Nassim Yettou (he/him) - Mahabba Collective
Nassim Yettou is the Executive Director of the Mahabba Collective that works to promote human rights in Algeria. He has led his organization in its mission to promote human rights by advocating for inclusive laws and policies, organizing community-building events and raising awareness through hard-hitting campaigns. Nassim is the former Secretary General of Amnesty International Algeria, an alumni of the prestigious International Visitor Leadership Program, and a founding member of the MAU (Movement for African Unity).

Innovation: Led an innovative campaign called the "Stop Gender-Based Violence Initiative,”.

Eliot Zeballos Cadena (he/him) - IGUAL Bolivia
As the National Coordinator of IGUAL Bolivia, a LGBTI+ feminist organization, Eliot Zeballos Cadena is an attorney and advocate, who focuses on strategic litigation to advance LGBTQ+ rights. He is the former President of the Citizen Council for Sexual and Gender Diversities of La Paz and has extensive experience in LGBTIQ+ advocacy processes in international spaces, such as the UN Universal Periodic Review, Committees of treaty bodies, the inter-American human rights system, the International Conference on Population and Development, among others. He is part of the LGBTI Litigants Network of the Americas, fellow of the U.S. Institute of Peace and Carolina Fundation. Recently he is member of the first cohort of the Youth, religion and mediation course promoted by the Network for Religious & Traditional Peacemakers.

Innovation: One of two attorneys leading on the only civil unions legal case currently working its way through the courts in Bolivia.

Mariah Rafaela Cordeiro Gonzaga da Silva (she/her) - International Institute on Race, Equality and Human Rights
Mariah Rafaela Cordeiro Gonzaga da Silva is an Afro-indigenous descendant trans Brazilian activist who is the Political Officer for Race & Equality, where she works to strengthen democracies in Latin America and encourages LBTQ+ women to engage in politics. In her more than 14 years as an LGBTQI activist, Mariah has focused her work in the favelas, helping to advance the rights and protect indigenous transgender woman sex workers and others.

Innovation: Coordinates the Katia Tapety Political Training School (EKT) which encourages the political participation and leadership development of LBT, specially black and indigenous women, undergoing training in national, regional and international human rights mechanisms, the Brazilian political and legal system, and the electoral system in Brazil.

Aleš Rumpel (he/him) - Pride Business Forum
As a seasoned LGBTQ+ advocate with over twenty years of experience, Aleš Rumpel is the training manager for Pride Business Forum and Prague Pride, where he leads empowerment programs, mentoring, and coaching for employers to become more LGBTQ+ inclusive. He co-founded the advocacy Platform for Equality, Recognition, and Diversity, z.s. (PROUD), is an active member of the Coalition for Marriage, and was previously the director of a major queer film festival.

Innovation: Leads the #buďteslyšet ("Be Heard") program which empowers young LGBTQ+ adults (18-30 years), training them on how to engage in productive dialogues with policy makers by providing participants with a comprehensive training of public administration at various levels (municipal, national, European) and opportunities to connect with political representatives.

Julienne (they/them) - LA COLOMBE Pride ASBL
A trans right advocate, Julienne is the Advocacy and Financial Director of LA COLOMBE Pride ASBL, a trans-led organization in the Eastern Congo, working to empower the LGBTQ+ community, especially trans women, through direct services and support. Julienne’s work focuses on providing direct support to trans women who are survivors of violence by engaging other stakeholders to raise awareness for LGBTQ+ rights, promote justice for victims of violence, and connect with political leaders.

Innovation: Leads the UHAKI KWA WOTE program which addresses ongoing violations of LGBTQ+ rights and brings justice to survivors of violence by providing legal representation through a partnership with the American Bar Association, medical and mental health care through a partnership with Imma World Health, and other support programs.

