We are Purposeful. We are feminists, activists, artists, theorisers, revolutionaries, organisers. We dream, we imagine, we make, we gather, we co-create. We agitate and shout and laugh and dance and sing and fight and win. We are Purposeful.
Abril Violeta is a bisexual gender fluid and non conforming ecofeminist. They are a communicologist specialising in Gender Studies in Education, and diagnosed with borderline personality disorder and generalised anxiety. Abril Violeta is a co-founder of Mexicali Resiste y Las Borders, and a co-founder and current coordinator at Bifanzine Colectivo. The foci of their activism are the visibility of the bisexual population, the co-creation of secure spaces for meetings and dialogues between LGBTIAPQN+ people, feminist support for safe abortion and the recovery of ancestral care to bodies and territory.
Altynay Kambekova is a queer feminist activist and an independent researcher from Kazakhstan. Until recently, Altynay has been a prominent member of “Feminita” Kazakhstani feminist initiative, leading Research and Campaigns program. Currently a fellow of Rainbow Advocacy Program (RFSL), Altynay organized a Coalition of LGBTQ+ activists to advocate for SOGIE-related issues in the country. Apart from social and human rights activism, Altynay leads workshops, seminars and lectures on decolonial and intersectional issues in feminism and social movements in post-Soviet region.
Amani is a Palestinian women’s rights activist and a member of the UN Women’s Global Youth Task Force on Beijing +25. She is also a member of the Gender Innovation Program AGORA, and a co-founder and member of Bani-Zaid Youth Council. Amani holds a Master in Economics from Birzeit University and has managed innovative programs that help youth and women in the region. Amani’s experiences in conflict affected countries like Palestine contributed to her understanding that engaging more people, especially girls and women, as peacebuilders and change-makers is necessary in order to prevent and break cycles of violence, and to achieve peace and justice.
Anamalia Melanie Angeles Falemaka is an 18 year old women’s rights advocate from Tonga and is currently a first year student at the University of the South Pacific Tonga. Anamalia has been a strong advocate for empowering young girls through the Talitha Project , where she is a youth mentor. She has represented the Talitha Project on panels and discussion forums at International and Regional Conferences. In her free time, Anamalia works voluntarily at the Youth for St. Vincent de Paul Society in her community/village, leading the young children and youths of her village to serve the poor, people with disabilities and the elderly .
Andjene Bodo Elisabeth Urielle is a 23 year-old Cameroonian activist who works in a non-governmental feminist association Women In FrontCameroon. She started her journey in the community as an educator peer, and was trained in sexual and reproductive health and in human rights. Subsequently she held the position of sexual and reproductive health manager in her organisation. Recently she was promoted to the position of program manager where she was responsible for ensuring the feasibility and distribution of the organisation’s activities.
Anna is a disability rights activist with a passion for improving the access and inclusion for youth with disabilities and designing initiatives that drive positive social change toward more just, equitable and inclusive societies. She believes in the power of story and relationship and enjoys creating content and projects that foster empathy and build community. Her career and experiences thus far have allowed Anna to deepen her activism and to work alongside grassroots organizers in Central America and Mexico to amplify their impact. Currently, she coordinates the development and reporting processes for Seattle International Foundation, serves as a World Economic Forum Global Shaper and is thrilled to be selected as a William H. Gates Public Service Law Scholar at the University of Washington School of Law where she will start in Fall 2021 in pursuit of her career as an international human rights attorney.
Prior to these roles, Anna was a Fulbright Research Fellow to Nicaragua where she analyzed national disability law and policy in relation to disability perception and stigma in an effort to improve inclusion for people with disabilities. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Spanish and Humanities for Leadership from Seattle University with a specialization in Equality Rights & Advocacy. She speaks English and Spanish.
For the last decade, Anna has worked for a variety of youth-led and youth-centered organisations. She has experience in the areas of youth leadership and empowerment, gender equality, social justice, human rights, and access to health services and treatment for young people from key affected populations. In her work she has focused on community-driven initiatives, identifying existing gaps in the services, exploring interlinkages between different sectors, and addressing stigma. She has experience in advocacy, capacity building, campaign management, grant facilitation and community mobilisation. Aside from working with civil society, she is a medical doctor and a researcher in the field of mental and sexual health.
