Scarlet Udaan Sanya Sharma

The Vavengers (‘Vagina Avengers’) are a charity made up of a group of people working towards a common goal: To End FGM. With the continued direction of survivors, and working directly with those on the front line, they ensure that all projects and funding they receive is directed to where it is needed most and will continue to do so until Female Genital Cutting is eradicated.

Their awareness work seeks to address the silence around FGM/C in the practicing and non practising communities whilst raising consciousness  around the root of Violence Against Women & Girls. Their community projects are run by Community Ambassadors with lived experience and years of expertise. The Vavengers were behind the UK’s first anti-FGM Billboards with a helpline for women and girls at risk.

Alex Adams is the Co- Founder and Chair of Action: FGM.  Alex is a former corporate lawyer at the law firm, Slaughter and May. He has spent the past 9 years running and advising a number of charities and NGOs.

He is an award-winning human rights activist fighting female genital mutilation (FGM) and violence against women and girls. Alex sits on the National Police Chiefs’ Council & Crown Prosecution Service jointly convened honour-based abuse national stakeholders committee and am the Co-founder & Chair of ACTION:FGM.

ACTION:FGM is a voluntary group of medical practitioners, female genital mutilation experts and international development specialists to improve the cross-sector collaboration and coordination that is needed to combat FGM in the UK and provide greater support to survivors of the practice. They are seeking policy changes at the UK Government level to improve FGM prevention, data collection and survivor support - including support service referral based on better data.

Saving Safa was written by Waris Dirie, an FGC survivor, activist, internationally renowned model, and the founder of the Desert Flower Foundation.

It opens with a letter from Safa Nour - a 7 year old girl from Balbala in Djibouti - to Waris Dirie. In the letter Safa expresses concern that she will soon undergo FGC, despite the contract her parents have with Dirie’s Desert Flower Foundation, stating they will not have their daughter cut. Upon receiving the letter, Waris Dirie drops everything and goes to Djibouti to try and convince Safa’s parents not to have their daughter cut.

Through Waris’ journey, the book explores many dimensions of FGC - from long term health effects, to intergenerational trauma and social stigma.

Saving Safa was written by Waris Dirie, an FGC survivor, activist, internationally renowned model, and the founder of the Desert Flower Foundation.

Saving Safa opens with a letter from Safa Nour - a 7 year old girl from Balbala in Djibouti - to Waris Dirie. In the letter Safa expresses concern that she will soon undergo FGC, despite the contract her parents have with Dirie’s Desert Flower Foundation, stating they will not have their daughter cut. Upon receiving the letter, Waris Dirie drops everything and goes to Djibouti to try and convince Safa’s parents not to have their daughter cut.

Through Waris’ journey, the book explores many dimensions of FGC - from long term health effects, to intergenerational trauma and social stigma.

Dr. Annemarie Middelburg is a consultant from the Netherlands with unique expertise on women’s rights and is a recognized global expert on FGC. She obtained her PhD  with a thesis entitled ‘Empty Promises? Compliance with the Human Rights Framework in relation to Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting in Senegal’.

In 2013, Dr. Annemarie wrote a report for UNFPA  about the implementation of the international and regional human rights framework for the elimination of FGC. In 2015, she founded Middelburg Human Rights Law Consultancy and started to work as an independent consultant.

Dr. Annemarie has had assignments for the United Nations, European Union, civil society organizations and universities. She has authored and co-authored numerous academic, EU and UN publications on the topic of FGC. She has worked on various research projects, including for the European Institute for Gender Equality, the United Nations Population Fund and more. Dr. Annemarie  also serves as an expert witness during asylum court cases in relation to FGC in Europe, the United Kingdom and the United States.

Isatu Barry is a youth activist dedicated to raising awareness on FGC and protecting girls, women, and non-binary individuals from this practice.

She hopes to create a safe space where survivors, allies, and communities alike can share their experiences, discuss misconceptions that drive the practice, and access mental and reproductive health services.

She has a TED Talk about her experience as an FGC survivor and has served on various panels dedicated to ending FGC.