Blog

Listen to the podcast interview about about TEWWY at https://www.wisdomatworkpodcast.com/introducing-tap-elderly-womens-wisdom-for-youth/

For more information about TEWWY, please visit their website at: https://www.mhinnovation.net/organisations/tap-elderly-womens-wisdom-youth-
tewwy

Elder Wisdom Leading Community Healing is a deeply rooted community mental health
project shaped by the lived experiences and frontlines insights of TEWWY’s seven
elderly Wisdom & Wellness Counselors. These retired women, now trained ‘non-
specialist’ providers of psychosocial support, serve as trusted mental health advocated
in underserved Tanzanian communities.
This initiative responds directly to their call for enhanced tools to address the growing
presence of substance use disorders, which frequently accompany depression in the
individuals they serve. The project is both timely and deeply personal, taking on added
emotional significance in the wake of losing one of our cherished counselors. It is not
only an investment in the skills of our current team, but also a tribute to her enduring
legacy of compassion and service.
This grant will support a four-week intensive training programme that is co-designed
with the counselors themselves. Their practical experience and wisdom have informed
every aspect of the curriculum, which included advanced interpersonal counseling
techniques, group talk therapy facilitation, and delivery of psychoeducation.
Recognizing the increased need to screen for anxiety and substance use issues, the
training will incorporate the Generalized Anxiety Disorder scale and the Alcohol Use
Disorders Identification Test, tools selected because they directly align with the real
challenges being encountered. Professional trainers with expertise in adult learning and
mental health will lead the sessions, ensuring that concepts are not only accessible but
also culturally relevant, bridging scientific understanding with local idioms, traditions and
community beliefs.
Beyond technical training, a central component of this initiative is the creation of
culturally grounded psychoeducational materials. These resources will be co-developed
by counselors and TEWWY staff through a collaborative process that values the
counselors’ deep understanding of their communities.
The initial development will take place during the training period, but this work will
continue beyond the four weeks as part of TEWWY’S ongoing commitment to co-

creation. Through iterative feedback and testing in community settings, the materials will
be refined to ensure they reflect the language, values and lived realities of those they
are meant to serve. This process reaffirms the counselors’ roles not just as service
providers but as knowledge bearers whose lived experience enhances the effectiveness
of mental health interventions.
The grant will also cover critical logistical support including daily transportation stipends,
leans and communication costs to ensure that these elderly women can participate fully
without economic burden. This practical support acknowledges the value of their time
and their contributions to community well-being.
While TEWWY’s ongoing services are sustained through regular donations, this training
represents a vital upgrade to the tools and techniques our counselors use every day. In
a country where there are only 2.31 mental health workers per 100,000 people,
investing in community-based solutions like this is not only strategic but essential.
Ultimately, this project strengthens TEWWY’s strategy of positioning elderly women as
community leaders and catalysts for change. It is a living example of intergenerational
collaboration, where the wisdom of older women is paired with evidence-based mental
health strategies to meet the evolving needs of vulnerable populations. By supporting
this initiative, the grant enables a more responsive, inclusive and resilient mental health
care model – one that is rooted in community, sustained by compassion and
strengthened by belief that healing must begin with those who know their people best.

Listen to the Wisdom at Work podcast interview about the the Abuelas at https://www.wisdomatworkpodcast.com/we-will-not-back-down-the-angry-tias-and-abuelas/

We are an NGO whose objective is to restore the identity of children who were
appropriated during the last civic-military dictatorship in Argentina.
This project aims to support the operation of the Spontaneous Presentations area of the
Grandmothers of the Plaza de Mayo by providing financial support for a part-time staff
member for four months. This role is key to receiving and supporting those with
questions about their biological origin, beginning the process of analyzing each case,
and making appropriate referrals to the appropriate state agencies and laboratories.
With the constant demand for spontaneous presentations and the recent cuts in state
support, having these resources will ensure the proper functioning of this task,
strengthen the confidence of those with questions about their identity, and sustain the

primary mission of the Grandmothers of the Plaza de Mayo, which has been carried out
since 1977.

Visit the Barefoot College Latin America at https://www.barefootcollege-guatemala.org/

Barefoot College International trains opportunity-seeking women from rural villages to
become solar engineers. In partnership with local and national organizations, the
Barefoot team establishes relationships with village elders, who help identify trainees
and implement community support. 
Trainees are often illiterate or semi-literate grandmothers who maintain strong roots in
their villages and play a major role in community development, bringing sustainable
electricity to remote, inaccessible villages. Solar electrification reduces the risk of indoor
fires, slows the negative impacts of deforestation and decreases indoor air pollution
from burning firewood and kerosene.
BAREFOOT COLLEGE LATIN AMERICA
Partnering with local organizations, we identify off-grid unelectrified, preferably
indigenous, last-mile communities who are interested in Barefoot College International’s
initiatives. We work together with these communities to establish solar committees and
select eligible women based on our criteria: between the ages of 19-69, illiterate or
semi-literate, with minimal or no formal education, and with a desire to change their
communities for the better. These brave women then become our “Women Solar
Engineers”, making the long journey from their villages to our campus, to enroll with us
and embark on a learning journey that lasts about 3 months. Their room and board are
fully included, enabling them to completely immerse themselves in our locally tailored
programs.
Despite the complex nature of solar engineering, the Barefoot methodology is uniquely
tailored for women without traditional education- some who have never stepped foot
inside a classroom. Through a system of colour coding, repetition, hands-on learning,
and support from Solar Master Trainers with similar rural backgrounds, every woman is
able to champion the skills. There are no shortcuts- the trainees can successfully
calculate resistance, fabricate circuits, assemble full systems and lanterns, and install
and maintain them themselves. They are fully equipped with the skills to bring
sustainable energy to their remote communities, and keep the lights on for years to
come.