Ariane is a Brazilian woman, feminist activist, and technologist based in Sao Paulo, Brazil. She is the co-founder of minasprogramam.com which, since 2015, has been carrying out projects to integrate more girls and women into technology. She has experience working as a graphic designer, creative director and product manager. Currently, Ariane studies Social Sciences at the University of Sao Paulo. She is interested in topics related to contemporary Latin American political struggles, black feminism and technology. Ariane loves Argentina, music, colors, and spending time at the beach with her friends.
Bénie Axella Kana is a Burundian feminist militant journalist. She highlights the development of young girls in society. With a university degree in Journalism and Communication, her main goal is to carry the voice of girls and women far, discuss about different subjects that paralyze society and try to find solutions. Without forgetting to help promote gender equality and equity, to talk about subjects that were previously considered taboo.
Betty is from the Fiji Islands and currently a PhD candidate at Monash University. Her PhD focuses on examining gender dimensions of climate change-induced displacement and relocation in the Pacific, and their roles in community resilience. Betty has been involved in development for over 10 years with organisations in the Asia-Pacific region and focuses on using evidence-based advocacy as a tool for change. She is currently on the board of directors for the CIVICUS alliance and the Association of Women in Development (AWID), and is an advisor with FRIDA | The Young Feminist Fund.
Carolina is a Brazilian woman, feminist, young and bisexual activist, based in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. She’s 28 and started her activism at 16. Now she works with Women’s and Youth’s rights. She’s been working with feminism, feminist / equality projects and methodologies since then and she’s also part of youth groups. She’s the political & programmatic articulator of Feminicidade, an urban feminist group, that uses urban visual interventions to speak about VAW, and she also integrates Articulação de Mulheres Brasileiras, a feminist anti-racist and anti-systemic national articulation in Brazil. She also part of Finadas do Aborto, a performance feminist group that speaks about reproductive and sexual rights.
Carolina believes that the revolution comes from women, especially those ones from the outskirts and favelas of the world.
Daniela is a young feminist from El Salvador and a member of La Caldera, an anarchist feminist collective. Daniela has been a feminist activist since she was a teenager, advocating for safe abortion for all girls, teenagers and women in the region. She also provides information, care and accompaniment to children, young urban women and marginalised communities in the country, facilitating sexual and reproductive health and rights education, feminism and art workshops. Daniela is also a scenic and graphic artist who uses her performance and illustrations to speak out on injustices against women.
Doha Ali is a 22 year activist from Sudan with over 5 years of experience in adolescent and youth engagement, gender and SRHR mainstreaming, gamification and capacity building. She is a final year medical student, co-founder and CEO of Tayf a youth-led initiative dedicated to Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights in Sudan. Doha is also co-founder and advisory committee member of UNDP’s Youth Leadership program digital platform that provides opportunities for YLP alumni across the MENA region. On weekends she manages to maintain a vibrant social life that’s full of ice-cream and good friends.
Emilia is a 14 year old girl from Palestine. She is an actress and activist who has been part of Inad Theater since she was six years old, taking part in several plays and TV appearances organised and produced by Inad. Emilia is a passionate advocate for girls’ rights. She has taken part in shows to raise awareness in local and international communities about the rights of marginalised people. Emilia was awarded the 2019 Actress at the Kids Talent Campus Palestine and 2019’s Best Actress at the Arab Child Theater Festival for her performance in The Little Match Girl.
Emna Mizouni is an advocate for open and free knowledge and freedom of internet access across Africa, the Middle East and globally. Originally a Digital Communications Specialist, Emna is a co-founder and currently the head of NGO Digital Citizenship, which works to address gender issues online. This includes supporting adolescent girls with tech skills, countering online hate speech, and equipping women journalists and bloggers with the tools and skills they need to be effective online. Emna is a community leader in the Wikimedia Movement and helps globally to build local and regional communities in the movement. Emna is a member of the WEF-Global Shapers Community and is also the founder of Carthagina, a national organisation to promote Tunisia globally by digitising its rich heritage.
