A Ban Against Neglect

A Ban Against Neglect (ABAN) works with young women living on the streets of Accra, Ghana. The organization operates a two-year empowerment and education program for these women, in which they are taught basic seamstress skills, which they use to transform plastic waste from the city streets into unique, upcycled products. While in the program, these women, the "ABAN Queens", also receive training in English, Business, and Life Skills, as well as formal counseling to address the struggles of their pasts, including sexual abuse, neglect, and poverty. The goal of ABAN's program is two-fold--to alleviate the environmental epidemic caused by catastrophic amounts of plastic waste and to put an end to the cycle of neglect in young Ghanaian women and children. In doing so, ABAN empowers these women, giving them the tools necessary to create brighter futures for themselves and their children and to become leaders in their communities.