Amina* was twelve-years-old when her family fled war-torn Afghanistan in search of a safer life.   Two years ago her family packed their most sacred belongings into a backpack. Photographs, treasured items and three pairs of clothing were all they could fit. Along the way, Amina’s backpack was stolen. She lost her favourite top and Read More

Dina went to a bar. Yes. She went several times to a jazz bar and salsa club in Ghent, Belgium. You might be thinking “so what?,” but you see, Dina is a young Muslim girl from Indonesia and shouldn’t go to these kind of places. They’re considered a place of sin by some Muslims. I Read More

I dream of driving a car. Those few times when I have sat with my hands on the steering wheel, I felt in control of my life. But I was born into a society where it is not culturally acceptable for a woman to drive a car. In Afghanistan, many men feel great shame if Read More

In the north Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, the main highway threads along the fringes of the Ganges river, flooded with honking trucks decked in fluorescent flowers. Beyond this chaos though, there's a quieter landscape that tourists, trade and government don’t reach. Here, life carries on in much the same way it has for hundreds Read More

Shougofa Alikozay is one of 12 brave Afghan female journalists who is challenging the sexist media industry in Afghanistan. As part of the entrepreneurial news program Sahar Speaks, I met Shougofa - a passionate, highly articulate and intelligent writer. This unique program provides invaluable (and inaugural!) multi-media skill training and publishing opportunities to Afghan female Read More

The slums girls of Mumbai are stuck in a vicious and unbreakable cycle of unemployment, poverty and an unshakable sense of despondency. Aarti Naik, a slum girl herself, would know.   From the ‘last suburb’ of Mumbai, otherwise known as Mulund, Aarti was born and raised within the slum community by her family. With little Read More

"Good things come out of anger,” said Amie Ferris-Rotman, Founder and Director of Sahar Speaks. “It is our obligation to get the voices of Afghanistan's women heard. A US-led alliance invaded and fought America's longest war in history there. The Western press owes it to them.” Amie is a British-American journalist with a decade of Read More

“My mother lost three children at birth. Not because she didn’t have an education but because she didn’t have access to the right information on reproductive health,” said Emily Karechio. “There’s a difference, you know. You may have an education like my mum who is a retired teacher, but that doesn’t mean you are empowered Read More

We watched on as the Supreme Court in the USA made the landmark decision to legalise marriage between same sex couples a little over a month ago. This was a long sought-after victory for the gay rights movement - a mass celebration of diversity discernable by colourful and vibrant pride parades in cities across the Read More