Essi is a young Togolese architect and urban planner, founder of ARCHID’AR and former consultant at the Togolese Ministry of Planning. After studying for certification in Energy in South Africa and certification in Public Administration in the USA, her passion for the environment pushed her to start the Youth Archidar program which trains young people in entrepreneurship and green leadership. Essi is an alumni of several American leadership programmes, including the Young African Leaders Initiative (YALI). Her career has also been sown with multiple international and national honors. Currently, she is the Togo country coordinator of the Obama Foundation and deputy of the African Diaspora government.
Afrofeminist activist and Dominican attorney , co-founder of Aquelarre RD, a youth feminist space where people work to defend and promote sexual and reproductive rights in the north part of the Dominican Republic from a popular approch in the communities. Aquellarre RD is part of the Latinamerican and Caribbean Network of young people for sexual and reproductive rights REDLAC.
I am part of the SheDecides global collective 25×25 (25 young people from 25 different countries who grew up in a post Beijing world) and creator of SheDecides global vision that is having an impact on the Generation Equality process and Paris 2021 Generation Equality Forum.
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Activista afrofeminista y abogada dominicana, co-fundadora de Aquelarre RD un espacio feminista juvenil que trabaja por la defensa y promoción de los derechos sexuales y reproductivos en la zona norte de República Dominicana desde un enfoque popular en las comunidades. Aquelarre RD es miembra de la Red Latinoamericana y caribeña de jóvenes por los derechos sexuales y reproductivos REDLAC.
Soy parte del colectivo global 25×25 de SheDecides (25 jóvenes de 25 diferentes países que crecieron en un mundo post Beijing) y creadora de la visión global de SheDecides que está incidiendo el proceso generación de igualdad y el Foro Generación de Igualdad de Paris 2021.
Evdokia aka Dunia is an intersectional queer feminist originally coming from Samara, Russia. Dunia is centering her work on the topics related to sexual and reproductive health and rights, artivism, and theatre as well as alternative ways of providing alternatives ways of funding outside of mainstream funding model and sustainability of radical human rights collectives. Dunia holds MA in sociology and is inspired by solidarity of grassroot organising.
Farah Kassab is a nineteen-year-old law student from Jordan. Farah aspires to become an international lawyer in order to legitimize and implement global treaties that are to be in the benefit of women and girls all around the world. She hopes to become a role model to Middle-Eastern women and girls to ignite their passion towards advocacy. Being a part of the WFGF Advisory, Farah wants to support girls to erupt a wave of positive and effective change in their communities through funding.
Fatima is a 23 year old Moroccan feminist activist. Her passion for girls and women’s rights led her to work as a Senior Program Coordinator at Project Soar, an organisation that empowers girls to be the leaders of today and tomorrow. Fatima trains facilitators who come from all around Morocco to be part of the program. Fatima is aspiring for a world where all girls and women are treated equally and are given the power it takes to step into their potential.
Fatmata is a feminist activist and UNFPA youth champion. She is also a co-founder and the president of the Sierra Leone Uncut Girls Association, a girls’ advocacy organisation working against female genital mutilation and other gender-based violence against women and girls. Mandigo by tribe, Fatmata was born and raised in Kono District, in a small and vulnerable village called Beudu Town, in Kissy Tongi Chiefdom. She is a member of the Tar Kura Youth Advisory Panel, and also currently works as an intern with Girls Empowered Sierra Leone.
Favour Chukwugolum is a 19 year-old Girl Leader on the Adolescent Girls Advisory Board of Girls Voices Initiative. She actively supports the organisation’s mission to create a safe space for girls to share and connect their voices for social change, while driving a vibrant movement of girls leading advocacy for the protection of girls’ rights in Nigeria. Favour’s experience includes delivering presentations on ending gender-based violence, co-anchoring a radio series, co-hosting a webinar and speaking in a number of panel discussions.
