Close to
1 billion
girls and women worldwide lack the skills to succeed in a changing job market.
Girls with Goals
Every girl deserves a map to her future.
Girls with Goals puts career clarity, confidence and a real plan into the hands of girls at the age when their futures are decided. Institutions buy it. She receives it free.
“See It. Believe It. Plan It. Become It.”
Girls with Goals serves girls in every country.
The Model in One Line
An institution buys. A girl receives it free. Her name and a letter written for her sit inside.
Girls with Goals is a structured, self guided career and confidence journal.
- 20M+copies a month, production capacity
- SDG 4, 5, 8measurable and reportable outcomes
- Freeto every girl who receives it
The Scale of the Problem
This is not one continent’s problem.
It is every country’s problem, and it is solvable in every country.
More than
600 million
adolescent girls are deciding who they will become, right now.
What Girls with Goals Does
It does three things that nothing else in a girl’s school day does.
It shows her where her subjects lead
Mathematics, physical science, accounting and life sciences stop being homework. They become doors to named careers, explained in plain language.
It builds the belief that she belongs there
She meets illustrated women in science, technology, engineering, medicine, law, business and more, with different skin tones, hair, faiths and heritage, so every girl sees herself on the page.
It turns a dream into a plan
Goals, values, decisions and accountability, written by her, in her own hand, in a book she keeps.
An institution buys. A girl receives it free. Her name and a letter written for her sit inside.
Why Institutions Choose It
One book, used again and again, not a single workshop that ends.
No electricity, no internet and no facilitator needed.
Built to reach millions, with production capacity above 20 million copies a month.
Aligned to SDG 4, SDG 5 and SDG 8, with measurable and reportable outcomes.
Your institution’s name on the cover of every copy, and a personal letter inside.
Proof That We Deliver
On 20 October 2026, with the support of Sibanye-Stillwater, Harmony Gold, Lenmed and Lusenga Inc, our first Career Expo put more than 500 girls in front of the careers their subjects lead to.
Read the report and see the photographs in Past Events.
Put your name behind the girls who will lead the next generation.
Why Girls with Goals
The window is adolescence. The time is now.
The Problem
A girl can be talented, hardworking and top of her class, and still leave school with no idea what to do next. Not because she lacks ambition. Because nobody has shown her the road from her timetable to a career.
In many school systems, career guidance is a single subject, if it exists at all. A girl who cannot see how her subjects connect to a future is more likely to lose interest, fall behind and leave school. When that happens, doors close early. Girls drop out. Girls fall pregnant. Girls end up in relationships they cannot leave because they have no income of their own.
The numbers say the same thing. Youth unemployment is rising in many regions.
Why Adolescence
Adolescence is when a girl decides who she is, what she believes she can do, and which subjects she will keep or drop.
Support that arrives in adulthood arrives after those decisions have been made, often by someone else.
The window to act is now, while she is still choosing.
Why a Book
It scales.
A book travels across schools, provinces and borders at low cost per girl.
It needs nothing else.
No electricity, no internet, no trained facilitator.
It lasts.
One book supports a girl again and again for years, not once.
It is personal.
It carries her name and a letter written for her.
Why It Is Free to the Girl
The girls who need this journal most cannot afford it.
If girls or their families had to pay, the journal would reach the girls who need it least.
So the model is turned around. An institution or organisation buys in bulk. The girl receives her copy free. Her access depends on her need, never on what her family can spend.
Why Girls with Goals
Because a goal needs a map.
Many girls dream big. What they lack is a clear line between the subjects on their timetable and the careers on the other side.
Girls with Goals draws that line.
The Book
Not a motivational book. A system.
See It. Believe It. Plan It. Become It.
It is the journey every page of the journal takes a girl on.
- See It.She sees the careers.
- Believe It.She believes she belongs in them.
- Plan It.She plans the steps.
- Become It.She becomes the woman she pictured.
What It Is
Girls with Goals: A Career Colouring and Confidence Journal for Girls is a practical, self guided life skills and goal setting system for girls in high school.
It is robust enough to deliver consistent outcomes and flexible enough to be adapted for every country.
What It Does for the Girl
Identity and confidence.
She learns who she is and what she is capable of.
Values based decision making.
She learns to choose with clarity, not pressure.
Education and career goal setting.
