25th November marks the start of ‘16 Days of Activism Against Gender Based Violence’ – an annual global campaign challenging violence against women and girls that ends on the 10th December, Human Rights Day. It is an opportunity to come together with the global women’s movement to call for an end to gender-based violence. More than 6,000 organisations from over 187 countries have taken part since the campaign began in 1991. Originated by activists at the inaugural Women’s Global Leadership Institute, the campaign continues to be coordinated each year by the Centre for Women’s Global Leadership (CWGL).

Gender violence and sexual assault are topics deeply important to me, so I wanted to raise some awareness during these 16 days of some of the amazing women activists fighting against gender violence against women across the world. Each day I will share a bit about a different activist, which I hope inspires people to learn more about gender violence issues, and shows that activism can look very different. It’s all about doing what YOU can.

Unfortunately, I wasn’t in a good place to post during the actual 16 days, though I did begin posting about these amazing activists over on my Instagram. However, I now present to you the series of posts I made about them – the ‘slides’/infographics, as well as a link to the Instagram posts.

I hope you find these introductions inspiring to read!

You can view my posts on Instagram @sunflower_saff !