Gabrielle is based in Barbados and is a founding member of local NGO I Am a Girl Barbados, an international award-winning NGO focused on the empowerment of women, where she was an active member of the organisation for five years. She has sat for multiple terms on the Barbados Youth Development Council, the national umbrella organisation for youth organisations locally, with connections to both the Caribbean Youth Development Council and the Commonwealth Youth Council. This places her in a unique position on the ground to have real connections to activists in Barbados across areas such as women’s rights, LGBTQ+ rights, environment sustainability, and youth development. A passionate, caring and determined youth and gender justice activist, with a keen interest in mental health, she is proud to hold hands with others — whether locally in Barbados, or across the globe — to work towards a more equitable tomorrow for us all.
Gopika is the Asia campaigner with the worldwide Enough campaign at Oxfam International. She supports countries to plan and run campaigns that challenge and change widely accepted and harmful social norms that justify violence against women and girls. Gopika has been a FRIDA | The Young Feminist Fund advisor for the past five years, and is also on the board of labour and human rights organisation Cividep India. She has trained and worked with women and young people from diverse backgrounds on issues related to access to justice, sexual and gender-based violence, and gender and sexuality. Gopika is based in Bangalore, India.
Hannah Kanu is a 16 year old girl from Moyamba District, Sierra Leone. Hannah has a strong personality, she is very outspoken and is helpful in both her school and community, especially advising and educating peers on their rights and responsibilities. Hannah is also one of the brilliant Karo Kura Mentors for CARL in Moyamba.
Hawatu is a first-generation American who understands that protecting and empowering the most marginalised of our communities is the foundation for liberation. A nomad at heart, they have called Maryland, Virginia, California and Sierra Leone home. Hawatu decided to combine their collegiate studies in International Studies with responsible storytelling and became a contributor for the Mississippi-based organisation The Lighthouse | Black Girl Projects, highlighting the multidimensional experiences of Black women and femmes across the African diaspora. Their recent research focuses on the reintegration process of former child soldiers of Sierra Leone. Hawatu’s desire is to use their experience as a peer mentor and project coordinator to center, uplift and advocate for marginalised communities. Hawatu is currently a member of the Reese | Brooks | Gilbert cohort, a leadership development program for college women, with The Lighthouse | Black Girl Projects.
Isata Kandakai is an 18 year old from Pujehun District, Sierra Leone. Isata has a lot of experience in advocacy. She is a smart and outspoken with so much potential. Isata worked with the guidance counselling unit in her school in Pujehun district, dealing with Teenage Pregnancy, early marriage, rape and child trafficking, which are issues affecting teenagers in her community
Jandi is a member of the White Mountain Apache Tribe and was born and raised on the Fort Apache Reservation in Arizona. She is a 2017 Indigenous Fellow at the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner on Human Rights in Geneva, 2018 Global Indigenous Women’s Leadership Scholar, and currently works building restorative mental health and wellness programs on her reservation. Jandi enjoys life in traditional ceremony with her children and is honored to carry the stone as a Godmother for her Goddaughters through Apache tradition.
Jariatu Rugiatu Silah is a 19 year old from Lunsar, Bombali district, Sierra Leone. She is free spirited, smart, bold and possess leadership qualities, she is willing to learn and make a difference in her community. Before applying to be on the Tar Kura Panel, Jariatu had led campaigns on teenage pregnancy, FGM, and Child marriage
She has also served as the voice of the voiceless wherein girls who have been abused and are unable to speak up for themselves in order to pursue their cases with the Police.
Jayaa is a human rights activist, a peace agent and a policy advocate. She has a wide range of experience in community services and advocating and promoting SDGs.
She is a Youth Icon 2019 by Bargad and govt. of Punjab and an alumnus of Harvard Crossroads Emerging leaders Program. She is also Certified in IAG by UkVersity. Jayaa is a human rights activist, a peace agent and a policy advocate. She has a wide range of experience in community services and advocating and promoting SDGs.