She connects her subjects to real careers and sets her own goals.
Planning and resilience.
She learns to plan, track her progress and keep going.
What Is Inside
Careers explained plainly.
Each career begins with what the person actually does, and which school subjects a girl needs to get there.
Colouring pages that build a connection.
A girl colours in the engineer, the doctor or the lawyer herself, so she takes part in creating the woman she could become.
Representation on every page.
Different skin tones, hair, body shapes, faiths and heritage, so no girl turns the page and finds herself missing.
Challenges and reflection.
Easy to follow activities that build confidence and help her set her own goals.
Made for Every Country
School subjects are named differently around the world.
Each edition of Girls with Goals carries its own country name and its own subject terms.
The South African edition, for example, uses South African subject names such as Life Sciences.
Who Can Partner With Us
- Governments and ministries
- Multilateral and development agencies
- Foundations and philanthropists
- Corporate CSI and ESG programmes
- NGOs, schools and education systems
- Faith based organisations and values driven networks
Built for Institutions
Each order is printed for the institution that provides it.
Your name is on the cover and a personal letter sits inside every copy.
It is never generic stock and it is never for resale.
See the journal, the procurement proposal and the rollout plan for your country.
Email: partnerships@ascendgirlsnetwork.com
Order Girls with Goals in bulkImpact and SDG Alignment
Impact at scale, measured and reported.
Scaling Vision
- 1 million girls
a national rollout
- 10 million girls
implementation across many countries
- 50 million girls
regional transformation
- Every girl who needs it
a global shift
Each phase is led with partners, so quality, safeguarding and accountability grow with the numbers.
This is not charity. It is investment in the next generation of workers, leaders and founders.
How We Measure It
- 01Goal completion and planning rates
- 02Self reported confidence and agency
- 03School engagement indicators
- 04Educator and community feedback
Annual impact reporting accompanies every rollout.
Sustainable Development Goals
Quality Education
Girls understand what they are studying and why, and stay engaged in school.
Gender Equality
Girls build the confidence, independence and income pathways to lead their own lives.
Decent Work and Economic Growth
Girls move from school to work with a plan, not by chance.
Our model is designed for measurable, auditable and reportable SDG contribution that your institution can include in its own reporting.
Governance and Safeguarding
Impact without integrity is failure.
Ethical programme design
Child safeguarding and protection built into every distribution
Responsible, vetted partnerships
Transparent governance and oversight
Partners and Bulk Orders
Put your name behind the girls who will lead.
Who Partners With Us
- Governments and ministries
- Multilateral and development agencies
- Foundations and philanthropists
- Corporate CSI and ESG programmes
- NGOs, schools and education systems
- Faith based organisations and values driven networks
How a Bulk Order Works
- 1
Tell us how many girls you want to reach, and where.
- 2
We place your institution’s name on the cover and prepare the personal letter inside.
- 3
We print and deliver the journals to the girls, or to the partner you nominate.
- 4
Every girl receives her copy free.
What Partners Receive
- Your name on every cover and a personal letter in every copy
- A structured rollout plan for your context
- Impact measurement and reporting
- Alignment with SDGs, ESG frameworks and national priorities
Individuals and Communities
You do not need to run a programme to change a life.
Individuals, families and faith communities can sponsor books for girls through our trusted partners, with safeguarding and accountability at the core.
Pricing and rollout plans are shared through direct conversation.
Order Girls with Goals in bulkPast Events
We show up for girls.
Each event has its own report and a gallery.
Career Expo — 20 October 2026
Location: Expo Centre Johannesburg, Hall 1
More than 500 girls, careers in mining, medicine and law, and four partners who made the day possible.
More events will be added here.
Career Expo 2026
Career Expo 2026: Report
The Day at a Glance
- More than 500 girls in Grade 10 and 11
- More than 100 girls from Rustenburg, travelling in by bus
- Girls from underserved no fee schools in Johannesburg and Rustenburg
- Careers in mining, medicine and law, presented by people who work in them
- Colleges and employers on the expo floor
- Speakers close to the girls’ own age
- Security and an ambulance on site, and event liability insurance in place
- No cost to any girl or her family
Summary
On Tuesday, 20 October 2026, Ascend Girls Network held its first Career Expo.
