Problem Tree

The issue I want to raise awareness about is the sexual and reproductive health (SRH) of teenage girls, especially in Mexico. As you will see in the tree, some of the identified causes that lead to poor sexual and reproductive health among adolescent women are poverty, high-risk behaviors (such as alcohol and substance abuse), lack of information, gender inequality and no access to contraceptive methods, but why? Here are some of the ideas that came up.


• Poverty – Disadvantaged adolescents have problems to access quality education, information and/or health services.
• High risk behaviors – Teenagers under the influence of alcohol or other drugs are more likely to have unprotected sex.
• Lack of information – Teenagers don’t know about contraceptive methods or don’t know how to use them. They don’t have information about their sexual and reproductive rights.
• Gender inequality – Teenage girls are unable to negotiate with their male partners about safe sex practices. Traditional gender roles and stereotypes prevent both young men and women from exercising their sexuality in a healthy and responsible way.
• No access to contraceptive methods – Governments and health institutions haven’t been able to provide them. In some countries parental consent is required to access contraceptive services. Teenagers don't know where to get them.

Regarding the consequences of a poor SRH in teenage girls these include, but are not limited to:

 unsafe abortion practices and maternal death in adolescents
 health problems during and after pregnancy for both the mother and the baby
 teenage pregnancy/adolescent parenthood
 school dropout or poor school performance when teen pregnancies occur
 high rates of sexually transmitted diseases
 high risk of HIV infection

So, what I would like to tackle given the available resources and time is the lack of information about contraceptive methods, sexual and reproductive rights and gender equality in order to improve the sexual and reproductive health of adolescent women.

Note: Click here to see a bigger image of the problem tree.

Introduction

Hi again!

After my brief first post, it’s time to introduce myself. Some of you have already read my introduction on Facebook, so I will try to make it a little bit different this time.

My name is Cecilia and I am a 24 year old activist that has been working to defend the rights of other young people, especially in Mexico. Worried about the situation of young people in my country, the lack of opportunities and spaces to debate and participate, some friends from college and I decided to create a youth-led organization about 5 years ago. That’s how Espolea was born. Nowadays we focus on three main issues: drug policies, HIV/AIDS and gender equality. Our mission is to empower and engage young people in projects and initiatives to generate knowledge and information that allow us to act as agents of change and promote respect for human rights from a youth perspective. I currently participate in the Gender Program where we address 4 topics: sexual and reproductive rights, gender equality, empowerment of young women and masculinities.

I like to think of myself as a tireless dreamer, I enjoy meeting new people and learning from them. I practiced ballet for 12 years and I think that helped me to become a disciplined and responsible person. I believe in the potential and goodness of people to change the world. I’m planning to study a master’s degree in gender studies and I would love to continue working in the non-profit area as long as there is something that needs to be done.

Welcome

Hello everybody!!

I am very excited about starting this e-course and getting to know all of you. Before introducing myself, I would like to say that this is not my first blog. In 2006, I started one because I wanted to share some feelings and thoughts with my friends and other people on the web. It is in Spanish, but you can check it out at cecigarcia.wordpress.com. Then, about two months ago, I was asked to create another one for my french lessons (reflets-cecil.blogspot.com). Now I am starting a third account for this course and I recognize that this is an excellent tool for sharing and learning.

Looking forward to hearing from you very soon!!