Joshi Leban is a lesbian feminist, afro-descendant and migrant from Nicaragua, now living in El Salvador. Joshi works for Sombrilla Centroamericana, a network of organisations that leads responses to sexual and reproductive health and rights issues in the region. Joshi is part of a feminist collective that advocates for the decriminalisation of abortion in El Salvador. She also considers herself a cyber feminist, working on digital strategies and training processes for young women and community leaders to empower the use of technology as well as the recognition of digital security.
Joy is a youth activist in climate action and the current National Coordinator of Green Girls Platform, a female-led initiative that works to achieve equality for girls and young women in the environment and find feminist solutions to the climate change crisis in Malawi. Joy enjoys doing voluntary work, especially working with girls and young women and seeing them actualise their dreams and empower their fellow women in the process.
Juliana is a 35 year old Colombian and a feminist, bisexual and migrant woman. She is in the process of completing her anthropology thesis. Juliana is a former professional soccer player and now the coach of a professional women’s soccer team in Argentina, using football as a tool to challenge the patriarchy. As part of feminist civil association La Nuestra Futbol Feminista, based in Buenos Aires, she works to empower girls and women through football, and fights for a woman’s right to play, and to imagine and shape a dissident, inclusive, anti-fascist and feminist world.
Salvadoran. 24 years old. Internationalist interested in the Latinamerican region. I have studied gender affairs, feminism, politics and debate. My experience is based on volunteer work with adolescents and children, youth organizations and activism, as well as funding work and non-governmental organizations.
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Salvadoreña. 24 años. Internacionalista interesada en la región latinoamericana. Cuento con formación sobre asuntos de género, feminismo, política y debate. Mi experiencia se basa en experiencias en voluntariados con adolescentes y niños, organizaciones y activismo de jóvenes además de la ejecución de fondos y organizaciones no gubernamentales.
Mahjabeen is from Kolkata, India. She is 22 years old and lives in a community in Rajabazar. She has a Bachelor of Arts degree and is pursuing a masters in social work.
She is the core member of Roshni which is a youth group for by young girls in her community. All the core members are girls and they also reach peers adolescent girls in the community empowering them towards their rights.
She has experience of working as a youth mentor or peer educator with other external organizations.
Through her volunteering and working with organizations she has an understanding of rights including womens rights, child rights. She also has experiencing working on gender equality and different forms of inequality and violence faced by women and girls.
Mariam Topchishvili is a feminist activist and master of Gender Studies. Mariam is a founder and Executive Director of the community-based NGO Young feminists’. She is passionate about women’s rights, girl empowerment, social justice and organizes awareness-raising activities with a group of inspired young feminists based in Georgia. Mariam also works for UNDP Georgia’s peace and development unit on crisis and conflict-related incidents. Mariam is a young European ambassador and has experience in working with youth-led and youth-centered groups and organizations. She speaks Georgian, English, and Russian languages.
Marija’s activism started in high school with the fight against gender-based violence. She became a peer educator on sexual and reproductive health and rights. Her study of Sociology opened the doors for diverse engagements from self-organised collectives, to feminist philanthropy. She was recognised as one of the most socially and politically engaged students in Serbia in 2012. After obtaining a Master in Sociology, she has worked in a number of roles and with a wide range of marginalised groups including young people, activists, women’s collectives and women’s funds. In her work she connects gender, social, economic and environmental justice.
Maya is a transgender activist living in Pakistan. Maya has been working for transgender rights since 2016 in various capacities and has witnessed from the legal recognition of the third gender “Trans Identity” to the passing of the historic “Transgender Protection Act 2018” bill in Pakistan. These moments have been a huge milestone for the transgender rights movement in the country. Maya is currently working on the sexual and reproductive health and rights, economical empowerment and political participation of her community. Maya’s vision is to see transgender persons in key decision-making positions and all walks of life without any discrimination and stigmatisation.
Melinda is a gender justice advocate and works on the reform for gender-equal citizenship rights and immigration policies concerning Malaysian binational and transnational families in her capacity as the programme manager for Family Frontiers; Family Frontiers is the umbrella body for the Foreign Spouses Support Group (FSSG) and the Malaysian Campaign for Equal Citizenship. Melinda also leads the ‘Right to Belong’ project, which is Family Frontiers’ youth network for gender-equal citizenship.
