Enabling 1 million young girls through food and technology
In the week of the UN General Assembly 2018 in New York, iamtheCODE was delighted to announce the launch of iamtheFOOD as the 4th pillar of the organization at UNICEF.
By 2030, end-all forms of malnutrition, including achieving, by 2025, the internationally agreed targets on stunting and wasting in children under 5 years of age, and address the nutritional needs of adolescent girls, pregnant and lactating women and older persons.
Good nutrition plays an important role in the optimal growth, development, health, and well-being of individuals in all stages of life. Access to healthy food is a right, not a privilege to be enjoyed by few. This right is usually inherent in the right to an adequate standard of living for health and well-being, where food adequacy refers to both food quality and food quantity.
Healthy eating can reduce the risk of chronic diseases, such as heart disease, stroke, diabetes and some types of cancer.
Food is not just a marketable commodity like any other commodity. Food is different in that it is explicitly and intrinsically linked to our human existence. While possessing another commodity allows for social benefits, food ensures survival.
iamtheCODE intends not only to teach girls digital skills but also contribute to the holistic empowerment of marginalized young women through the understanding of nutritious food. We will work to ensure access to nutritious food for all girls as a precondition for creating 1 million girl coders by 2030.
Understanding Nutrition and Food
iamtheCODE consists of four pillars that combine the right technology with a global network to address the UN Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs) and create future female digital leaders:
SDG-themed Hackathon events
Free Digital Code Clubs
Data Tracking & Measuring impact
Nutrition Education through technology
The transformational 2-day weekend events are run by the iamtheCODE team of volunteers in conjunction with partners (governments, private sector companies, NGOs, foundations and schools).
Day 1 is an Education day, while Day 2 is a Technology day, featuring hands-on learning and participation in generating technological solutions for relevant UN SDGs.
Free Digital Code Clubs
Clubs meet once a week for twelve weeks. They are run by volunteers in corporate organisations/ambassadors at schools, libraries, churches, and offer a safe environment for participants to engage with iamtheCODE’s unique digital wheel curriculum. Participants develop their digital skills and engage with STEAMED (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, Mathematics, Entrepreneurship, and Design) disciplines.
iamtheCODE uses its tools and networks to collect data and track the progress of women and girls in tech globally. Additional funding will go toward establishing a digital platform to streamline input gathering and analysis.
iamtheFOOD aims to use Illustrations to convey basic nutrition concepts. iamtheFOOD will acquire local foods to use in nutrition education in addition to laminated and visual color-coded nutritional information illustrations.
How we will measure success?
iamtheFOOD success will be measured through monitoring and evaluation:
- Number of Girls fed through from the iamtheCODE events
- How we improved food availability and dietary diversity among the farmers who supply us at events
- How we provided good healthy food as part of the Hackathons and Digital Clubs
- How the health of the girls has improved during the 12 weeks
- Understanding the visual illustration of iamtheFOOD
- Improving, building and applying nutrition knowledge of the girls
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