March Newsletter

MARCH NEWSLETTER

Partners of the Americas understands that being multicultural is much more than just coming from different cultures, but also facing different barriers. With that in mind, we are proud to present our organization's statement on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI).

Read our Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Statement

Things to Know About the COVID-19 Vaccine (March 13, 2021) — The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) outlines essential information on COVID-19 vaccines, including why the vaccines are safe and how they will be administered in the coming months. (Available in Spanish)
COVID-19 Data in Google Maps — Google Maps now offers essential COVID-19 data for people to make informed decisions about their activities in 220 countries. The app shows a seven-day average of new COVID cases per 100,000 people for the area of the map you’re looking at and labels whether cases are trending up or down.
Resources for Women's Well-Being (March 8, 2021) — Celebrate this Women’s History Month by getting informed! Greater Good Magazine has compiled resources for women to expand their knowledge on topics like self-care, equality, the workplace, being a parent, relationships, and more.

Access More Resources, Including Fact Sheets and Social Media Posts

Membership Unit

In March, the Membership Unit welcomed a second Associate Director, Ana Gonzalez, to the team. She will support and further develop the services and benefits provided to Partners' Chapter members.

This year, Partners celebrates seven Chapters that are achieving milestone years within the network: Cochabamba, Bolivia (55); Sur Occidente (Cali), Colombia (45); Long Island, New York (40); North Carolina (55); Rochester, New York (40); South Carolina (45); and St. Vincent and the Grenadines (40). Congratulations to all!

This month, the PartnersCampus Student Chapters welcomed 43 new students to the program who will engage in community leadership, civic engagement and volunteerism, and professional development opportunities.

The Unit also held a PartnersTalks event on "Achieving Gender Equality in the Americas." Four women from the Partners network discussed how we can empower women and reduce gender inequality across the Americas on March 11, 2021.

Interested in learning more about how to use PartnersConnect? The Membership Unit hosted a webinar to provide members with the knowledge and resources to effectively use the platform.

Watch the Webinar in English

Watch the Webinar in Spanish

Education and Global Citizenship Unit

From March 10-12, 2021, the Citizen Diplomacy Action Fund project for U.S. exchange alumni sponsored the We Represent 2021 Virtual Conference. The Conference addressed government-funded international exchange programs' inequities by directly targeting minority students, low-income students, and community college students and providing them with resources, information sessions, and the encouragement of relatable role-models.

The Education and Culture (E&C) program's call for small project assistance grants ends on March 31, 2021. Have a great idea and need more time? Contact [email protected]. The E&C program is also looking for innovative solutions for in-person travel and creative ideas using art and education as tools for building a diverse, equitable, and inclusive community. Apply here.

On March 17, 2021, Partners and the Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs at the U.S. Department of State (USDOS) announced the launch of a new regional 100,000 Strong in the Americas (100K) Innovation Fund grant competition with generous support from AgroAmerica and the USDOS. The new competition will increase higher education partnerships between the U.S. and Central America and the Dominican Republic.

Learn about the 100K Competition

Child Protection Unit

The CPU is excited to share that, as a sub-awardee to Winrock International, the U.S. Department of Labor (USDOL)-funded ATLAS project (Attaining Lasting Change for Better Enforcement of Labor and Criminal Law to Address Child Labor, Forced Labor, and Human Trafficking), was expanded this past month to Bolivia. Previously, Partners had only led the project’s implementation in Paraguay, although ATLAS also operates in Thailand, Liberia, and Argentina. ATLAS operates as a global effort to strengthen labor and criminal legal frameworks, improve the enforcement of labor and criminal law, and increase coordination among law enforcement and social protection entities in order to combat child labor (CL), forced labor (FL), and trafficking in persons (TIP). ATLAS will be implemented in Bolivia until September 2022, and it will focus on closing gaps in enforcement and legislative frameworks so that Bolivia may meet the standards for the elimination of trafficking under international law. The expansion of ATLAS to Bolivia will begin with a Pre-Situational Analysis to evaluate which areas of law enforcement and legal frameworks need to be addressed.

Read More about ATLAS Paraguay

Economic Development and Health Unit

The Farmer-to-Farmer (F2F) program continues to provide remote technical assistance to the Latin America and Caribbean region and its F2F core countries (Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Guyana, Jamaica, and Myanmar). In some instances, remote U.S. volunteers have been paired with local in-country volunteers to provide robust support to host organizations. This month, local Dominican volunteer, Jose Mercedes, and remote U.S. volunteer, Ram Ray, supported the host, Banelino, with a carbon soil sequestration assignment. Equipped with appropriate personal protective equipment, Jose visited Banelino to communicate Ram's inputs in a personal and direct manner. Jose visited two farms and connected virtually with Ram to give direct assistance to four farmers while five farmers connected virtually through Zoom. In this collaborative model, Jose and Ram were able to use data to create a five-year projection of carbon levels in the region, which will lead Banelino toward their goal of becoming carbon neutral. If you are interested in following Ram and Jose’s example and providing support to our hosts in the region, reach out to our recruiting staff at [email protected].

Read the F2F Blog

Check Out the F2F Instagram

COVID-19 Impacts on Youth Mental Health Across the Americas

Our Education and Global Citizenship Intern Katerina Lamm shares how COVID-19 has negatively impacted her mental health, as well as those of her peers in Peru. She looks at how their experiences are representative of the global worsening of mental health among youth due to the pandemic.