Gender Issues

Interesting Facts About Women

At our girls-only sessions of Camp Kupugani, we’re all about having fun while helping our campers develop into strong women. “Officially,” March is International Women’s Month, but that doesn’t mean that we can’t think carefully all of the time. Here are some interesting facts (taken from www.internationalwomensday.com) about gender. Just some things to think about. Global Issues … Of 1.2 billion people living in poverty worldwide, 70% are women. Women own around only 1% of the world’s land. Business / Finance … Women control $14 trillion in assets and this […]

20 Things a Dad Should Tell a Daughter

At our summer camp for girls in Illinois, we recognize that empowerment and identity formation need multiple sources for your daughter. We had an earlier post with tips from a mom raising a daughter; below is a digested version of a good post from blogger Dorkdaddy, an intentional dad with a good sense of humor, with thoughts on 20 things a dad should tell a daughter. Things to Tell Your Daughter Pay attention to the way a man loves his mother. That is the way he will love you. You can […]

20 Things to Say to Your Daughter Before She’s Grown

At our summer camp for girls in Illinois, we exist for girls as they are, so they imagine the women they can become. Below is a digested version of a good blog post from mom Jenna McCarthy, an internationally published writer, TED speaker and author helping to facilitate similar character development, with some wise/fun specific tips. From a very young age our girls are targeted with messed-up media messages (think “Thin is beautiful, and beautiful is everything, and if you want to be happy, you need these shoes!”) and exposed to all […]

Ambivalent Sexism Inventory

At our girls summer camp here in snowy Illinois, at all times of the year, we recognize the value of identity and self-empowerment. A link a friend recently forwarded to me reminds me of the work we have to do as individuals, communities, and yes, even summer camps for girls. See below for more from the link. Every day, the self-esteem of young girls and women are lowered due to the subliminal behavior of others. Test yourself by taking the Ambivalent Sexism Inventory to see your own hidden biases.” “Women — you […]

Where It’s Hardest to be a Woman

As a camp based on female empowerment with intentional diversity, it is only right for us to not only know about female limitations in our own country, but also in others. One major population consistently placed in an inferior position is that of Arab women. I found a recent article on Buzzfeed, ironically, when I was searching for something funny to send to a friend. When I looked at the article, I was astonished. I had no idea there was so many difficulties and struggles for Arab women outside of […]

How Girls Can Make a Difference

“We exist for girls as they are… so they imagine the women they can become.” This is what we do in our girls-only camp at Camp Kupugani. Female empowerment is an intentional incorporation into all things Kupugani. It is important to be strong women and be proud of who we are as individuals and also as a unified group. Being female is not always the easiest thing. Thankfully, American society has progressed, making us a more equal force to men. Unfortunately, not all women enjoy a similar opportunity. There are […]

A Scary Study on the Sexualization of Young Girls

Another Halloween…and with it, I noticed the increasing sexualization of costumes aimed at young girls. For a while, we’ve battled the sexualization of women; in a scary continuing development, there is a significant impact on girls at younger ages, even kindergarten age girls! Psychologists at Knox College in Galesburg, Illinois have performed research using paper dolls to study how six-year-old girls react to sexualized women. This study raises interesting statistics and discusses why your daughter may have sexualized thoughts. At our all-girls summer camp program, we are intentional about modeling behavior that […]

Strong Women

Many of the influential leaders of the past are men—glorified and well-regarded for their works—but what about women? It is a societal problem that women are frequently seen as weak and submissive beings. What gave us that stigma? Perhaps it is the typical stereotype of taking care of the children, cooking meals for the family, and keeping the house clean that informs the view of women as being weak and feeble-minded. We are popularly exposed to few pioneering women. Nonetheless, I recognize some who took great strides to change our […]

Loving Yourself Unconditionally

At our multicultural summer camp, especially during our all-girls camp, we cover many topics from diversity, empowerment, to self-expression, leadership, and body image. One of our well-loved activities at camp is “Letter to a Body Part”, where we write a letter to one of our body parts expressing how much love we have for it—such as our eyes, stomach, hair, brain, etc. Why should we tell our body we love it? I was recently browsing internet feeds and noticed a variety of posts either encouraging body acceptance or encouraging diets […]

Tips for Dads Raising Daughters

As we approach Mother’s Day, where we recognize the great moms and mom figures in our lives, it’s important to realize the impact of dads raising daughters. During the girls-only sessions of our multicultural camp, we focus on developing an atmosphere of empowerment. Every parent knows that paying attention to his or her child matters. Fathers face different challenges when it comes to raising daughters. Daughters don’t always want to be “your little princess,” and they may not understand if you don’t want to fully engage in tea parties. The […]

Tips to Keep Your Girl Age Appropriate

At our multicultural girls camp, we are very intentional and mindful of doing activities that empower our young ladies, giving them the tools to be stronger in the outside world. Sadly, however, in that “outside world” there is increasing pressure seemingly everywhere for girls and young women to look older, sexier, and more mature than they are. Children’s cartoons have female characters wearing skimpy clothes; shows that are popular with teens and pre-teens, like Glee and America’s Next Top Model feature “kids” twice their age. Retailers directed at teens and […]

10 Tips to Empower Girls Webinar Link

Here’s a link to download our recent webinar about empowering young women. Keep Up to Date Have access to incredible articles and keep up to date with all Camp Kupugani life here!