She identifies as an intersectional feminist and strongly believes in the need for gender mainstreaming in governance, and is passionate about contributing towards the strengthening of feminist movements. She is currently an advisor for the Asia Pacific Committee of FRIDA Fund and was part of the Strategic Planning & Design team for With & For Girls. Nationally, she is also part of the Campaign team of 111initiative powered by Undi18 that advocates for increased women’s political participation in Malaysia.
Menuka is an activist and outdoor enthusiast from Nepal. She graduated from Bangkok University, where she studied Entrepreneurship and Management. She will be starting her Master’s in the UK as a Chevening Scholar in 2021. Menuka believes in creating a safe space for young women to share their opinions and challenge themselves to create a sustainable environment to lead and be a changemaker. She is a co-founder of a travel podcast called Duluwa Talks and is an active alumnus of organizations like Women LEAD Nepal and Wedu.
Mercy is an intersectional African feminist with a commitment to human rights, social justice, and girls and young women. She is currently a Programme Assistant for Grants Administration at UHAI EASHRI, Africa’s first indigenous activist fund supporting sexual and gender minorities and sex worker human rights. Before joining UHAI EASHRI, she supported various programs at Akili Dada, a leadership incubator that nurtures transformative leadership in girls and young women through its holistic approach to education, leadership training and mentoring. Mercy has worked with girls and young women for the past eight years and is passionate about purposefully creating safe spaces for girls and young women that encourage intergenerational learning and agency.
Monica Yeanie Ghaliwa is a passionate advocate, activist, and the first female blind journalist in Sierra Leone. She established the Inspiration for Human Development (IHD) to empower and advocate for the welfare of women and girls with disabilities.
In pursuance of her dream of changing the negative perception society holds about persons with disabilities, she participated in a popular reality TV show called House Mate Salon, and was recognized and awarded by the Africa Achievers Award in April 2019 for her remarkable performance on the show.
Other awards she received the same year included the Youth and Children’s Advocacy Panel (YACAP) where she was recognised for her strong and relentless advocacy on issues of young women and girls living with disabilities. She’s a participant of the Young African Leadership Initiative (YALI) in Ghana; and works for the Sierra Leone Broadcasting Corporation (SLBC) as a radio presenter and reporter.
Nancy Jabu is a 20 year old young woman from Bonthe District, Sierra Leone. Nancy is originally from Bonthe but goes to school in Bo. She lives in Bonthe when she is not in school. Nancy’s potential is evident in that she works on issues trying to address illiteracy in her community by reaching out to the town chief. She is trying to encourage youths to go to school instead of working in the farm. Nancy is very bold and has a great team spirit and leadership quality
Numa is a 28 year old non binary person from Guatemala. They are an anthropologist and artist who through poetry and social research explores the concepts of bodies, genders and sexualities. As part of the collective Cuirpoetikas, Numa creates formative workshops and artistic spaces to share knowledge and experiences from and for women and trans, queer, non binary and lgbtiqa+ people. The collective has run for the last four years, and produces an annual queer arts festival in Guatemala. Numa describes themselves as not an activist, but an artivist, focused on the visual and symbolic representations of sex and gender and on the transformation of power relationships in the racist, heteronormative and patriarchal system.
Oumaima is from Marrakech, Morrocco. She is a second year baccalaureate student and has and worked with Project Soar, which works to help girls to develop leadership skills. Her journey with feminism started when she was moved by stories of girls especially those who had a difficult background, and she has continued to amplify the voices of girls in her community. She is a public speaker, is involved in theatre, and is developing her skills in voiceover acting.
Internationalist by Anáhuac University in Mexico and the Moscow Higher School of Economics. Young feminist woman, interested in intercultural communication, youth rights and gender equality. I have experience in think tanks (Consejo Mexicano de Asuntos Internacionales – COMEXI), international cooperation agencies (Agencia de los Estados Unidos para el Desarrollo Internacional – USAID), the United Nations sexual and reproductive health agency (UNFPA) and civil society organizations. I am currently working as the Political Advocacy Officer at Elige Youth Network for Sexual and Reproductive Rights.
