Supporter: Lyndsey Romick

Iraq's contentious election has tied its political system in knots. But this isn't stopping Mercy Corps from pursuing one of its main objectives there: making women's voices heard. It's part of our effort to build skills for traditionally disenfranchised groups, as Mercy Corps' Sahar Alnouri said recently at a public event at Mercy Corps' Action Center in Portland.

Alnouri, who's worked in Iraq since early last year, said the election has put everyone on edge. In 2005, post-election sectarian violence displaced millions of Iraqis and left the country in a very sensitive state. Explosions are still common, and people wonder if the fighting will break out again.

The insecurity is the hardest part about working in Iraq, Alnouri said. "You have to be in a constant state of preparedness, even if nothing happens." It's also hard to gather information because travel is dangerous. But these problems don't deter Mercy Corps from helping those who suffer the most from the insecurity: women and girls.

For starters, instability keeps girls from attending school. Parents often shield their daughters from potential danger by keeping them at home. Alnouri helps coordinate Mercy Corps' women's literacy program, which fills an important need in a country where the illiteracy rate is about 30 percent higher for women than it is for men. So far we've helped about 26,000 women how to read and write, as well as lessons in democracy and governance, human and women’s rights, and other key social issues.

Over 18,000 Iraqi women are currently enrolled in our literacy programs. Photo: Alisha Rodriguez/Mercy Corps

But female literacy is only the first step.

The Iraqi constitution is fairly liberal on women's rights, but reality doesn't always match the rhetoric. And with the fledgling Iraqi police force tied up with security matters, women's rights aren't top priority. Alnouri said Mercy Corps programs teach women about their rights, about voting and about their role in a democratic society. As a result, women are becoming more confident -- and more politically aware.

For example, 30 percent of the candidates in the most recent election were women, and their newfound knowledge empowers them to speak out for political change. Alnouri related one story that demonstrates the new political consciousness. In the midst of recent negotiations to form a new government, one of her female colleagues remarked, “We need training for our politicians on how to use the democratic system.”

Though the results of the election are still in dispute, our commitment to Iraq's women is certain. We're helping them develop the tools they need to find their own voices, despite the security risks.

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Nathan Plowman (front row, middle) poses with members of our LEAP program in Kenya. LEAP, which stands for Local Empowerment for Peace, include sports programs made up of mixed tribe members, who take part in conflict management and peace dialogue processes. Photo: Mercy Corps

Every four years, the world comes down with a severe case of World Cup fever. Thousands of frenzied fans pack themselves into stadiums, wear outrageous costumes, paint their faces and wave banners. Hundreds of thousands of people gather in front of a TV to root fervently for their team.

Sport brings people together. That's why Mercy Corps uses sports in many of its programs to promote tolerance, reinforce social messages and help traumatized youth.

The agency's programs vary from country to country, says Nathan Plowman. As Mercy Corps’ Sport for Change advisor, it's Plowman's job to figure out how sport can be incorporated into the design of programs to help achieve its goals, like building peace or fostering inclusion.

In Kenya, we put members of different tribes on the same soccer or volleyball team to help ease tensions resulting from post-election violence in 2007. And part of our program in Colombia to reduce violence against women includes getting more than 4,000 kids to play soccer together.

Plowman says that program is a good example of how "sport provides a learning moment" for kids, who learn values like respect, fairness, honesty and self-control, break down gender-based stereotypes and improve their tolerance of others.

But do these programs provide lasting results? The short answer is yes.

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Ever heard of a "dzud"? It's pronounced zuhd, and it's an extraordinarily harsh Mongolian winter -- the kind where temperatures plummet, animals freeze to death, and you can enter your house only through the roof because that's how high the snow is. Any Mongolian will tell you they're bad news.

The dzud during the winter of 2009-2010 was "a national catastrophe," according to Mercy Corps' Oidov Vaanchig, who's based in the capital of Ulan Bator. A shortage of grass during the preceding summer meant that herds of sheep, goats, camels, horses, and cows couldn't put on enough fat to get them through the winter. And herders didn't stock enough animal feed because the financial crisis cut into their cashmere sales. As a result, the unusually cold temperatures killed between 8 and 15 million animals. An estimated 45,000 people lost their entire herd.

A cow or goat skull in the Gobi Desert. Photo: Thatcher Cook for Mercy Corps

All those rotting carcasses have been a problem. Herders were unable to bury the dead animals during the winter because the ground was frozen, and burning the carcasses is too risky in Mongolia's dry climate. Serious health problems could result if the rancid flesh is allowed to decay and permeate the water supply. Mercy Corps encouraged rural herders to partner with local veterinary clinics to clean up the carcasses before disease becomes rampant.

We are also training herders to diversify their income so they don't have to completely rely on their animals for survival. Participating herders learn how to sustainably manage pastures and produce vegetables and dairy products while developing business skills in accounting, marketing, and risk-management. We are trying to get herders to share information on commodity prices, and trade knowledge-based skills with each other.

Better access to loans and markets can mean more income for rural herders and ex-herders. And if herders become less vulnerable to nasty weather, maybe the next time you hear about a dzud, the news won't be so bad.

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