Today we’d like to introduce you to Girl Up Orlando. Them and their team share their story with us below:
Girl Up Orlando started in August 2020 when the founder, Sampada Nyalapatla, found the Girl Up Campaign on the Obama Foundation website. After looking into the campaign more, she realized that there was no Girl Up club in Orlando so she decided to make it her mission to start one. Sampada & 5 friends successfully registered Girl Up Orlando as an official UCF RSO and Girl Up Club. Our first year of Girl Up Orlando was conducted virtually due to COVID-19 so we had a lot of workshops, guest speakers and informational discussion-based events. We were able to connect with many leaders and organizations in the community and collaborate with them to bring awareness to gender inequality and ways to fight these issues. This fall we were finally able to have our first in person events and it was amazing seeing all of our members and connecting with them on another level! Our biggest event was our International Day of the Girl Celebration where we collaborated with 10+ organizations in the community and highlighted different areas related to girls. For example, we had groups representing girls in STEM, LGBTQ+ members, women facing domestic violence & many more! Overall, Girl Up Orlando has found its home on UCF’s campus as a place for anyone and everyone to feel welcomed and leave feeling empowered!
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Girl Up Orlando was founded in the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic so there were bound to be some obstacles along the way. As a club that focuses on raising awareness for underprivileged women and broadening the lens for feminism and gender equality through actions and advocacy, there was a barrier with the pandemic which made it difficult for us to make a direct reach with our events. Workshops, volunteering opportunities, and meetings were all moved virtually which was initially a downfall as we felt though our efforts would not be as impactful as we wanted it to be. However, with the passion, dedication, and resilience of the board members, we were able to make several events and meetings successful and just as impactful. Through virtual meetings, we were able to hold several workshops such as Self Defense, Women in STEAM, and Mindful Self-Compassion; we were also able to host our 11 Days of the Girl Campaign with a sponsor a girl fundraiser, film discussions, green dot training, and several guest speakers including Leila Sabet and Anna Huynh. The pandemic has placed gender equality and inclusion at higher stance, the most vulnerable groups, including women have been hit the hardest. Though the pandemic has posed struggles regarding our outreach, we were able to overcome these obstacles through relentless time and dedication to the young girls and women both in and out of our community.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Girl Up Orlando is a chapter of the Girl Up Campaign at the University of Central Florida which focuses on raising awareness for underprivileged women and advocating for gender equality in our society. Our belief is that we are fighting for equality, not superiority; having a platform in such a diverse university allows for us to broaden the lens of feminism and put into effect gender equality on a far larger scale not only in our state or country but globally. We have been educating and advocating for young girls and women through issues regarding gender equality, intersectional feminism, gender-based violence, STEM, and much more. By embracing the varying cultural perspectives and unique experiences of all of our members and the individuals that we help, we are able to create an inclusive environment that values identities with respect to race, ethnicity, sexuality, religion, gender identity, culture, etc. We are most proud of the outreach and impact that we have had within our community and globally. Having the platform to teach, advocate, and learn through our events has been an experience that will be carried and implemented throughout each and every one of our lives.
Networking and finding a mentor can have such a positive impact on one’s life and career. Any advice?
We’re thankful for our networking opportunities as through these, we’ve become aquatinted with multiple women-centered organizations on the UCF campus who we have and want to work with again in the future. Some advice we have for networking in general is to reach out to those who have the same goals, mission, or vision as your organization. This way of networking has worked well for us as we’ve made connections with many on and off campus organizations whom we are excited to work with in the future. Having similar interests makes it easy to for you to learn from and get resources from each other to advance both organizations. In terms of finding a mentor, we suggest it would be best to reach out to someone who has professional or research experience in your field.
Contact Info:
- Email: girlup.orl@gmail.com
- Website: https://girlup.org/
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/girlup.orlando?utm_medium=copy_link
- Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/girluporlando/
Image Credits:
Rohan Madathil
