STF Virtual Summit 2023: August 5th from 11AM-7PM Eastern Time

Welcome to She’s the First Summit 2023!

STF Summit is a day full of intense inspiration, networking, training, and skill-building. Attendees hear from girl activists, learn more about advocacy, and see how gender equality can be achieved in our lifetime. This year’s summit will celebrate the Global Girls’ Bill of Rights®, and each distinguished speaker was invited based on their work in one of the 10 rights. 

six girls hold a poster of the Global Girls' Bill of Rights

What is the Global Girls’ Bill of Rights®? Organized by She’s the First with support from Akili Dada and MAIA, over 1000 girls from more than 34 countries united to submit their rights, with the support of nonprofits.

To learn more before the summit, download the toolkit below!


Schedule

11:00 am ET: Opening Session (Click here to join the Zoom session)

11:45 am ET: Right #3: Self Advocacy with Danni "Amapoundcake" Adams (Click here to join the Zoom session)

1:00 pm ET: Break & Open Networking Session: Pop in and chat with your fellow Campus members from across the globe! (Click here to join the Zoom session)

2:00 pm ET: Breakout Sessions:

3:00 pm ET: Break

3:15 pm ET: Breakout Sessions:

4:15 pm ET: Break & Open Networking Session: Pop in and chat with your fellow Campus members from across the globe! (Click here to join the Zoom session)

4:45 pm ET: Breakout Sessions:

6:00 pm ET: Closing Session (Click here to join the Zoom session)


Meet the Presenters

Cierra Kaler-Jones, Rethinking Schools

Cierra Kaler-Jones
 

Cierra Kaler-Jones, PhD is a social justice educator, writer, researcher, and artist based in Washington, D.C. She currently serves as the first-ever Executive Director at Rethinking Schools, a national publisher for racial and social justice in education. Dr. Kaler-Jones is firmly rooted in her commitment to education justice. Over the past decade, Cierra has taught preschoolers, K-12 students, college students, and adults. With her roots in dance and arts education, Cierra has also taught classes on U.S. history, public policy. Dr. Kaler-Jones is also an alumna of STF Campus!

Cierra Kaler-Jones will speak about girls’ right to education, which is the first right in the Girls’ Bill of Rights®: “All girls have the right to free, quality education, which prepares us for the modern world.”

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Shivangi Misra, Equality Now

Shivangi Misra
 
 

Shivangi Misra is an international human rights lawyer and the Global Legal Advisor at Equality Now, an organization that uses the power of the law to create enduring equality for women and girls everywhere.

She contributes to the strategy and preparation for international legal advocacy, strategic litigation, amicus briefs, and submissions to legal mechanisms at the United Nations, with a focus on achieving legal equality, and ending harmful practices, sexual exploitation, and sexual violence against women.

Shivangi Misra will speak about the second right in the Global Girls’ Bill of Rights®, which is all girls have the right to equality, free from discrimination and stereotypes.

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Summit banner that shows speaker name: Danni “Amapoundcake” Adams

Danni Adams
 

Danni “Amapoundcake” Adams is an award-winning influencer, writer, activist, body image coach, and speaker. She’s very passionate about the impact of beauty standards on women and girls. She shares a community vision where people of all backgrounds are not socially, politically, or economically restricted from moving freely.

She's been featured on ABC's Tamron Hall Show, Dr. Phil, Fox News, and The Sisaundra Show. Her work has been featured in Hello Beautiful, CNN, Essence Magazine, The Curvy Fashionista, Madam Noir, Ebony Online and more.

Danni Adams will be the first speaker at STF Summit and will discuss Self Advocacy — a theme present in the third right of the Global Girls’ Bill of Rights®: “All girls have the right to be involved in decision-making and to pursue leadership positions.”

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Luz Chavez, United We Dream

Luz Chavez

Luz Chavez Gonzales currently serves as the Maryland Youth Organizer of United We Dream, the largest immigrant youth-led network in the nation. Born in La Paz, Bolivia, Luz immigrated to the United States at the age of 4. It wasn't until her junior year of high school, while she was applying for colleges, when she found out about her undocumented status. Since then, she became a figurehead of the immigrant rights movement. Her story has been shared on a Nickelodeon special, Popsugar, CNN, ABC and other major outlets.

She's a Gaithersburg HS, Montgomery College, and Trinity Washington University alum, where she was a recipient of TheDream.us National scholarship and earned a bachelor’s in Sociology and Political Science. She graduated from Georgetown University this past May with a Master of Arts in Educational Transformation, and she is fighting to transform and shape the education system to support BIPOC students.

Luz Chavez will speak about the fourth right of the Girls’ Bill of Rights — all girls have the right to documentation, recognized by relevant authorities

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Candace E. Hardnette, EducateUS: SIECUS In Action

Candace E. Hardnett

Candace E. Hardnett is the Lead Organizer for EducateUS: SIECUS In Action, an organization fighting for inclusive and comprehensive sex education across the United States. A social justice activist, pastor, and experienced community organizer with a focus on equality, inclusion, and civil rights for marginalized groups, she has been instrumental in lobbying, protesting, and advocating for legislation that protects the rights and well-being of minority groups, particularly those which involve BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ communities. She believes that all people have a right to exist in a world without fear of discrimination or bigotry. Candace believes her faith to be a valuable component to the justice work that she so diligently pursues and for this reason she believes strongly in comprehensive sex education and ending the stigma around sexuality and expression.