Jeremy Anfeerne Roa Rosa (they/them/all) - RD es de Todes
Jeremy Anfeerne Roa Rosa is a queer-Latinx advocate who advocates for queer rights, feminism, and anti-racism through the organization RD es de Todes. Jeremy’s activism includes a campaign against proposed changes to the Dominican Penal Code that enabled discrimination, addressing the disproportionately high rate of enforced disappearances among LGBTQ+ youth, and conducting workshops for employers on LGBTQ+ inclusion.

Innovation: Through the organization "Somos Irremplazables," Jeremy Anfeerne Roa Rosa created a viral video addressing the disturbing number of disappearances of LGBTQ+ youth in Santo Domingo, which resulted in mainstream media coverage of the issue, and an opportunity to work with legislators to introduce new initiatives to prevent disappearances.

Anonymous Advocate (they/them)
As a researcher and human rights practitioner, this advocate is deeply involved in the underground LGBTIQ+ movement in the Horn of Africa. Their work focuses on a media advocacy initiative which aims to shift public attitudes towards queer, trans and gender-diverse individuals in the region. This involves media production, narrative building, research, and documentation.

Innovation: Countering a resurgence of homophobia in their home country, the advocate has orchestrated a dual approach: they have co-created an online media platform to share uncensored stories of LGBTIQ+ people and engaged in high-level advocacy efforts to address the state of LGBTIQ+ rights in their country.

Abdul Mufeez Shaheed (he/him) - Rainbow Pride Foundation
Abdul Mufeez Shaheed is a longtime LGBTQ+ rights activist, working through the Rainbow Pride Foundation to support and empower LGBTQ+ Fijians,and focusing his efforts on promoting socio-economic rights and climate justice for the LGBTQ+ community. Abdul’s innovative advocacy work includes working with faith leaders for equality, training and financially supporting queer entrepreneurs, and addressing the impact of climate change on the LGBTQ+ community. He is currently an Asia Pacific Master of Arts in Human Rights and Democratization at Thailand's Mahidol University. Abdul also advises the Disability Pride Hub, an organization that works on intersectional identities of SOGIESC and persons with disabilities and Oceania Pride, an organization working with ethnic minorities and SOGIESC in Fiji.

Innovation: Led programmes on socio-economic empowerment programmes with the Rainbow Pride Foundation which resulted in the training of 30 queer entrepreneurs and the start of the Queerpreneurs Alliance.

Shone Adjei - Key Watch Ghana
Shone is an intersex rights advocate, and serves as the Executive Director of Key Watch Ghana and the Chairperson of the Intersex Ghana Movement, Key Watch Ghana is an intersex-led and focused NGO in Ghana. Shone has over ten years of working experience in various programs for intersex and gender-diverse persons in Ghana. Shone is passionate about leaving no one behind.

Innovation: Launched a project titled “Free to be Me,” which addressed intersex visibility and awareness, intersex genital mutilation, and economic discrimination of intersex persons.

Alessandra Hereman (she/her) - CAISO: Sex and Gender Justice and Guyana Trans United (GTU)
As a Guyanese trans woman and feminist sociologist and researcher, Alessandra has collaborated with a number of organizations on research and programming to improve the health and wellbeing of the LGBTIQ community. She has led participatory action research and community-based research on LGBTIQ issues ranging from trans criminalization, LGBTIQ employment discrimination, family violence, gender-affirming healthcare, HIV, and human rights violations. Her extensive advocacy work includes working on the public health response to HIV, gender-based violence, providing gender and sexual diversity training for service providers and LGBTIQ community members.

Innovation: Lead a community-based intervention with the Guyana Trans United to raise awareness of gender-based violence, and the referral pathway to access services, and encourage LGBTIQ victims/survivors to report.

Henry Tse (he/him) - Transgender Equality Hong Kong (TEHK)
As a trans rights legal advocate, Henry Tse in 2017 launched a lawsuit challenging the law that required trans people to undergo surgery in order to change their gender marker on their documents. Through his organization Transgender Equality Hong Kong, he conducted a multimedia story-telling project called ‘Transmen in Hong Kong’, which aimed to raise awareness of the gender marker lawsuit. Previously, he was the Chair of the Transgender Resource Center and conducted the largest transgender academic research in Hong Kong.

