The laureates

Nancy HOUSTON is an international human rights lawyer, feminist thinker and co-founder of "Feminists in Kenya", a social movement of black and queer feminist activists dedicated to promoting feminism in her home country, Kenya. As a recipient of the Chevening Scholarship, the UK government’s international programme to develop future global leaders, she graduated from the University of Essex with a degree in international human rights law.

Through her "Feminists in Kenya" movement, she has organized nationwide protests against femicides and gender-based violence, using the hashtag #TotalShutDownKE on social media, mobilizing more than 50,000 protesters since 2019. Her organization has as main objectives: the strengthening of Kenyan feminist movements, the eradication of all forms of violence against women, the development of new feminist information and communication technologies as well as the promotion of sexual and reproductive rights.

Passionate about feminist philanthropy, Nancy Houston has been an advisor for Africa to FRIDA The Young Feminist Fund, supporting the distribution of grants to grassroots feminist activists in Africa. She sees this funding as a crucial tool for justice and empowerment, and is currently focusing on mobilizing resources to implement a new initiative, the "Feminist Wellness Fund". This fund aims to redistribute resources to grassroots feminist activists, who are often underfunded and whose well-being is often neglected.