BSR Launches Online Platform to Create Training Materials on Women’s Health in Developing Countries

San Francisco, May 22, 2013 /3BL Media/ — BSR’s new online tool will help educators in developing countries create culturally accurate training materials on a variety of health topics for women working in factories and farms.

“One of the greatest needs for women in the developing world is basic, accurate information about their health and hygiene,” said Racheal Meiers, BSR’s HERproject Director. “Our HERproject Toolbuilder provides this information through a simple, visual format that is universally accessible to women, regardless of whether they can read or whether they attend school. These tools can be printed out and widely shared where these women are gathering for work—in factories and farms throughout the global supply chain.”

Based on the curriculum of BSR’s HERproject—a peer-to-peer education program on women’s sexual and reproductive health that has reached more than 200,000 female workers in eight countries—the Toolbuilder:

• Provides visual resources for up to 10 training programs covering general, reproductive, maternal, and mental health; nutrition; family planning; and harassment.
• Contains approximately 1,000 images, including color illustrations created for HERproject, black-and-white drawings shared by Hesperian Health Guides, and color photographs from Knowledge for Health’s Photoshare that allow health educators to customize their presentations depending on the religion, culture, and ethnicity of the women receiving the training.
• Provides two formats: posters or flipcharts, which are commonly used as educational tools among low-literacy populations.
• Allows users to save, sort, preview, and export their projects to a PDF.

BSR launched the Toolbuilder for its HERproject initiative in 2011, and since that time, it has been used by HERproject implementing partners globally in factory- and farm-based programs reaching more than 50,000 women. Now the resource—currently in beta phase—is publicly available for health educators, community workers, and human resources professionals to enhance their training programs.

The Toolbuilder was designed by BSR and Tomorrow Partners with funding support from the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands, Sappi, Tomorrow Partners, and the Levi Strauss Foundation.

Educators can register to use the Toolbuilder at www.herproject.org/toolbuilder.

BSR’s HERproject Director Racheal Meiers will provide a demonstration of the Toolbuilder at the Women Deliver Conference in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, from May 28 to 30. For more information or to schedule an interview at the Women Deliver Conference, contact Racheal Meiers.

BSR works with its global network of more than 250 member companies to build a just and sustainable world. From its offices in Asia, Europe, and North and South America, BSR develops sustainable business strategies and solutions through consulting, research, and cross-sector collaboration. Visit www.bsr.org for more information about BSR’s more than 20 years of leadership in sustainability.

Launched in 2007 in China, BSR’s HERproject links multinational companies and their factories to local NGOs to create sustainable workplace programs that increase women’s health awareness. Working with our global network of partners, BSR also seeks to demonstrate the return on investment for factory-based women’s health programs. HERproject is active in Bangladesh, China, Egypt, Kenya, India, Indonesia, Pakistan, and Vietnam. HERproject is funded by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency, the Levi Strauss Foundation, and the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs. HERproject factory and farm program implementation costs are funded in full by participating multinational companies, third-party vendors, and suppliers. Visit www.herproject.org for more information.