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Internacionalista por la Universidad Anáhuac México y la Alta Escuela de Economía de Moscú. Mujer feminista joven, con interés por la comunicación intercultural, los derechos de las juventudes y la igualdad de género. Cuento con experiencia en think tanks (Consejo Mexicano de Asuntos Internacionales – COMEXI), agencias de cooperación internacional (Agencia de los Estados Unidos para el Desarrollo Internacional – USAID), el Fondo de Población de las Naciones Unidas (UNFPA) y organizaciones de la sociedad civil. Actualmente me desempeño como Oficial de Incidencia Política en Elige Red de Jóvenes por los Derechos Sexuales y Reproductivos.
Rebecca Sarah Jawara is a 19 year old from Freetown, Sierra Leone. An outspoken activist, she also hasa passion for music and creative arts. Apart from being on the Tar Kura panel, she also currently works with Purposeful by providing content in the form of poems and songs for our weekly Karo Kura Konnection radio show.
Until 2018, Saranzaya worked as a Public Awareness Program Manager at Beautiful Hearts Against Sexual Violence in Mongolia. This role focused on advocacy for the prevention of gender-based violence. Her work included campaigns called Strong Girls Strong Nation and Break the Chain. Saranzaya was a team member at Beautiful Hearts Against Sexual Violence when the NGO was a grantee partner of FRIDA | The Young Feminist Fund and the With and For Girls Collective. She currently works as a Gender Specialist in The Asia Foundation Mongolia.
Sarrah Sheriff is a 17 year old from Bo District, Sierra Leone. Sarrah is smart but very shy and can be outspoken when encouraged, she carries herself well and gets the job done on time. She has some experience in advocacy and also has a lot of potential backed up with excellent public speaking skills.
Sharanya identifies as a feminist writer, researcher and activist based in Sri Lanka. She holds an LLB (Hons) and a Master in Conflict and Peace Studies. Sharanya works primarily in Sri Lanka and South Asia as an independent consultant on sexual and reproductive health and rights, gender-based violence, the intersections between gender and technology, education, and storytelling. She is also passionate about the democratisation of information and resources, and access to networks and spaces. In 2018 she and Widya Kumarasinghe co-founded a feminist storytelling collective called Everystory Sri Lanka.
Sontee Davis is a 17 year-old from Jamaica who is passionate about advancing and mainstreaming the voices of young people. She sits on the Eve for Life Youth Advisory Committee, supporting teen mothers and girls living with or affected by HIV and AIDS. As part of the committee, she steers advocacy discussions and activities, and uses her skills to empower her peers to use their voices to impact programmes and be aware of their sexual and reproductive health and rights. Sontee has lots of experience representing and participating in various youth spaces, which has deepened her understanding of the issues that girls face.
Subina is a teacher and Comprehensive Sexuality Education trainer in Kathmandu, Nepal. She is a Social Science graduate and passionate about issues surrounding women, LGBTQIA+ and Dalits (a caste group which is considered impure and untouchable in the Indian Subcontinent). She enjoys studying the process by which some groups and communities acquire more power over others, how such power dynamics shape societies and what civil society must do to ensure equal rights and access to power for everyone. When she is not working or studying, she can be found cooking, doodling and chatting with her parents.
Tara is an Iraqi women’s rights activist, working to encourage the economic, social and political participation of women. She has worked in the gender-based violence prevention and response domain for three years, through which women and girls are empowered economically and survivors of gender-based violence are supported with social and psychological counselling, legal assistance and case management. Tara brings together adolescent girls from marginalised backgrounds and engages them in sports and leadership activities, network development and other skills to empower them as agents of change. Tara is also involved in monitoring and localization of Iraqi NAP of the UNSCR 1325.