Candace Hardnett will speak about the fifth right in the Global Girls’ Bill of Rights®: “All girls have the right to comprehensive sexual education and access to free, quality reproductive healthcare.”

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Natalie Robi Tingo

Natalie Robi Tingo

Natalie Robi Tingo is the Founder of Msichana Empowerment Kuria, a women-led community-based organization in rural Kenya that has since 2015 worked to end female genital mutilation (FGM) by tackling its root causes and empowering women and girls.

Msichana Empowerment Kuria is a member of the She’s the First Partner Coalition. "Msichana" is the Swahili word for girl; born on the principle that every life is precious. Every girl deserves a fair start at life to realize her full potential from birth to adulthood.​

​A vital aspect of this goal has been to create girl-focused interventions to tackle root causes sustained by Economic, Social & Cultural barriers and consequences as a result of FGM: child marriage, child pregnancies, menstrual health rights, sexual reproductive health rights, poverty, human rights concerns and gender inequality.

The sixth right illustrated in the Girls’ Bill of Rights will be discussed by one Natalie Robi Tingo, founder of one of our partners in Kenya. This right states that all girls have the right to be protected from harmful traditions and to enjoy positive cultural practices.

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Alison Turkos

Allison Turkos
 
 

Alison Turkos is a sexual assault survivor, activist, and advocate fighting for systemic change.

Whether it’s through telling her story publicly, working behind the scenes with organizations and companies, filing litigation to hold systems accountable, or supporting survivors as they come forward, Alison centers and lifts up survivor voices and pushes the narrative to be more survivor-centric.

Alison Turkos will be discussing girls’ safety from violence, the seventh right of the Girls’ Bill of RIghts®.

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Alyssa Ljub
 
 
 

Alyssa Ljub is an intimacy educator and relationship coach. She was also a fan favorite as a contestant on season four of Netflix’s The Circle.

Alyssa Ljub will discuss girls’ body choices, which is the eighth right in the Girls’ Bill of Rights: all girls have the right to make decisions about their body and sexuality; they have the ability to choose whom they love, regardless of gender and to express their sexuality without censure.

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Roxanne Horrell, Straight Ahead

 
 
Roxanne Horrell

Roxanne Horrell is the Campaign Director at Straight Ahead, the 501c(4) arm of the Abolitionist Law Center. Her work has primarily been centered on leading a state-wide legislative campaign to end death by incarceration sentences and win parole eligibility for elders in Pennsylvania. Since 2014, Roxanne has worked for the City of Philadelphia, in all three branches of government. In 2014, Roxanne began clerking for the Honorable Edward Wright in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas, Criminal Division. During her tenure there, Roxanne was frequently witness to the inherent injustices ingrained in the criminal legal system. From her experience in the Courts, she decided to become involved in policy work, which led her to Philadelphia City Council. In 2015, Roxanne became the Legislative Counsel to Councilwoman Jannie L. Blackwell. Her time in Council exposed her to the many complex issues faced by Philadelphians and deepened her knowledge of the legislative process and local politics. In January 2020, Roxanne began to work as a policy analyst for the Philadelphia Police Advisory Commission. The work there further enlightened Roxanne to the failings of the criminal legal system and the pressing need for systemic change.

The ninth right will be discussed by Roxanne Horrell: “All girls have the right to be protected under the law without fear or unequal treatment.”

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Naisiae Hirima Lempushunah
 

Naisiae Hirima Lempushunah is the Program and Operations Officer, Kenya, for Too Young to Wed, a nonprofit organization that partners with grassroots organizations working to end child marriage in their own communities. She worked as a programs officer at Community Safety Initiative Kenya (CSI-K) leading the following three programs: Resilience Peace and Security (RPS) which is funded by Danish Embassy, Reducing Insecurity and Violent Extremism in the Northern and Coastal regions of Kenya (REINVENT) funded by UKaid and USAID Kenya's Electoral Conflicts Mitigation and Civic/Voter Education Support (ECCES)Program on peace building and conflict management.

Mary Givi
 
 

Marjan (Mary) Givi, Too Young To Wed’s Programs & Media Assistant, is a freelance translator and video editor. She has worked for Too Young to Wed previously as a case manager, translator and video editor with our Afghanistan Evacuations and Media Teams from the end of 2021 until March 2022. Originally from Iran, Mary is currently in Romania and is a journalism and mass communications student at the University of Bucharest.

Naisiae Hirima Lempushunah will be presenting with Marjan Givi to speak about the tenth right in the Girls’ Bill of Rights®. The tenth right discusses that all girls have the right to be free from exploitation, safe from child labor, trafficking, and early marriage.

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Please check back on this page for speaker notes, meeting links, and presentations recordings!