Why Have Women’s Groups Around the World Used “Our Bodies, Ourselves” as the Basis for Developing Health Resources?

Each partner would offer a different response to this question. The individual project pages include some of the key issues affecting women’s health and well-being in countries where projects have been completed or are underway. You can also read the prefaces from various global projects (translated back to English) — these often provide more specific information about what sparked a group’s interest in adapting “Our Bodies, Ourselves.”

Generally speaking, a worldwide gap in evidence-based, culturally appropriate and non-judgmental information on health, sexuality and reproduction has been a primary driver. OBOS’s signature publication, “Our Bodies, Ourselves,” has addressed this critical gap by:

• Using language and style that is friendly and conversational, as well as women-centric
• Incorporating women’s stories and experiences
• Including a critique of the social, cultural and political factors that have an impact on health
• Emphasizing women as their own health experts and as change agents in their community

Partners have reported that these factors make the book accessible to many and different cultures.

Shamita Das Dasgupta, representing the 2008 Sanlaap and Manavi collaboration in India, says it best: “’Our Bodies, Ourselves’ is the preeminent and most comprehensive book on women’s sexuality and health. It lends itself to other languages and cultures. It really has no rival in this field.”