Source: 

Girls Thinking Globally (Newton, MA), an organization launched in 2014 to connect nonprofits that serve ado- lescent girls and young women, in June named Ginny Kirkland, who has more than 20 years experience in edu- cation, government relations and nonprofit work, execu- tive director.

“Collaboration and connection are at the heart of our modern world and if we can bring these powerful tools to organizations that serve adolescent girls around the world, we can not only impact individual girls, but also change the societies in which they live,” said Kirkland.

Girls Thinking Global was founded to create a global network serving women and girls, to leverage resources – monetary, in-kind, and communicative – to ensure that every possible dollar and resource is used to improve the quality of life for adolescent girls worldwide.

The group uses technology to create a collaborative space connecting best practices, knowledge, and expertise between nonprofits working with adolescent girls and young women, allowing those organizations to grow and continue to expand their services.

Founders were Kathy Hurley, education technology industry veteran and Harvard Advanced Leadership ini- tiative fellow, Deb deVries, a former Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (Boston) executive, Cassandra Walker and Elizabeth Texeira, recent Harvard Graduate School of Education alumnae in the International Education Policy program. GTG began working out of Harvard Business School Innovation Laboratory in June 2014, and became incorporated in August 2014.

The founders believe there are organizations all around the world, including in the U.S, that are doing important work for adolescent girls, yet are not able to scale because they have been unable to make connections, collaborate or leverage resources across groups

GTG will host an annual summit with an awards program that recognizes individuals and organizations that have brought advancement and opportunities to girls and women worldwide. Also, GTG has created an interactive, online database of organizations working with adolescent girls that non-profits can use to be matched with mentors and mentees and to find strategic resources.

A Kickstarter campaign raised $20,223, used to cover the cost of GTG’s first international documentary about a group that trains indigenous women and adolescents in the Ecuadorian Amazon to become birthing attendants, reducing maternal and neonatal mortality across the region.

Building for the Future

In June, GTG released an updated version of its website. The site’s improvements include the option for organiza- tions to join the GTG Collaborative.

Also in June, Girls Thinking Globally also added five new members to its board of directors: Niquelle Cotton, director of engagement for BrightBytes (San Francisco); Holly Jobe, past president of the International Society for Technology in Education (Arlington, VA); Lillian Kellogg, vice president of Education Networks of America (Nashville, TN); John Richards, president of Consulting Services for Education (Newton, MA); and Ileana Rowe, principal consultant, IRowe & Associates (Portland, OR); and John Wilson, former executive director of the National Education Association (Washington, DC).