Sister acts helping to rebuild lives

The importance of education is an every day reality for Dr Hilary-Kay Young in her role as a senior lecturer in the College of Life Sciences. Over the past year however it has been brought into even sharper focus through her high-profile work with Soroptimist International of Great Britain and Ireland (SIGBI).

Dr Young has recently completed a year as President of SIGBI, an organisation of professional and businesswomen whose aim is to improve the lives of women and children throughout the world.

As head of an organisation with 11,000 members in 28 countries Dr Young had the opportunity to travel extensively during her presidency and see at first hand the work being done by her fellow Soroptimists.

Much of that work is devoted to education and training and providing the kind of support which enables and empowers local communities.

"I travelled to countries in West Africa and the Caribbean and the groups there are the pioneers of their societies," said Dr Young, a microbiologist who joined the Soroptimists when she moved to Dundee in 1987. "They are building schools and health centres, providing models of best practice which their governments are adopting. It was fascinating to see.

"They are capacity building with the local talent and that is the way to go. There is no point flying in aid and then leaving again without helping the community sustain it. They have to find their own solutions. Soroptimist International are really there to act as facilitators. We provide training, help them set up in business themselves and build confidence and self esteem. Education is key to it all."

She added that the overseas clubs are also involved in helping those affected by some of the world's most devastating tragedies including the 2004 tsunami and the civil war in Sierra Leone. Again education and training are playing a pivotal role in rebuilding lives.

"In Sierra Leone I visited a four-year international project aimed at helping girls and young women who had been abused and tortured during the civil war," said Dr Young. "Many were taken as bush wives and raped. They have suffered so much.

"One girl was so badly traumatised she couldn't speak and she had lost the use of her legs. When I met her the group there had been working with her for a year and although she is still not well enough to take part in the training programmes she is communicating and walking again albeit with difficulty. But she has made great progress."

Soroptimists have also been involved in improving conditions in women's prisons in Trinidad, working with people with HIV/AIDS in Nigeria and working with women in Bosnia, Afghanistan and Rwanda.

"What impressed me about the work I saw was that the groups had consulted with the community," said Dr Young. "Because of our professional standing it is easier for us to have the ears of the power-that-be but what we do is respond to a community's request. And we never take on a project that can't be sustained."

Although her own presidency is now over Dr Young is still busy supporting the new SIGBI President Marguerite Woodstock-Riley as well as continuing her involvement at a local level.

"I'm keeping a bit of a low profile at the moment," she joked. "It was a very busy year but a fantastic experience."

Anyone interested in finding out more about Soroptimist International can do so by emailing Dr Young at h.k.young@dundee.ac.uk.