pressing need at any time. You’ll embrace this culture and enjoy being responsive. You’ll need to be passionate, personable and well-organised. You’ll manage your own partnerships as well as support existing ones.

As we are growing and expanding there is breadth to this position and opportunities for increased hours and promotion to the Senior Management Team as Director of Development.

This role will be home-based, but you’ll need to be able to travel to London for one – two days a month to meet with our UK team. You’ll need to also  be able to travel in the UK to meet with partners, and there will be potential for international travel. For UK- based staff this travel will be covered by the organisation.

We would accept applications from elsewhere globally if you have the knowledge and access to UK funders. Please note in this situation, stated salary would reflect in-country cost of living and travelling to London would not be required. 

Your main responsibilities 

• Write and submit applications to a range of trusts and foundations including corporate foundations, working with our programme team to develop the applications and gather the information you need to create applications.
• Research and develop relationships with trusts and foundations, and proactively manage our grants pipeline.
• Engage with potential, existing and previous funders to identify funding opportunities 
• Write and submit inspiring reports for existing funders.
• Lead due diligence processes for funders.
• Support the monitoring of our fundraising budget to ensure we’re on track to meet the annual fundraising target.

You must have or be all of these: 

• At least three years experience in charitable fundraising – ideally international development.
• Experience in cultivating relationships with trusts, foundations and/or corporate donors.
• An understanding of individual giving.
• Experience in researching and managing a fundraising pipeline. 
• Experience of using a fundraising Customer Relationship Manager (CRM) databse (we use Beacon but experience in any CRM will be transferable) .
• Plenty of experience using Excel and Microsoft Word or Google Sheets and Google Docs. 
• Great organisational skills – you need to be able to multitask and prioritise your own workload.
• Strong communication skills – we work remotely but we are all in touch a lot, you need to be happy to be part of this remote team and stay in touch about what you’re doing.
• Good digital acumen – you can’t be a technophobe. 

It would be great if you had some of these skills and experience:

• Experience in either education or international development. 
• Understanding in communications, in particular social media and newsletters 
• Experience of putting together fundraising resources and newsletters, using Canva or Indesign.
• Experience of digital fundraising including Facebook. 

You’re likely to be a great fit if: 

• You enjoy communicating with donors and sharing a cause with them 
• You’re passionate about international development 
• You are happy to work independently 
• You have a flexible approach to your work. As a small charity, everyone in the team has to do things that aren’t in their job descriptions 

Interview Process

Interviews will be conducted over Zoom on commencing the week of 20th of February 2023 and will include a short assessment. Candidates will have access to questions prior for preparation.
The position will start ASAP.

Application Instructions 

Send an email to Claire – claire@ena.841.mywebsitetransfer.com and include your CV and a cover letter.

We’d love to hear why you think you’re a good fit for the role at Move The World. Permission to get creative 🙂