Rkia is a Soulaliyate, a tribal group that has a stake in in Morocco’s commons or “collective lands.” Traditionally, Soulaliyate women aren’t eligible to use tribal land; land passes only from father to son. As a result, many Soulaliyate women have been forced off their land, with some Soulaliyate men selling tribal lands to outside developers,…

When Perla started her first small business, she didn’t know anything about business planning or managing finances—she just knew she needed to earn money, because her husband had lost his job at a large steel company. With few options, Perla began to sell roasted peanuts based on a special recipe from her grandmother. Soon, she…

Nilce is a leader of a terreiro, a community of black women who practice Afro-Brazilian religion and traditions. In 2005, she got involved with Global Fund for Women grantee partner CRIOLA, a women’s rights organization led by black women who work with other Afro-Brazilian women and girls in the poorest areas of Rio de Janeiro…

Nela, who has been an activist since the 1980s, co-founded the Centre for Women War Victims (ROSA) in 1992 during the Bosnian war, when rape was used as a weapon to terrorize communities and intimidate women. Now, more than 20 years later, women survivors of rape are still healing from the trauma and stigma of…

When Natia was growing up in the conservative country of Georgia, she struggled with her sexuality. “As a kid, I always had crushes on women. When I hit puberty and I realized what was happening, it was scary because I didn’t know anyone who was gay,” she says. “All the negative stuff that I heard…

Milica is a law student and activist working with Global Fund for Women grantee partner BIBIJA-Roma Women’s Center to end discrimination against Roma people in Serbia. BIBIJA provides community education programs, free legal services, counseling, and trainings on women’s human rights to Roma women in Serbia. Milica attended a workshop held by BIBIJA “and was…

Maria Fernanda is the 16-year-old coordinator of Nací para Volar (“Born to Fly”), an outreach group for girls organized by Global Fund for Women grantee partner Asociación de Mujeres Constructoras de Condega (AMCC). Maria joined Naci para Volar when she was 12 years old. At the time, she didn’t know anything about feminism, and felt the…

Gözde is a 20-year-old journalism student at Ankara University and an activist for the rights of LGBT people in Turkey. When she was 16, she participated in an event organized by Kaos GL called “Women to Women,” where openly gay women come to share stories. She won a special award for her story-telling, and soon became more…

Gloria grew up without her father, and her mother was handicapped and abused by Gloria’s paternal grandmother. As the oldest child, Gloria had to raise her younger siblings and has worked since she was seven years old, sometimes in abusive environments. When she was younger, Gloria dreamed of studying nursing, but she wasn’t able to…

When Cynthia was 11 years old, she lost her mom to HIV/AIDS and went to live with her grandparents in the small village of Nandi, taking care of her brother and their household all while going to school. Even though Cynthia loved school and wanted to get an education, she had no one to look…