Special K® U.N. Foundation's Girl Up program team up to
educate women about that strength gap
BATTLE CREEK, Michigan,
March 23, 2017 /PRNewswire/
-- Girls and women around the world view inner strength as
important as happiness – and those two qualities are nearly two
times more significant than physical beauty and wealth. Yet, eight
out of 10 women feel they have not reached their full potential,
according to new global research conducted and published by
Special K®.1 This startling statistic represents
the "strength gap" – recognized as the difference between how
strong women feel (from the inside out) vs. how strong she could
be, or her potential.
In a time where women are seemingly at their strongest with 77
percent feeling they possess inner strength – leading global
companies, increasingly occupying boards, and bringing new
dimensions to gender roles in and out of homes worldwide – three
quarters still wish they possessed even greater reserves.
Following International Women's Day on March 8, Special K is taking a stance as a
leader in the food and nutrition space – an area that has a
significant impact on girls and women's sense of self – by
announcing its commitment to educating young women about this gap
through a partnership with the United Nations Foundation's Girl Up
campaign.
Special K's report, "The New Face of Strength," reveals
that many women feel the factors contributing to women's inner
strength are within their control – such as nutrition, fitness, a
sense of community and mental and emotional wellbeing. In fact, 68
percent of women surveyed cited food as important in fueling inner
strength.
"Inner strength is as important as happiness to women around the
world – and nearly two times more significant than physical beauty
and wealth," said Doug VandeVelde,
Senior Vice President at Kellogg Company. "We are committed to
better understanding what defines inner strength, what it means for
women today and the vital role nutrition plays in unlocking a
woman's inner strength. Through our partnership with Girl Up in
2017, we'll provide key nutrition education for 500,000 girls and
young women to help guide them toward their full potential."
Special K + Girl Up
A movement within
the United Nations Foundation, Girl Up is led by girls and
for girls, with the mission of uniting girls and empowering
them to take action on behalf of the hardest-to-reach girls in
places around the world where it's hardest to be a girl.
"We have nearly half a million advocates raising awareness,
engaging and educating girls to change the world," said
Anna Blue, deputy director of Girl
Up. "We're thrilled to join forces with Special K to further
our mission of inspiring girls and women to learn about their inner
strength to make change for girls around the world."
It is within every girl and woman to reach their maximum
potential in all aspects of life. Customized nutrition workshops
and digital programs made available by Special K and Girl Up
are critical resources to ensure young women around the world have
the tools they need to live life at full strength, and they provide
a way for the communities associated with both organizations to
help build and support female empowerment.
The New Face of Strength
A number of findings detailed
in "The New Face of Strength" attest to the importance of inner
strength among women, including:
- The stronger a woman feels, the more confident and motivated
she is – which, in turn, impacts her positivity and proactivity.
- Nine out of 10 women consider inner strength to be key to
success, just ahead of intellect.
- 80 percent of women feel stronger when helping others,
contributing to a chain of strength – yet only 57 percent say they
have received support from another woman.
- For example, 84 percent of women in the US, 79 percent of women
in the UK, 83 percent of women in Australia, 86 percent of women in Canada, 89 percent of women in Mexico and 79 percent of women in France say they feel stronger when helping
others.
- Inner strength is complex and multidimensional, and it varies
by situation – 79 percent of women view determination as an
important attribute in a professional space, yet only 59 percent
view the trait as important when parenting.
- Inner strength is viewed as an inherently female trait or need
– 62 percent say that inner strength is most needed by women, with
9 percent feeling it is most needed by men.
- We know nutrition contributes to the inner strength gap as 92
percent of women believe that food plays a vital role in how strong
they feel.
Visit StrongFeedsStrong.com to learn more about the strength gap
and share your story with #StrongFeedsStrong.
About Kellogg Company
At Kellogg Company
(NYSE: K), we strive to make foods people love. This includes our
beloved brands – Kellogg's®, Keebler®, Special K®, Pringles®,
Kellogg's Frosted Flakes®, Pop-Tarts®, Kellogg's Corn Flakes®, Rice
Krispies®, Cheez-It®, Eggo®, Mini-Wheats® and more – that nourish
families so they can flourish and thrive. With 2015 sales of
$13.5 billion and more than 1,600
foods, Kellogg is the world's leading cereal company; second
largest producer of cookies, crackers and savory snacks; and a
leading North American frozen foods company. Through our Breakfasts
for Better DaysTM global hunger initiative, we've
provided more than 1.4 billion servings of cereal and snacks to
children and families in need around the world. To learn more,
visit www.kelloggcompany.com or follow us on Twitter
@KelloggCompany, YouTube and on Social
K.
About Girl Up
Girl Up, the United
Nations Foundation's adolescent girl campaign, supports the
empowerment of girls everywhere. Since its launch in 2010,
the campaign has funded UN programs that promote the health,
safety, education, and leadership of girls in developing countries
and built a community of nearly half a million passionate advocates
– including Girl Up Global Advocates Her Majesty Queen Rania Al Abdullah of Jordan and Latin American business leader
Angélica Fuentes.
Our youth leaders, representing more than 1400 Girl Up Clubs in
85 countries, stand up, speak up, and rise up to support the
hardest to reach girls living in places where it is hardest to be a
girl.
Learn more at GirlUp.org.
About the United Nations
Foundation
The United Nations
Foundation builds public-private partnerships to
address the world's most pressing problems, and broadens support
for the United Nations through advocacy and public outreach.
Through innovative campaigns and initiatives, the Foundation
connects people, ideas, and resources to help the UN solve
global problems. The Foundation was created in 1998 as a U.S.
public charity by entrepreneur and philanthropist Ted Turner and now is supported
by philanthropic, corporate, government, and individual
donors. Learn more
at: www.unfoundation.org.
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1 On
behalf of Special K, Edelman Intelligence surveyed over
6,000 women across Australia,
Canada, France, Mexico, the United
Kingdom and the United
States. Women aged 21-55 were spoken to via a quantitative
online survey fielded between December
2015 and January 2016. Each
market sample was nationally representative of the online
population.