Fidela is Rwandan Feminist, who holds a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering. Through her passion and skills, she created an advocating organization aiming at the holistic, mental, spiritual, financial, and social empowerment of women particularly teen mothers. Through activities teen mothers have been trained to be self-independent by making income in the community through wood crafting. This initiative is purposely to enhance the competence of primary health care providers to recognize and treat mental health consequences of domestic violence, sexual abuse, and acute and chronic stress in women.
She is also currently working with a social enterprise called DUKATAZE, which aims to empower young women mentally, socially, economically to fight unintended pregnancies in Rwanda.
Lesbian-pansexual 24 year old feminist, born in Barranquilla (Colombia). I am a professional Internationalist, specialized in Political Sciences and a Master’s student in Historical analysis of the current world. Co-founder of the first young lesbian, bisexual and trans women collective in the Colombian Caribbean, Weird but not so weird, founded in 2018, where I have explored dissident sex-gender activism using platforms like the radio, the theatre and music.
For the past 4 years, I have worked in the recognition of LGBT people victimization, specially women, in the context of the Colombian armed conflict. I was researcher and coordinator at the peace and armed conflict area of the Affirmative Caribbean Corporation. Currently, I am a consultant in the Gender Work Group of the Commission for the Clarification of the Truth, Coexistence and Non-Repetition of Colombia.
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Feminista lesbipansexual de 24 años, nacida en Barranquilla (Colombia). Soy profesional en Relaciones Internacionales con énfasis en Ciencia Política y maestranda en Análisis histórico del mundo actual. Co-fundadora de la primera colectiva de mujeres jóvenes lesbianas, bisexuales y trans del Caribe colombiano, Raras no tan raras, surgida en el año 2018, desde donde he explorado el activismo sexo-género disidente desde la radio comunitaria, el teatro y la música.
He trabajado durante los últimos 4 años por el reconocimiento de las victimizaciones que sufrieron las personas LGBT, especialmente las mujeres, en el marco del conflicto armado colombiano. Fui investigadora y coordinadora del área de paz y conflicto armado de la Corporación Caribe Afirmativo. Actualmente soy consultora del Grupo de Trabajo de Género de la Comisión para el Esclarecimiento de la Verdad, la Convivencia y la No Repetición de Colombia.
Yande Banda is a vibrant and passionate education, girls and women’s rights activist. She is the Co chair of transform Education, a youth led coalition hosted by UNGEI transforming education for gender equality. She is also a member of the Global adolescents task force of UN Women and the youngest advisor of the Adolescent Girls Advisory Council for the Global Fund for Women. In 2021, Yande represented the voices of adolscent Girls as the youngest speaker at the Generation Equality Forum Paris and brought World leaders, Presidents, Director Generals, Nobel Peace Prize Laurates and heads of Civil Society to their feet in a standing ovation. Yande Banda believes in the power of the collective and in the power of the voices of girls.
Zhanna is a 19 year old activist from Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. She has been a feminist activist since the age of 14, fighting for girls’ rights and equality. She is a member of Bishkek Feminist Initiatives, editor and co-founder of teenage magazine Boktukorgon and coordinator of Teenagers and Youth for Justice Equality Initiative. She is also a girl advisor for Central Asia and Eastern Europe at FRIDA | The Young Feminist Fund and has been since 2017. As an artist and illustrator she promotes justice and anti-discrimination through art, as well as in her role as a freelance journalist and cameraperson at Kloop Media. Zhanna is currently a media specialist at LGBT organisation Kyrgyz Indigo. She stands up for the rights of queer teenagers, youth and girls, with the aim to increase their visibility and the right to be who they are.
Zoneziwoh is an award-winning feminist humanitarian storyteller with over 10 years of experience in gender and digital activism, movement building, policy advocacy and youth leadership. She is the Executive Director at Women for A Change in Cameroon where she designs, directs and executes programs for the advancement of women’s rights, leadership and empowerment. Her advocacy involves creating spaces for women and girls to engage with policy and decision makers at the highest levels including the UN Commission on the Status of Women. It also involves translating and raising awareness on national and international women’s rights frameworks including the Maputo Protocol and the Beijing Platform for Action.