Innovation: Launched a lawsuit challenging a policy that coerces trans people to undergo ‘full sex-reassignment surgery’ in exchange of changing the gender marker on the document, and after losing the first two rounds, the top court ruled in his favor and declared the requirement as unconstitutional.

Anish Gawande (he/him) - Pink List India
An activist based in New Delhi, Anish Gawande is the director of the Dara Shikoh Fellowship, an interdisciplinary arts residency, and the founder of Pink List India, the country’s first archive of politicians stance on LGBTQ+ rights. Anish has been featured as one of GQ’s 50 Most Influential Young Indians, appeared on The New Indian Express’ Performing Arts Power List, and received the Minderoo-Oxford Challenge Fund for AI Governance grant for his work. His organization Pink List India, created a cutting-edge web app that allows constituents to find their elected representative and find a detailed report card about their record on LGBTQ+ issues.

Innovation: Created a cutting-edge web app called Pink List India that has detailed report cards of each elected representative’s record on LGBTQ+ issues to empower Indian voters to hold their leaders accountable.

Glenroy Murray (he/him) - Equality for All Foundation Jamaica (J-FLAG)
A human rights advocate who has worked to broaden the focus of policy and legal advocacy in the Jamaican LGBTQ+ movement. Glenroy Murray is the Executive Director at Equality for All Foundation Jamaica (J-FLAG), which advocates for the rights, livelihood and well being of LGBTQ+ Jamaicans. Glenroy is a 2018/2019 Chevening Scholar, a 2022 Nominee for the Prime Minister’s Youth Award for Excellence and the Americas Representative on the TCEN Management Committee. He has worked to train political parties and unions on the importance of LGBTQ+ inclusion, public awareness campaigns on the identities of LGBTQ+ Jamaicans, and provided training for healthcare workers to standardize LGBTQ+ healthcare best practices.

Innovation: Led initiatives to train members of political parties and labor unions about the importance of LGBTQ+ inclusion in their work to achieve a stronger base of support for legal and policy reforms.

Essy Adhiambo (she/her) - Initiative for Equality and Non-Discrimination
A queer woman advocate, who is a leading activist for LBQ+ rights in Kenya, Essy is the founder and Executive Director of the Initiative for Equality and Non-Discrimination INEND, an organization that promotes the human rights of sexual and gender minorities in Kenya. She has worked previously with faith leaders, the judiciary, law enforcement officers, the media, public transport operators to promote inclusive policies and practices in the institutions of daily life for the LGBTQ+ community. She was featured in the HIVOS Bold and powerful women for change: East Africa’s campaign (2017); was an Upinde Awards Shujaa nominee (2017); a Human Rights defender of the year nominee (2017); and was shortlisted for the 2019 Accountability International Leadership Award, she is also the winner of 2022 Upinde Awards, Shujaa category.

Innovation: Created an initiative that worked with public transportation workers to address biased attitudes towards LGBTQ+ people.

Anonymous Advocate - Sisters 4 Sisters (Liberia)
A long-time human rights activist, she currently serves as the Executive Director of Sisters 4 Sisters (Liberia), where she works to foster representation for the underrepresented communities within the broader women's movement. Sisters 4 Sisters (Liberia) addresses healthcare gaps and ensures access to quality services for the marginalized communities. Previously, she worked with Stop AIDS, providing HIV education, testing, and counseling specifically tailored to marginalized communities, sex workers and drug users.

Innovation: Conducted strategic engagement with members of Parliament to foster a deeper understanding amongst lawmakers regarding the fundamental concepts of diversity and the various human rights violations faced by the LGBTQ+ community.

