This International Women’s Day, Gates Institute celebrates three 120 Under 40 winners working to create a world free of bias, stereotypes, and discrimination. Below, read about the innovative work being done by our 120 Under 40 youth leaders, and find inspiration to #EmbraceEquity in your own work.
Saro Imran – 2019 Winner – Pakistan
Saro has become an outspoken defender of transgender rights and justice over the last 15 years, beginning at the grassroots level and now speaking on a global scale. Her 2022 Ingenuity Fund Project, “World’s 1st HIV + Transgender SuperHero – Animated Short Film,” will be the world’s first transgender superhero animated film. Her work engaging the Pakistan Government enacted landmark legislation to safeguard the rights of transgender people, including equal access to education, employment, and voting rights.
>> Learn more about Saro’s Journey
>> Saro’s Ingenuity Fund Project
>> Saro’s ICFP2022 Youth Trailblazer Award
Tlaleng Mofokeng – 2016 Winner – South Africa
Author, broadcaster, and UN Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the highest standard of physical and mental health, Dr. T is a medical doctor with expertise advocating for universal health access, HIV care, youth-friendly services, and family planning, as well as comprehensive sexuality education, training and facilitation, and content production. She is the first woman and first African to hold her UN title. With a broad global media portfolio, Dr. T has been named in BBC’s 100 Women of 2021 and received countless other recognitions for her work. Recently, Dr. T co-authored a UN Compendium on Comprehensive Sexuality Education (CSE), urging States to ensure the right to CSE without discrimination.
>> Get The Pulse with Dr. T
>> Read the CSE Compendium
>> Dr. T’s BBC 100 Women Recognition
Alison Hoover – 2019 Winner – USA
As a vasectomy researcher, ICFP2022 Youth Trailblazer, and Associate Director of Global Health Programs at Emory University School of Medicine, Alison is committed to ensuring that everyone has the knowledge, products, and services needed to realize their fullest reproductive rights. Her work includes engaging “the other half” of the population in the discourse on family planning and recognizing that traditional views of vasectomy candidacy must evolve to meet the changing landscape of sexual and reproductive health. Her 2020 Ingenuity Fund project co-founded a grassroots organization that focuses on providing hygiene, menstrual hygiene, sexual health, and PPE products to people experiencing homelessness in Atlanta, GA.
>> Learn about Alison’s Ingenuity Fund Project
>> Watch Alison’s Panel Discussion at ICFP2022: Youth Leaders Make Bold Moves
>> Watch Alison on the ICFP2022 LIVE Stage
