Whether fighting for the environment, human rights, education, health, or cultural preservation, a new generation of activist grandmothers across the world are using their strength, wisdom, and hearts to make a difference.
An unheralded grandmothers' movement is changing the world. Insurgent grandmothers are using their power to fight for a better future for grandchildren everywhere. And they are succeeding. Grandmother Power profiles activist grandmothers in fifteen countries on five continents who tell their compelling stories in their own words.
Grandmothers in Canada, Swaziland, and South Africa collaborate to care for AIDS orphans. Grandmothers in Senegal convince communities to abandon female genital mutilation. Grandmothers in India become solar engineers and bring light to their villages while those in Peru, Thailand, and Laos sustain weaving traditions. Grandmothers in Argentina teach children to love books and reading. Other Argentine grandmothers continue their 40-year search for grandchildren who were kidnapped during the nation's military dictatorship. Irish grandmothers teach children to sow seeds and cook with fresh, local ingredients. Filipino grandmothers demand justice for having been forced into sex slavery during World War II. Guatemalan grandmothers operate a hotline and teach parenting. In the Middle East, Israeli grandmothers monitor checkpoints to prevent abuse and the UAE's most popular television show stars four animated grandmothers who are surprised by contemporary life. Indigenous grandmothers from thirteen countries conduct healing rituals to bring peace to the world.
Gianturco's full-color images and her heroines' amazing tales make Grandmother Power an inspiration for everyone, and it cements the power of grandmothers worldwide. Please visit http: //globalgrandmotherpower.com/ for additional information.
All author royalties will be donated to the Stephen Lewis Foundation's Grandmothers to Grandmothers campaign, which provides grants to African grandmothers who are raising AIDS orphans.
Gianturco, Paola: - Paola Gianturco, author-photographer, has documented women's issues in 62 countries for six powerHouse Books. Grandmother Power: A Global Phenomenon (2012) won four first place literary awards in categories as diverse as multicultural nonfiction and women's studies. Wonder Girls: Changing Our World is third in a triptych. Women Who Light the Dark described women activists; Grandmother Power told about grandmother activists. Paola's images have been exhibited at the United Nations, UNESCO, The US Senate, The Field Museum/Chicago, The Museum of the African Diaspora/San Francisco, The Norton Simon Museum/Pasadena, The Grand Rapids Public Museum and more. She lectures internationally, presented a TED talk in Dubai, and has been a guest on The Oprah Winfrey Show, CNN, NPR and Voice of America programs among others. Paola serves on the advisory boards of two nonprofits: Rise Up/Let Girls Lead (which empowers girls to advocate for policy change) and Global Grandmothers (who support children in need internationally). In 2013 Paola was listed among "40 Women to Watch Over 40," and in 2014, Women's e-News named her one of 21 Leaders for the 21st Century.
