Friday, February 8, 2019

Gold Award Spotlight: Knowledge is Power


Girl Scout Marielle has earned her Gold Award, the highest honor and achievement a girl can earn in Girl Scouts.

For her project, #Knowledgeispower, Marielle took the initiative to inform young women about how victims of human trafficking are lured. Marielle also decorated two rooms at a transition home, which is a place for victims of human trafficking.

Marielle also presented a video on human trafficking and then created a survey to see how effective her project was and if she had received positive results. The survey revealed that the video had an impact on her target audience. Those that did not know much about human trafficking were more aware of how young women get lured in, allowing them to be more cautious.

Her Gold Award allowed her to step outside of her comfort zone and build self-confidence.

“I am shy and speaking in front of groups is very difficult for me. I originally planned on filming myself talking on the video, but I also found that difficult. My friend suggested that I use pictures instead. I had to practice until I was comfortable with my information. It was still hard to do public speaking, but I managed. It helped that I was speaking to peers and my group was not large,” she said.

Throughout her project, Marielle learned that communication is a key leadership skill, especially when talking about difficult subjects such as this one.

“Communication is needed to lead, participate and build relationships. I realized that I communicate well in small groups and can lead and share my ideas in small groups, but I need to gain confidence to lead larger groups,” she said.