Dare to shine
#DareToShine was implemented by The WE United Project with funding from the U.S. Embassy in Nepal. The #DareToShine program was coordinated with the US Embassy Sports Visitor Program (SVP) and trained the five participants from that program, and an additional five participants competitively selected by The WE United Project, to be soccer coaches.
Inspired by the official slogan of the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup, the #DareToShine program uses soccer as a platform to empower young women in Nepal to become leaders and active participants in their local communities.
Ten primary participants went through WE United Project’s dynamic #WEcoach curriculum, which includes sessions on gender equality, women’s empowerment through sports, safe spaces, and sportswomanship. Participants were also trained on how to implement community projects so that they were able to return home and engage other young women in sports activities. With the knowledge from the #WEcoach curriculum, the participants were each provided with resources to form a team of school-age girls and to run 10 football training sessions with them.
The overall goal of the program was to support participants as they developed their social networks, physical strength, self-belief, leadership skills, and the confidence to fully participate in any sphere of life they choose.
Throughout the #DareToShine program, participants had multiple opportunities to share their experiences and learn from their peers. In sharing, participants gained an understanding of the barriers to sports faced by women and girls across the country, and – more importantly – the confidence and determination to overcome these barriers and to encourage others to do the same. The #DareToShine program allowed participants to become part of The WE United Project’s growing network of like-minded gender champions.