Educating And Informing With The Information Blanket In Uganda [Video]

Read more about the project here: A Brand With Built-In Social Responsibility: The Information Blanket [Part 2]

Neil Powell, Executive Creative Director at BMB NY, continues to share footage with us that documents his experiences in Uganda as he distributes 1,000 copies of The Information Blanket.  In the video below, Sister Margaret from the hospital in Lusana Uganda is explaining the meaning and contents of the blanket to 15 new mothers.

We had the opportunity to catch up with Neil over email and he shared some insight into his experiences in Uganda thus far:

“Today, we really saw the extraordinary potential for the blanket. We’ve always felt the blanket works on many levels. The most basic aspect is it’s a blanket and provides warmth for the baby. Truth is, the need here is so great you’d have a mile long line just for a normal blanket if it was free.  Where the information blanket adds exponential value is when the content is explained to the mothers by a healthcare worker. As I witnessed today, it creates dialogue and interaction. That process really imbeds the information into the brains of the mothers.  Today was far more interactive than anticipated. The mothers had questions and wanted to fully understand every aspect of the blanket. That is why Shanti Uganda is so perfect as a partner. They aren’t just a place where mothers come to give birth, rather they seek to educate and inform mothers from prenatal thru postnatal. It’s a program rather than an event.  They can use the blanket as an incentive for women to participate or a reward for following thru with their program. There is also an additional down-stream aspect of the blanket that has to do with it’s reusability. Because of the nature of this culture, the sense of community and lack of available resources, many blankets will be passed on to either a sibling or, even better, a neighbor.  We made a high quality product, so it will last for a while.”

About Shanti Uganda

BMB has partnered with The Shanti Uganda Society, a non-profit organization dedicated to improving infant and maternal health and providing safe women-centered care and education to mothers in Uganda, to help distribute the blankets. The Shanti Uganda Society’s birthing center outside of Kampala will serve as the main distribution point for The Information Blanket in Uganda, ensuring the blankets reach new mothers who need the it most.

The Shanti Uganda Society was founded in 2007 by Natalie Angell at York University, and became a registered Canadian charity in 2009 and a registered Ugandan NGO in 2011.  The organization’s mission is to improve infant and maternal health, provide safe, women-centered care and support the well-being of birthing mothers and women living with HIV/AIDS in Uganda.  Programs include the Birth House and Learning Center, Teen Girl’s Workshops, and a HIV/AIDs Women’s Fair Trade Income Generating Group. The Shanti Uganda Society is headquartered in Vancouver, B.C., Canada.

For more information, visit www.shantiuganda.org.

You can learn more and purchase The Information Blanket here.

On Twitter: @infoblanket