Numan Afifi (he/him) - JEKAKA
As a recognized human rights activist in Malaysia, Numan focuses his work on decriminalizing same-sex relations. He is the founder and president of a JEKAKA, community-led organization dedicated to supporting and advocating for the rights of gay, bisexual, and queer men in Malaysia. Their programs range from providing a secure space for self-acceptance and peer support, building the capacity of the local LGBTIQ+ community, policy and strategic litigation. His leadership and activism have been recognised both nationally and regionally as a nominee for the 2020 APCOM Social Justice HERO Award, and his organizations, JEJAKA and PELANGI campaign, have been nominated for the Human Rights Award by SUARAM in 2017 and 2020 respectively.

Innovation: Led a groundbreaking program focused on decriminalizing same-sex relations under Sharia Law organizing a multifaceted campaign that intertwined grassroots activism, strategic litigation, and effective fundraising which culminated in a historic Federal Court decision in February 2021, which ruled that laws criminalizing same-sex relations was unconstitutional.

Enkhmaa Enkhbold (she/they) - The LGBT Centre in Mongolia
A leading LGBTQ+ advocate, Enkhmaa is the Executive Director of The LGBT Centre, the first and only LGBTQ+ advocacy organization in Mongolia. Enkhmaa has successfully led campaigns for the inclusion of the protection of the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity in the 2021 Privacy Act and 2021 Labor Law. She is active in international LGBTQ+ advocacy space, participating in influential campaigns such as the Universal Periodic Review, the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, and the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women. Through these endeavors, they have successfully secured 24 LGBTQI+-specific recommendations, amplifying the voices and needs of the community on a global scale.

Innovation: Led efforts to advocate for LGBTQI+ inclusive legislation, achieving the inclusion of the protection of the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity in the 2021 Privacy Act and 2021 Labor Law.

Yaquota El Idrissy (she/her) - South Trans Voice Organization in Morocco
A long time rights advocate, Yaquota serves as the President of the South Trans Voice Organization in Morocco, which provides psychological, social, legal, and health support to individuals affected by gender-based discrimination, and works towards achieving justice and equality for all individuals in the trans community in Morocco. Previously, she worked as an advocate with the AIDS Combat Association in Morocco, was a member of the Free Women's Union, and a member of the T_wanazar Alliance.

Innovation: Developed an innovative program to promote understanding and empathy for transgender people through awareness-raising campaigns, and organizing workshops for young people, human rights defenders and government officials to promote understanding of the issues facing the trans community and to clarify the importance of their rights.

Omar van Reenen (they/them) - Equal Namibia
Omar is a non-binary leading youth advocate and the Founder and Campaign Manager of Equal Namibia, a youth-led social movement for equality, championed by grassroots activists and community organizers, supported by a coalition of civil society organizations fighting to end state-sanctioned homophobia and intersectional discrimination in Namibia. Through their organization, Omar mobilizes support for strategic litigation, amplifies the voice of LGBTIQ activists, and builds visibility and strategic networks in support of LGBTIQ youth in Namibia, and lobbies for political reform.

Innovation: Ran a campaign that helped mobilize support for strategic litigation, challenging the government in more than 9 LGBTQ+ civil rights cases, raising support and awareness of the Supreme Court case that recognized same-sex marriages abroad.

Oyedayo (she/her) - Women's Health and Equal Rights (WHER) Initiative
As a young disabled queer feminist advocate, Oyedayo focuses her work on the intersection of gender, sexuality, and disabilities. As a Program Officer at the Women's Health and Equal Rights (WHER) Initiative, she has participated in strategic litigation to challenge a law that prohibits the registration of LGBTQI+ organizations and allows for discrimination against LGBTQI+ individuals. In 2022, Oyedayo led a project focusing on organizing a Values Clarification and Attitude Transformation Workshop for religious and traditional leaders, mainstream Human Rights Organizations, and other stakeholders. In collaboration with AftosexualiTea Portal, she helped establish a multidisciplinary archival project exploring how multiplicities of identities shape how people engage with and think about “desire” and created a virtual space for people who embody multiple identities to engage with policymakers and stakeholders to make meaningful and inclusive laws and policies.

