Team Formation
GGWCup NYC Finals 2019 Qualifier
Team Formation
Global Goal 5 - Gender Equality
The team are representing Djøf, the New York Department, and playing for Goal 5 - Gender Equality.
Formation are fortunate to be playing for and representing one of Denmark's biggest Workers Unions, Djøf, with 90.000 members. Internally, Djøf's members are 51 % women, 49 % men, 52%, and 25 % are working in Leadership positions, 23.000 are students.
This gives the team a huge platform to use their dedication, passion and experience to look at possibilities internally in Djøf for Gender Equality but also the resources to focus externally and set long term goals for the Team to work towards.
“We are all expats living in The US, having moved here from Denmark. This gives us a unique position to see and identify the challenges women may come across as expats. It also gives us a comparative insight to the issues you experience here in the US compared to for example in Denmark. Something our Team Formation reflects regularly.”
Tell us about your uniform
“Our uniforms are Zero-waste. It is an organic, unisex and one-size fair trade t-shirt with a landfill fabric on the back and numbers made of bicycle tubes. They are produced in New York and designed by Danish designer @malaika_new_york. For each game uniform, she donates a tree. The sweater itself is uni-sex and one-size.”
“Our uniforms are Zero-waste. It is an organic, unisex and one-size fair trade t-shirt with a landfill fabric on the back and numbers made of bicycle tubes. They are produced in New York and designed by Danish designer @malaika_new_york. For each game uniform, she donates a tree. The sweater itself is uni-sex and one-size.”
This is how the Team will take action for their goal
Meet weekly (every Thursday) for soccer practice and during and after the practice discuss Gender Equality advocacy.
Use Social Media Platforms to post our discussions and create change through discussions about Gender Equality.
Use Social Media Platforms to create discussions about gender equal retirement savings for expats, expat spouses/partners.
Discuss ways we can improve Gender Equality as a Team for our Members in the Djøf.
Discuss and identify gender specific challenges women experience when moving abroad.
Work on building a sustainable female soccer Team in New York as we believe Team sports improve Gender Equality in all aspects.
Actively use the team’s network as a soccer Team to strengthening the Professional network between women in New York.
Actively work on motivating Djøf in Denmark to invest in a job platform for Members living and working abroad, as this will create a short cut between the Danish Companies located abroad and the talented women just waiting to be discovered.
The team will focus on:
1 Retirement savings
Our first goal, was set by our Team Captain, to promote Gender Equality in retirements savings, from both the Expat view and in Denmark. During her studies, in Family and Divorce Law, she saw a big gender equality issue especially with retirements savings. Danish couples were hesitant to discuss the financial aspect of gender equality and retirements savings in their family lives. After moving to the States, she noticed that Danish expats hadn't discussed this aspect again.
“We want to create focus and active discussions about quality in retirement savings for that person, who follows their spouse or partner abroad. When you make this move, you often have to wait up to 6 months for your own work visa, if you are eligible for this. You may also, only be eligible to work in volunteer positions or for studying during the time your partner or spouse works here in the States. During that time, we want couples to discuss how to ensure the other spouse is fairly and equally compensated in their retirement savings during that time.
Furthermore, when a spouse is on maternity/paternity leave or decides to stay and home and take care of the family. Even here, that decision could have been made due to the costs of child care in The States, but where the discussion of then compensating the retirement savings loss of staying at home isn't done. Both areas, that are very relevant for expats to discuss, as the terms of these situations are very different in the States.”
2 Women's Network
We want to become an active part of forming and mobilizing an active Danish Women's Network in New York, to use our resources to strengthen each other in all aspects of challenges women meet as expats living abroad in The US, specifically here locally in New York. We want to especially focus on creating a network that can help women into jobs and careers in New York, that they would otherwise find challenging without the Network. We will apply for resources and help from Djøf in Denmark, and use the resources from our current Djøf NYC members in our Social media to do this successfully.
Background: In our regular social activities in Djof, we often come across women, who want to find a job or start focusing on career, after they have followed a partner or spouse to The States, but need the network and support, to take the step. We want to focus on and built up an active women's network here in New York providing resources, mentoring and support for women to start a career, identify new careers paths and in general adjust to the life in The US. For some, this may be their first time living abroad. We are so fortunate, that Djof NYC's Board member, Naja Christensen, and supporter of our soccer Team Formation, has now started a career workshop for what she calls "Co-Pilots," which seeks to coach Expat partners/spouses. The majority of the participants who sign up for these workshops are women. Often only women. This only shows, there is great need and potential for a professional Women's Network.
3 Job Portal
Pushing for Djøf in Denmark to invest resources in creating a Djøf job platform for companies located in New York. Our Team Formation believes, that a local Job platform would have a positive impact on Danish expat women in New York as it would create an easier access between Danish Companies and professionel Danish women living in New York. This could also help the Danish companies identify the qualificated and talented Danish women who still haven’t been able to identify job opportunities in New York.
“Especially, through my work in Jabra’s Women’s Network, we learned how many women hold themselves back from applying for positions due to feeling unqualified (Imposter Syndrome). As an expat, that particular trade leads women to hesitate from identifying themselves as eligible for job postings and from becoming a part of the workforce while living abroad, with for example a partner or husband, who is working. As an expat, a job portal for Danish women, would give Danish Companies in New York access to spot the talented women just waiting out there,” – Sanna Shenoy
Gender Equality Rally in New York City
Big action points was scored at the Sunday Friendly
Sunday September 7th, 2019 Teams Formation @djofnyc and Team Chica's Girls @Chica’s_girls_academy met up in Laurel Hill Park Soccer Ground at Laurill Hill Park, NJ, for the first Friendly before the GGWCup Finals in New York City September 25th.
Saturday Friendly in Central Park
“📍40°46'48.3"N 73°58'01.9"W from 9AM tomorrow - look for 🇩🇰 flags - and it will be a coed. You are welcome!
Thx team Formation @djofnyc and @sannadenmark for arranging and calling the Park to secure the space! “
And thank you to Team Greens for joined.