More than 500 girls from underserved schools in Johannesburg and Rustenburg spent the day meeting people who work in careers they had never seen up close.
Sponsors paid for the day and we arranged the buses, so no girl paid anything to attend.
For many of them, it was the first time they sat across from a person doing the career they had only heard about.
Why We Held the Expo
The girls who came are in Grade 10 and 11, at schools that serve families who have very little.
They go to school every day, but many cannot say why they are studying mathematics or physical science.
Life Orientation is the only formal career guidance most of them receive.
A girl who cannot see where her subjects lead is more likely to drop out.
The Expo exists to show her where they can take her.
What the Girls Experienced
Careers Up Close
The girls met people working in mining, medicine and law, asked how they got there, and heard which subjects opened the door.
Speakers Close to Their Own Age
The founders of Tol Thema and Umkho AI, both born after the year 2000, told the girls how they built something real.
Colleges on the Expo Floor
Colleges explained what to study and how to apply.
Professionals at Their Stands
Partners brought their own people to speak with the girls.
At the Lusenga Inc stand, the girls met attorneys, conveyancers and notaries and asked about the work.
Competitions and Prizes
The girls took part in competitions, and many went home with prizes.
In Their Words
“A girl told us she never knew that mining careers were also for women until she saw them.”
“Another girl told us she was inspired when she listened to the founder and CEO of Umkho AI, who she said is only 22 years old.”
The first girl learnt that a career was open to her. The second saw someone her own age doing something she could aim for.
Who Was There
Girls and teachers from schools across Johannesburg and Rustenburg.
Our Partners
The Expo was made possible by:
- Sibanye-StillwaterPlatinum Sponsor
- Harmony GoldGold Sponsor
- LenmedSilver Sponsor
- Lusenga IncCommunity Partner
Thank you for believing in these girls.
What Comes Next
We are already organising the next Career Expo, planned for between February and the end of April 2027.
The programme will be built around career sessions, each one brought to the girls by a sponsor whose own people tell them what their careers are, what they studied and how they got there.
If you would like to sponsor, exhibit or speak at the next Expo:
Thank you to the girls, their teachers and principals, our sponsors and partners, and everyone who stood with us on the day.
Career Expo 2026: Gallery
The day in pictures.
More than 500 girls, one hall, one day that put their futures in front of them.
1. Arrival
Girls arriving and registering.
2. On Stage
Speakers, the founders of Tol Thema and Umkho AI, and the programme.
3. The Expo Floor
Colleges and employers talking to the girls.
4. Our Partners at Their Stands
Sibanye-Stillwater, Harmony Gold, Lenmed and Lusenga Inc with the girls.
5. The Girls
Moments of learning, laughing and winning prizes.
Photographs taken at the Career Expo, 20 October 2026, Expo Centre Johannesburg.
Career Expo 2026: Our Supporters
The people and companies who made the day possible.
These four partners stood with 500 girls on 20 October 2026. Every girl attended at no cost, because they paid for the day.
Platinum SponsorSibanye-Stillwater
Your support is the reason more than 100 girls from Rustenburg were in the room.
Thank you for putting mining careers in front of girls who live around your operations.
Gold SponsorHarmony Gold
Thank you for backing the day, and for showing the girls that mining is a career for women too.
Silver SponsorLenmed
Thank you for bringing your own people to speak with the girls and for putting careers in healthcare in front of them.
Community PartnerLusenga Inc
A girl who has never been inside a law firm cannot picture working in one.
Lusenga Inc put the profession in front of her, with its own stand, its own people and a banner of its legal practice areas.
Also Thank You To
The schools, principals and teachers who trusted us with their girls, and the speakers who gave their time.
Become a Supporter
There are four ways to stand with the girls who come next:
- 01
Sponsor a career session
- 02
Exhibit and meet the girls
- 03
Speak at the Expo
- 04
Provide Girls with Goals journals
Contact
Let us put Girls with Goals in the hands of girls who need it.
Whether you represent a government, an agency, a foundation, a company or a community, we welcome a direct conversation about bulk orders, national distribution partnerships and strategic collaboration.
- Bulk Orders, Partnerships and Girls with Goalspartnerships@
ascendgirlsnetwork.com - Events, Sponsorship and Attendanceevents@
ascendgirlsnetwork.com - Based InJohannesburg, South Africa