2023-2024 Edition
Feminization of poverty and its impact on
the empowerment of girls and women in Canada.
Theme
Poverty has a direct impact on health, growth, quality of life, security and well-being. It hinders the fulfillment of basic needs, perpetuates inequality, undermines social justice, and delays the attainmentof the Agenda 2030 sustainable development goals. About 700 million people live in extreme poverty in the world, 60% of whom are women. In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, the risk of extreme poverty is reported to have risen, directly affecting more than 260 million people worldwide, the majority of whom are women and girls, (OXFAM 2022). These findings which reflect a major setback in the fight against poverty, will guide your reflection this year as you, high school girls, explain how to:
“Accelerate the achievement of gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls by
addressing poverty and strengthening institutions with a human rights and social justice perspective”.
You will propose solutions to help curb poverty in a local community of your choice.
Our theme for the 2023-2024 reflects the Priority theme that will be discussed at the sixty-eight session of United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (UN-CSW-68), scheduled for March 6 to 17, 2024.
Participating Institutions
Testimonials
“This project was truly a life-changing experience for all the members of our team. It has inspired our team to speak up against gender-based violence. With the guidance of VOOC, we have never been more empowered to reflect on an important global and local issue and to unleash our inner leadership abilities to create a vehicle for much-needed change as proposed by this project.”
(EMSB-Laurier Macdonald High School Team, 2023)
“Voices of Olympia Canada School Competition has enabled us to become well-rounded global citizens who are determined to make a significant impact to empower young women and girls. This project taught us critical thinking and comprehensive research skills while fostering a drive to incite change. The knowledge and the skills that we have acquired have truly instilled the confidence and desire to advocate for equality. Working as a team encouraged us to develop collaboration and leadership skills as well as build friendships that will stay with us forever”
(Villa Maria Team, 2023)
“The process of the competition has made us realize that once given the opportunity or the chance to express our concerns about a certain topic, we have the push forward to not only speak about the problem but…take action toward that problem. Being a part of such an empowering competition has taught us many skills that have been and will continue to be helpful for our perspectives as students, and as citizens.”,
(EMSB-Marymount Academy International Team, 2023).
“Voices of Olympia Canada sagacious counsel and support have been instrumental in enabling us to exceed expectations and make a tangible difference in our society. The VOOC School Competition has served as a veritable training ground for our team, allowing us to augment our skill set and build our confidence in diverse areas, including: time management, organization, decision-making, creativity, and adaptability, coding, researching, and presenting”,
(The Study Team A, 2023)
“Notre participation au concours scolaire des Olympes de la paroles Canada a été une expérience unique dans nos vies. Tant en raison de notre sujet que de la méthode de travail que nous avons dû développer, ce projet nous a transformées”,
(Équipe du Collège Stanislas, 2023)
We are collaborating with CCUNESCO to promote this competition
Calendar
October 2023-March 2024
Teams work on their project; preliminary assessment.
December 2023
Competition official launching
April 2024
Final evaluation; selection of winners
May 2024
Awards Ceremony