The Fuller Project

At The Fuller Project, we take the long view, following ongoing patterns and major trends. Last year, we tracked the ways that women are changing the face of politics around the world, the continuing surge in domestic violence, the increasing impact of climate change on every aspect of our lives, and how, even through a post-pandemic labor participation recovery, women workers are disproportionately suffering the drawbacks of the rapidly evolving global economy. The stories we reported exposed these underlying currents and moved the needle on gender equality around the world. Read more in our 2023 Impact Report: https://lnkd.in/gzG725eE

Female genital mutilation (FGM) is a worldwide concern. It’s practiced in 94 countries around the globe, and on every continent except Antarctica. Increasingly, it’s performed by medical professionals, which wrongly give the procedure an air of legitimacy. There are four types of FGM, according to @WHO, which range from the total removal of the clitoris to any harmful procedure carried out on female genitals (like some piercings). UNICEF estimates that 230 million women and girls around the world have experienced FGM in some capacity. It has no health benefits, and can be deadly. A 2023 study says that 44,000 girls and young women in Africa die annually as a result. FGM poses political, legal, and resources challenges to countries around the world. Many governments actively deny its existence or refuse to acknowledge its ongoing practice, but 59 of the 94 countries where it’s been recorded now have anti-FGM legislation. What’s next? We need more research, funds, political commitment, and resources and support for survivors. Watch our full video, featuring Maher Sattar, to learn more.

Mississippi has the highest rate of overall C-sections and of those performed on first-time moms — nearly a third of whom end up in surgery for their first delivery. At one Mississippi Delta hospital more than half — a staggering 56.1% — of first-time, low-risk moms gave birth by C-section in 2016. Though they can be life-saving, much of the growing research suggests that C-sections are overused. The major abdominal surgery has immediate and long-term risks, including infection, hemorrhage and future placenta problems. And the more of these surgeries a woman has, the riskier they are due to repeated irritation of scar tissue. C-sections are also correlated with increased maternal mortality — an important consideration in the state with one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the U.S. Many patients report the surgery stripped them of their autonomy — and often, feeling coerced out of fear for their baby’s wellbeing. For first-time moms like Jennifer Sloan-Ziegler, anxiety and vulnerability can be particularly high amid the unknowns of giving birth. Read Erica Hensley and Sophia Paffenroth for The Fuller Project and : https://ow.ly/5NxP50V6nyc

This Black History Month, we’re celebrating Valerie Thomas, a visionary NASA scientist and inventor. Her work, including the invention of the illusion transmitter, has had a lasting impact on science and technology, paving the way for future advancements in the field.

The World Health Organization recommends an overall C-section rate of 10 to 15%, but in Mississippi, nearly a third of moms end up in surgery for their first delivery — the highest rate of overall C-sections and those performed on first-time moms in the country. Jennifer Sloan-Ziegler, now 37, is one of more than 3,300 first-time mothers at low risk for a C-section who wound up with the surgery anyway in 2020. Despite national pressure to reduce these types of C-sections, Mississippi’s rate has stayed high across the last decade — peaking at 32.5% in 2018, according to data obtained from the Mississippi State Health Department. To date, this is the first known reporting on low-risk C-sections at hospitals in Mississippi — one of the most dangerous places to give birth in the U.S. Erica Hensley and Sophia Paffenroth report for The Fuller Project and Mississippi Today https://ow.ly/gNCT50V37bq

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This Black History Month, we’re celebrating Shirley Chisholm, a political trailblazer and the first Black woman to serve in Congress in 1968. A fearless advocate for equality and justice, she broke barriers and inspired generations to dream bigger.

From floods to drought to extreme heat, the way exposure to climate-induced weather events impacts the mental (and, as a result, physical) well-being of pregnant women is well documented, reports Sanket Jain. Exposure to flooding is responsible for 107,888 excess pregnancy losses every year in 33 low- and middle-income countries; one study found that stillbirths in India increased by 28.6% between 2015 and 2021, as the effects of climate change intensified; yet another discovered “a fair amount of women’s depression and worry they experienced during pregnancy was accounted for by climate change anxiety.” But India’s community health workers — also known as Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHAs) — are already finding ways to mitigate the negative impacts climate change has on expectant parents’ mental and physical health. “I never imagined I would be so happy again,” said one parent who relied on ASHA services. Read Sanket Jain’s latest for The Fuller Project, published in partnership with Scroll.in: https://ow.ly/54gz50UYSBu

This Black History Month, we're spotlighting Marie Van Britton Brown for her groundbreaking contributions to safety and technology. Her 1966 invention of the first home security system laid the foundation for the surveillance tools we rely on today.

Thrilled to read and share Eliza Anyangwe's first newsletter for The Fuller Project. The world around is looking bleak, but we choose to lead with hope, and continue to bring you groundbreaking journalism that centers women. I can't think of a better person to help Fuller meet the moment.