Boston Womens Health Book Collective Inc

THE BOSTON WOMEN'S HEALTH BOOK COLLECTIVE, INC. IS A GLOBAL FEMINIST ORGANIZATION THAT DISTILLS AND DISSEMINATES HEALTH INFORMATION FROM THE BEST SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH AVAILABLE AS WELL AS WOMEN'S LIFE EXPERIENCES SO THAT INDIVIDUALS AND COMMUNITIES CAN MAKE INFORMED HEALTH, REPRODUCTION AND SEXUALITY DECISIONS.

OBOS GLOBAL INITIATIVE (OBOGI): THIS PROGRAM PROVIDES TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE TO TRANSLATION/ADAPTATION GROUPS WORLDWIDE. RESOURCES BASED ON "OUR BODIES, OURSELVES" (OBOS) ARE AVAILABLE IN 33 LANGUAGES, INCLUDING BRAILLE. TRANSLATIONS/CULTURAL ADAPTATIONS HAVE BEEN PUBLISHED BY WOMEN FROM A BROAD SPECTRUM OF CULTURES AND LANGUAGES AND ARE PRODUCED IN A WIDE RANGE OF FORMATS FOR OUTREACH TO DIVERSE COMMUNITIES. THE MOST RECENT ADAPTATION WAS PRODUCED IN BRAZIL (VOLUME ONE APPEARED IN THE FALL OF 2021 AND TWO MORE VOLUMES ARE EXPECTED IN 2022). OBOGI COLLABORATED WITH OTHER ORGANIZATIONS TO DEVELOP A DIGITAL PLATFORM ("SURROGACY360.ORG") THAT IS NOW MANAGED BY THE CENTER FOR GENETICS AND SOCIETY. THE WEBSITE BRINGS RELIABLE INFORMATION TO A BROAD SPECTRUM OF AUDIENCES, INCLUDING INDIVIDUALS THAT SEEK INTERNATIONAL SURROGACY ARRANGEMENTS BUT HAVE LITTLE TO NO AWARENESS OF THE HUMAN RIGHTS CONSIDERATIONS AND RISK TO GESTATIONAL MOTHERS OR SURROGATES.

PUBLIC VOICE AND ACTION (PVA): THIS PROGRAM ADVOCATES FOR PUBLIC POLICIES THAT PROMOTE WOMEN'S HEALTH AND WELL-BEING. THROUGH PUBLICATIONS, ONLINE CONTENT, AND ADVOCACY EFFORTS, BWHBC CRITIQUES THE EXCESSIVE MEDICALIZATION OF WOMEN'S LIVES AS WELL AS THE UNETHICAL PURSUIT OF PROFIT AT THE EXPENSE OF THE PUBLIC'S HEALTH. BWHBC JOINS THE PERSONAL WITH THE POLITICAL AS A MEANS OF CHALLENGING THE INSTITUTIONS AND SYSTEMS THAT SOMETIMES DEVALUE THE LIVES OF WOMEN AND PREVENT THEM FROM FULL CONTROL OVER THEIR BODIES. ACTIVISTS, POLICY MAKERS, MEMBERS OF THE MEDIA, AND OTHERS APPROACH BWHBC EACH YEAR TO SEEK INPUT INTO PUBLIC POLICY MATTERS. DURING THE YEAR ENDED 9/30/21, THE ORGANIZATION CONTINUED ITS EMPHASIS ON SURROGACY, EGG DONATION, MIDWIFERY ADVOCACY, ABORTION, AND BREAST IMPLANT SAFETY CONCERNS. IN COLLABORATION WITH OTHERS, SIGNIFICANT PROGRESS HAS BEEN MADE IN DEVELOPING CONTENT FOR THE WOMEN LIVING BETTER WEBSITE.