The extended time away from their domestic responsibilities is also an opportunity for
the participants to share a safe space with other women. At our centre, the women
exchange experiences and ideas and build key skills in leadership, self-confidence and
public speaking, as well as technical solar engineering skills.
Once women are fully trained through our Solar Programme, they return home and we
organize a community meeting to discuss how the new solar engineers will be
compensated and supported for the installation and maintenance of home lighting
systems.
As with the Solar Programme, our ENRICH Programme provides practical, visual and
play-based activities specifically designed for non -formally educated women with
limited literacy skills. The impact areas include financial literacy, digital,
entrepreneurship and leadership skills, as well as health and wellbeing, sustainable
livelihoods and social equity.
Our theory of change is grounded in the vision of women as catalysis for change who
build thriving and resilience rural communities and ecosystems.
Amongst the expected results of this project are: use of clean energy source to meet
daily lighting and electric charging needs; reduction in the burning of kerosene and
paraffin and related improvements in health outcomes; reduction of gender inequality in
the community through building rural women’s leadership, critical thinking, decision-
making and entrepreneurial skills and financial, digital and climate literacy.

To learn more about the Okere Community Development Project, please visit their website at: https://www.okerecity.org

The Areokwan Initiative is a community-led adult literacy and empowerment programme
designed to uplift grandmothers in Otuke District, Uganda. Rooted in the belief that age
should never be a barrier to learning, Aerokwan equips Grandmothers – many of whom
have been excluded from formal education – with essential literacy, numeracy, and
financial management skills. Through these lessons, grandmothers gain the confidence

and knowledge needed to manage daily life more independently, participate in Village
Savings and Loan Assocaitions, and strengthen their roles as caregivers and
community leaders.
In addition to classroom learning, the initiative incorporates creative arts – including
cultural music, dance, and drama – as a tool for self-expression and social connection.
These activities honour the wisdom and resilience of grandmother while nurturing a
sense of belonging and dignity within the community. Beyond the classroom, Aerokwan
also supports food security by providing maize seed to grandmother-led households,
helping them improve their household nutrition and economic resilience.
With targeted support, Aerokwan aims to expand its reach and deepen its impact by
tailoring learning materials, training facilitators, and ensuring grandmothers have the
tools and resources to thrive.

To learn more about the Women’s Tribunal Feminist Collective, please visit their website at: https://wiwct.org.

The Women’s Tribunal Feminist Collective will focus on design, research and
arrangement of an official interactive website for the Women’s International War Crimes
Tribunal, and chart the blueprint for writing its history.
The WIWCT website, in its initial stage, will make documents and other materials far
more accessible, and will contribute to the global campaign against sexual violence
crimes, crating a repository of information that can be used for research, advocacy and
future legal proceedings.
The strategic prominence of a WIWCT website and book project lies in its historic ability
for civil society to lead, address, redress, and advocate for justice for crimes against
women during war and armed conflict – contributing to guidance on movement-building
to assist victims/survivors of war.
The story of the Comfort Women is central to this initiative. These are all (and those
who have passed now) Grandmothers, in their 70s and 80s when they came out into the
open to name what had happened to them, the sexual slavery they endured during
WWII, the horrendous suffering they endured, and their call for justice to the
government of Japan.
This project will make their stories visible and ensure that their names are remembered,
and so people can learn from the agony of their enslavement and the redress that they

fought for and won. It is an inspiring call to action for other women who face sexual
violence as a strategy of war, and it elevates the voices and courage of older women –
grandmothers – who chose to come out of the shadows and struggle for justice.

To learn more about the Grandmother’s Wisdom Archive Project, please visit their website at: https://www.grandmotherswisdom.org.

This initiative is dedicated to safeguarding and sharing over 20 years of rare and
unreleased footage, photographs, audio recordings and written texts from the
International Council of Thirteen Indigenous Grandmothers.
The Grandmothers’ teachings offer profound guidance on healing, environmental
stewardship, and the interconnectedness of all life – wisdom that is especially vital in
today’s world. However, much of this invaluable material remains at risk due to the
fragility of the aging media. The Grandmothers Wisdom Archive Project will ensure that
these teachings are digitally preserved, carefully organized, and made accessible to
Indigenous communities, educators, researchers and the broader public.
This project tis more than an archival effort, it is about creating a living, evolving
resource where Grandmothers from diverse traditions can continue to share their
knowledge. It will also support educational programmes, multimedia initiatives, and
cultural repatriation efforts – ensuring that each Grandmother receives a personal copy
of her archives.
Like the Wisdom at Work Fund, this project centers the leadership and guidance of
Indigenous Grandmothers, Elderwomen, and older women who are the living
repositories of ancestral wisdom.