International Women’s Day: Summary

Women and children are disproportionately represented among those caught in modern slavery. Women make up nearly 27 million of all those living in modern slavery, and more than 12 million are children. 

Last Wednesday we celebrated #InternationalWomensDay by hosting a number of virtual events with inspirational guest speakers and experts from Hope for Justice. Throughout the week we shared stories, videos and had LIVE discussions with inspirational women who have taken ownership, from survivors to community leaders and team members who are leading policy and anti-slavery strategy.

Don’t worry if you missed parts of it, as we’ve shared all the events and talks below!

Tips for women on how to take ownership of ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) practices in the workplace, including your career. This webinar explored the stories of the women of Slave-Free Alliance, from their career journeys to their specializations. Business sectors explored included fashion, law, and maritime, and stories ranged across the UK, US, and Norway. Watch to learn about the various ways you can take ownership of ESG practices in your own workplace.

Hosted by Marie Nordby, Jeanette Schultz Årvik, Rachel Hartley, and Alexandra Hall (Slave-Free Alliance).

This webinar focused on the context of reducing risks and vulnerabilities to human trafficking and other forms of gender-based violence. Watch along to learn about the approaches, challenges, and opportunities in achieving gender equality and empowerment of rural women and girls, through exploring the role of the wider community.

Hosted by Nanci Hogan, Chief Executive and Founder, Sophia Transformations. With Selamawit Sisay (Hope for Justice), Zufan Tesfaye (Dot’s Global Youth Leadership Advisory Board) and Mulu Haile (Mission for Community Development Program).

With Uldouz Wallace, a survivor of image-based sexual abuse and creator of The Protect Act, and Antonia Boorman (Hope for Justice). 

In this short live discussion, we discussed how image-based sexual abuse is accelerated online by taking away victims’ privacy and control and what we can do about it.

Natalie discusses how, with support from Hope for Justice, five women in Ethiopia formed a community group, educated other women, and now own a business to empower themselves and provide for their families. 

Natalie Grant is a co-founder of Hope for Justice and a Global Ambassador on behalf of our work and mission.

A bonus episode for International Women’s Day! In this episode, Sarah Ulhaq, Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning Specialist, discusses how data is helping to end modern slavery, the importance of having effective tools to measure progress, women in leadership, and how making impactful change is a continuous process.

Watch how our Self-Help Groups support women in poverty-stricken areas of Uganda to become financially stable and prevent the risk of human trafficking.

Learn how art therapy is used to help young girls take back their agency and regain ownership of their childhoods in Cambodia.

A reminder from one of our longest-standing volunteers in Norway, Benedicte. “I have learned that there is absolutely always something you can do to contribute.” Take Ownership, Take Action! 

We hope you enjoy these live talks, seminars, and events where we break down the issues women face in modern slavery and how it continues to be a gendered issue. Learning about the issue and raising awareness is the start of creating a long-lasting impact in the fight to end modern slavery and human trafficking for good. Learn more about how you can get further involved here: Take Action this International Women’s Day

If you have any feedback on International Women’s Day this year, please contact info@hopeforjustice.org.