Our Organization and Programs

    General Questions

  1. What is Ophelia's Voice, and why is it necessary?

    Ophelia's Voice is a girl-led non-profit organization that offers programming to support the empowerment and leadership development of girls. As an organization we strive to raise awareness about the issues that affect teen girls on a daily basis but receive very little dialogue, such as healthy sexuality. Ophelia's Voice is necessary because girls have very few youth-facilitated and girl-specific spaces where they can comfortably ask questions, contribute to their community, express themselves, and find solidarity among their peer group. Our work is necessary because, in an environment that builds self-confidence and resiliency, girls are less likely to make negative choices or engage in high-risk behaviours. This means less unplanned teenage pregnancy, less drug and alcohol abuse, less disordered eating, and more leadership involvement!

  2. What makes Ophelia's Voice unique?

    Ophelia's Voice is one of a kind in this community - being the only organization founded and organized by girls themselves. All our programs are delivered by teenage girls, and this ensures participants feel more comfortable, the facilitators can relate to the girls' experiences, and promotes a cycle of leadership in which participants eventually grow into leadership roles. Our organization and program do not target "at-risk" girls, and rather emphasize leadership development and the prevention of high-risk behaviours. Our programs are also rooted in leadership and social justice, encouraging participants to think globally, build their critical thinking skills, and take initiative by starting their own project! We support girls in this way, unlike other organizations, by offering mentorships and seed funding. We emphasize the process of girls' projects, rather than the end result. All of our programs are completely driven by the participants themselves.

  3. Where did the idea for Ophelia's Voice come from?

    Joanne Cave read Mary Pipher's book Reviving Ophelia: Saving The Selves of Adolescent Girls when she was 12 years old. The book prompted her to consider ways in which girls could have the spaces and opportunities to discuss these issues, educate themselves, and build their self-confidence and critical thinking skills. The name "Ophelia's Voice" is a reference to this book and represents how girls can be empowered to advocate about their own realities by speaking out and taking on community leadership roles.

  4. How can I volunteer for your organization?

    We always have volunteer opportunities available! If you have any specific skills or experience you'd like to lend, like grantwriting or facilitation, let us know and we can discuss how you can contribute. If you're just interested in helping out, contact us and we'll discuss some opportunities for you or upcoming special events we'd love a helping hand for. We're always looking for more adult women mentors and members of a interim steering committee (to transition into a Board of Directors), so if that appeals to you please let us know! If you're a high school student that's interested on the facilitation side or would like a chance to informally intern for a non-profit organization, chat with us and we'll hook you up!

    5. Safety Concerns

  5. If your programs are organized by youth, what measures do you take to ensure they are safe and supervised?

    All of our sessions are supervised by a responsible, screened, and qualified adult woman mentor. The adult's role is to ensure the workshop or activity runs smoothly and safely and that appropriate steps are taken should a participant disclose they have harmed themselves, others, or are at-risk. Our adult women mentors have backgrounds and extensive experience in this field, often in psychology or youth work. Visit "Who We Are" for more information about the adult mentor's backgrounds. Should you ever have any concerns about the safety or supervision of our programs, please don't hesitate to contact us. In our organization young people and adults work in partnership to create a comfortable, safe, and supportive environment for everyone.

  6. How do you deal with sensitive issues that might come up in a discussion?

    To a certain extent, we think it's important that "sensitive" issues (that might encompass topics like sexuality or mental health, for example) need to be discussed because there is so little dialogue about them. The danger comes when girls are misinformed or do not receive adequate information about issues that affect them - we feel education is empowering! In our workshops we speak candidly and openly and offer appropriate and accurate information to girls when they ask for it. Should parents or guardians have any concerns or discomfort with particular subjects being discussed, please discuss that concern with us and we'd be happy to accommodate you. For some issues we choose to have guest speakers present the topic (for example, a registered health nurse discuss sexuality) because of their expertise. Our guest speakers are always invited on the basis that the information they provide is accurate, appropriate, and non-partisan. In the event a girl reveals incriminating or endangering information about herself, we are obligated to seek outside help from qualified therapists or the appropriate agency.

    7. Program Questions

  7. Why is it important for girls to talk about leadership, social justice, and feminism?

    Let's put it this way - it won't be as important to talk about these issues when girls, as adult women, are represented equally in leadership roles in politics, academia, business, science, the music industry, or drag racing. Today's youth are the first generation that have the capacity to make poverty history and affect a huge change in the world, should they be equipped with the resources, support, and mentorships to make it possible. Young people are also very savvy in our digital world to connect more than ever about social causes. If we can equip girls with the skills and social consciousness early on to contribute to their world, their potential to affect huge social change can be realized. And feminism? While we don't advocate as a feminist organization because some girls and young women don't identify with the word, we feel it's necessary to educate girls about how far we've come in terms of gender equality. It's also crucial to educate girls about what the current realities are and what relevance feminism still holds - in terms of pay equity, women's political involvement, the situation of women in developing countries, and issues such as reproductive health and domestic violence. Girls can choose for themselves if they are feminists, but Ophelia's Voice is here to offer a platform for discussion and learning about these issues where girls might not otherwise get the chance.

  8. Can you give me some samples of activities and workshops that could happen throughout the year?

    While the program is driven by the interests of participants, here's a sample for you: a yoga class, a session with a dietician about nutrition and wellness, preparing a presentation to the Mayor about a community issue, planning an event for International Women's Day, analyzing popular music videos and how they portray women, listening to a guest speaker from an eating disorders education organization, using role play to talk about bullying and peer pressure, viewing a social issues play from a local youth theatre troupe, taking a self defense class, learning how to plan a community action project, a meet-and-greet with a local female politician, spending an afternoon building wilderness skills, hip hop dance, holiday parties, having a questions and answers session on sexuality with a registered nurse, writing articles for the newsletter, talking to girls in elementary about body image, independent journaling, making a "Wall of Shame/Wall of Pride" with magazine ads ... the list goes on!