NEW YORK, Oct. 11, 2016
/PRNewswire/ -- In celebration of International Day of the Girl,
Gap Inc. today announced the expansion of its signature education
program, P.A.C.E. (Personal Advancement & Career Enhancement),
with new curriculum designed to improve confidence and life skills
for girls in community settings. To coincide with this
announcement, the company's namesake brand partnered with Condé
Nast to showcase the inspirational stories of women who are
currently participating in P.A.C.E.
At the center of Gap and Condé Nast's partnership is a 12-minute
documentary-style film profiling the stories of three unique women
– Mary, Margaret and Puwaneshwary – who are currently enrolled in a
P.A.C.E. community program. The film shines a light on how access
to education has changed the lives of these women who work on a tea
plantation in Sri Lanka, where
literacy rates for women are typically very low – 67 percent
compared to the country's average of 90 percent (source: CARE Sri
Lanka).
Created by the award-winning 23 Stories x Condé Nast studio and
directed by internationally acclaimed filmmaker Vanessa Black, the documentary premiers on
Vogue's digital channels in both the U.S. and the U.K. starting
today.
"Condé Nast is known for its engaging visual storytelling and
deep connection to culture, and with partners like Gap we're
extending that approach to branded content," said Dirk Standen, editor-in-chief of 23 Stories.
"Here we wanted to tell the story of the P.A.C.E. program by
focusing on the unique stories of some of the remarkable women
involved, and Vanessa and her team achieved that in this beautiful,
moving documentary."
Gap Inc.'s P.A.C.E. program originally launched in 2007 to
provide life skills education and training for women who make Gap's
clothing. In 2013, it expanded beyond factories and into community
settings around the world. Annual evaluation results have
demonstrated that the P.A.C.E. program improves the lives of women
and their families by developing women's knowledge, skills, and
confidence.
"It is the personal journeys of the women involved with P.A.C.E.
that inspire us and push us further," said Dotti Hatcher, Executive Director, P.A.C.E. "It
is the stories we have heard and the women that we have worked with
that have led to us creating the girls program."
As part of its pledge to advance the lives of 1 million women
and girls through P.A.C.E. by 2020, the company is expanding its
community programs further to bring new educational opportunities
to girls between the ages of 13 and 17. P.A.C.E. for girls will
focus on improving self-identity and self-confidence, and will help
girls develop goals and aspirations for the future, as well as
understand the information and skills required to fulfill those
goals. The program will pilot in Haiti and India this fall, followed by Sri Lanka and other countries next year. The
resources for the program were developed in partnership with the
International Center for Research on Women (ICRW).
The video can be found on YouTube here and still imagery
downloaded here. For more information, please contact
Ellie.Heatrick@edelman.com or Catherine.Flint@edelman.com
About P.A.C.E.
Gap Inc. launched P.A.C.E. (Personal
Advancement & Career Enhancement) in 2007 to help advance and
inspire the women who make our clothes. In 2013, after realizing
the life-changing impact it was having on participants, P.A.C.E.
expanded to include women in community settings beyond the
workplace. In 2016, P.A.C.E. expanded even further to include a
program for adolescent girls (ages 13 – 17) in schools and other
community settings in order to give them earlier access to valuable
life skills and the opportunity to shape their futures. To date,
over 45,000 women have participated in P.A.C.E. across 12
countries. Gap Inc. has committed to reaching one million women +
girls around the world by 2020. To learn more, visit
gap.com/pace
About Condé Nast
Condé Nast is a premier media company
renowned for producing the highest quality content for the world's
most influential audiences. Attracting more than 100 million
consumers across its industry-leading print, digital and video
brands, the company's portfolio includes some of the most iconic
titles in media: Vogue, Vanity Fair, Glamour, Brides, Self, GQ, GQ
Style, The New Yorker, Condé Nast Traveler, Allure, Architectural
Digest, Bon Appétit, Epicurious, Wired, W, Golf Digest, Golf World,
Teen Vogue, Ars Technica, The Scene, Pitchfork and
Backchannel. The company's newest division, Condé Nast
Entertainment, was launched in 2011 to develop film, television and
premium digital video programming. For more information, please
visit condenast.com and follow @CondeNast on Twitter.
About Gap
Gap is one of the world's most iconic
apparel and accessories brands and the authority on American casual
style. Founded in San
Francisco in 1969, Gap's collections are designed to build
the foundation of modern wardrobes – all things denim, classic
white shirts, khakis and must-have trends. Beginning with the
first international store in London in 1987, Gap continues to connect with
customers online and across the brand's about 1,700
company-operated and franchise retail locations around the world.
Gap includes Women's and Men's apparel and accessories, GapKids,
babyGap, GapMaternity, GapBody and GapFit collections. The
brand also serves value-conscious customers with
exclusively-designed collections for Gap Outlet and Gap Factory
Stores. Gap is the namesake brand for leading global
specialty retailer, Gap Inc. (NYSE: GPS) which includes Gap, Banana
Republic, Old Navy, Athleta and Intermix. For more information,
please visit www.gapinc.com.
Video - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sw6EofWILhA