Dhaka Tribune journalist Kohinur Khyum Tithila has won the “Change Champions Award” of Population Matters for one of her articles.
To mark the UN’s World Population Day on Sunday, charity organization Population Matters announced the award to individuals and organizations across the world for their progressive, effective and brave work promoting reproductive rights, defending the environment, and enlightening the public.
Dhaka Tribune Staff Reporter Tithila was nominated for the award under the best media story category for her article “I’m a Bangladeshi woman who decided to be child-free. We exist.” It confronts the stigma against childfree women, and points out that this is a very positive choice in light of unsustainable human population pressure on our environment, says a press release.
Tithila’s article on being a childfree Bangladeshi woman was just one out of a series of stories she has written on feminist issues.
Tithila said: “I received a lot of flak on social media when the story was published. However, I was surprised to see that many people, both men and women, said that my story resonates with their stories.
“For too long, patriarchy has been telling us that we are 'less of a woman' if we do not give birth. I wanted to challenge this idea with my story. Women opting out from motherhood are not emotionally stunted, not ripping apart the fabric of the society and not pushing the human race to extinction.”
Also Read - Nagad bags Global Economics’ 'Best Innovative DFS' award
Population Matters Head of Campaigns Alistair Currie said: “There is a lot of doom and gloom this year, while sometimes people associate the whole population with negative images and preconceptions. In truth, it’s about brilliant, creative, empowering and enlightening actions which improve people’s lives.”
He said: “Our very worthy award winners from across the planet and every walk of life are all doing what they do because they have such positive effects in themselves. It really is our privilege to support and publicize them in any way.
“What they do also helps to promote and enable people to choose smaller families, and so reduce population growth and ease the pressure on our planet. That’s a win-win situation, and we hope these good news stories will inspire people, and cheer them up in difficult times.”
The UK-based charity Population Matters campaigns for a “sustainable human population” named Prince Harry and Meghan Markle as environmental “role models” for deciding to have no more than two children to reduce their impact on the planet.
The seven others who received the award are Wendo Aszed, founder and executive director of Dandelion Africa as Women’s Champion; Sunday Times bestselling author Emma Gannon as Family Choice Champion; 17-year-old taekwondo enthusiast Natsiraishe Maritsa as Young Campaigner; community-based organization Komb Green Solutions as Earth Champion; documentary “8 Billion Angels” by Terry Spahr, The Global Footprint Network's footprint calculator for online campaign; and Stella Wright as Population Matters supporter.
