Call for shemakes ambassadors

25 Oct 2021

by Alexandra Korey

Application Deadline extended to November 16

shemakes is looking for twelve Ambassadors to join our community and help diffuse shemakes values and activities.

Shemakes Ambassadors believe in equality and collaboration, and wish to contribute actively to empowering and inspiring women. The chosen ambassadors, who have already participated in a shemakes activity offered by one of our labs, will travel to one of our 12 new labs worldwide, where they will broaden their horizons through a new experience. They will share knowledge and inspiration as well as help transfer shemakes values, learnings and services to this new environment. This call is an excellent opportunity to join our community of women innovators who are transforming the fashion, textile and clothing sector.

We are looking for ambassadors of a range of ages and backgrounds, aged 8 and up. For the benefits of this role and what commitment is required, as well as information on how to apply, please carefully read the information below.

Benefits of being an ambassador

Be awarded expense-paid travel (transportation and accommodation) to a “transfer lab” (trips may be 1-2 weeks long depending on location, tasks and your availability)
Be mentored by, and co-design activities with, a Lab Guru and shemakes partners.
Get visibility through shemakes website, events and social media
Promote innovative career and lab opportunities
Build a fantastic network of collaborative, skilled and empowered women
Gain work experience and build curriculum
Develop skills in public speaking
Get a reference letter or certificate

Characteristics of a great ambassador

You should

Be willing to share or teach with openness, patience and kindness (natural communicator)
Be willing to discover (curious)
Be creative and hands-on (maker spirit)
Like to be challenged and open to new situations that require adaptation (travel to a new country)
Embrace diversity and recognize that different people have different needs (inclusive)

What will you have to do as a shemakes Ambassador?

Your role and tasks as an ambassador, and the activities you carry out, will be customized to your skills, age, interest and goals.

Support organization: You will be involved in teaching or helping to hold workshops for different age groups (kids, university students, professionals, small businesses etc.) depending on your age and abilities.
Develop and replicate: You will be involved in sharing how to apply technology to textiles and clothing, for example facilitating hands-on workshops such as biomaterials, circular fashion, e-textile monster or leading activities such as how to solve problems using agile innovation. Naturally, all these activities are adapted to the age of the group you will be working with (girls, young women or adult women), as you have experienced it yourself!
Promote and share: You will represent shemakes, be able to explain what we do and promote it to others in a general sense; you will also contribute with your own, personal point of view, content or activities to the project.
Document and report: You will be asked to document your activities in various formats; we’ll ask you to contribute some feedback to the shemakes handbook (a working, open toolkit containing many lessons that contribute to our “learning paths”), or make some short videos to show your activities to others. We’ll be there to support you along every step of the way so that you learn as well as contribute.

Eligibility criteria

Candidates must:

have participated in at least one shemakes activity
hold documentation for international travel (passport or ID card depending on destination)
have the required documentation, at time of travel, required by local Covid-19 regulations of the destination country and for international transportation (such as the EU Green Pass)
Be able to communicate in English as well as in your mother tongue (additional languages are a bonus!)
Be equipped with a smartphone and able to photograph or make short videos to explain your work (like tik-tok style how-to videos!)
take part in the planned activities, which may include a one-day feedback session in 2022, remote or in-person meetings pre-and post-visit to transfer labs in 2022, and travel lasting 1-2 weeks to a transfer lab around the world.
In the case of minors: Ambassadors who are minors must travel accompanied by one parent or guardian. Accommodation and food will be provided to the person accompanying the minor, who will, however, be responsible for his or her own travel costs.