Innovation: Contributed to a study to map the experiences of LBQ women with disabilities in Nigeria revealing significant gaps in accessibility, ranging from social and legal discrimination to the exclusion of LGBTQI+ individuals with disabilities from key aspects of Nigerian society.

Gabriela Zavaleta Vera (she/her) - Más Igualdad Perú
Gabriela co-founded the LGBTQ+ advocacy organization Más Igualdad Peru, which engages in advocacy activities in national and international spaces aimed at advancing inclusive policies and legislation, research in LGBTIQ+ mental health and provision of free counseling services, and communication and education activities aimed at educating the public and sharing information about LGBTIQ+ rights in Peru. Previously, Gabriela played a key role in the national campaign for the Civil Unions bill in Peru between 2014 and 2015.

Innovation: Led their organization’s international advocacy strategy, submitting the first alternative report dedicated to LGBTQ+ rights in Peru to the UN Human Rights Committee, achieving a specific recommendation being issued to Peru during the UN Universal Periodic Review, urging the government to adopt laws to advance LGBTQ+ rights.

Kristian Ranđelović (he/him) - XY Spectrum
Kristian leads the organization XY Spectrum that works on advancing the life quality of gender and sex variant persons in Serbia, with the main focus on organized support and raising visibility. Kristian has been a human rights advocate for more than 20 years, and is one of few visible intersex activists in the Western Balkan region. He is currently a board member of the international advisory board in organization Astraea Lesbian Foundation for Justice, and previously, was a board member of Trans Gender Europe (TGEU) and co-chair of Organization Intersex International Europe (OII Europe).

Innovation: Organizes strategic partnerships with relevant international, national, and local stakeholders to share information and coordinate actions to advance the rights of intersex people.

Assala Mdawkhy
An LGBTQI+ activist and human rights defender, Assala has been involved in different social and political movements in Tunisia, in the MENA region, Pan-African level, and on a global level defending human rights and LGBTQI+ rights. She is currently working on facilitating access to justice for LGBTQI+ individuals in Tunisia while setting up strategic litigation to repeal Article 230 of the Penal Code, which punishes consensual same-sex relations. Assala is also advocating to ban the use of anal exams and working on empowering the LGBTQI+ persons and movement in Tunisia.

Innovation: Leading strategic litigation to ban the use of forced anal exams and challenge Article 230 of the Penal Code, which criminalizes same-sex activity, through a strategic defense model, media pressure and strong legal support.

Özgür Gür (he/him/they/them) - ÜniKuir Association (UniQueer Association)
A leading youth LGBTQ+ rights advocate, Özgür is the founding member and Executive Director of ÜniKuir, which focuses on youth LGBTI+ activism, and has created a network of LGBTI+ student clubs across all universities in Turkey. Özgür led advocacy initiatives at the European Union and the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights to further the inclusion of youth and LGBTQ+ communities in policies and the political process. ÜniKuir has been awarded the Student Peace Prize in Norway (2021) and Roosevelt Foundation’s Four Freedoms Award (2022).

Innovation: Özgür was one of the defendants in the Middle East Technical University (METU) Pride Trials, which was a trial targeting the organizers of a peaceful Pride march in 2019 on the campus of METU. He created and coordinated a plan with national and international stakeholders to reach more than a million people in Türkiye in raising awareness about the trials, ultimately achieving an acquittal along with all of the other organizers based on “the absence of elements of crime” which was a landmark decision.

Edward Reese (he/him) - KyivPride
A trans nonbinary activist from Ukraine, Edward works as the Communications Coordinator and Project Manager at KyivPride, which is the Pride organizer in the capital and the most visible LGBTIQ+ organization in Ukraine. Edward has played an important role in an extensive advocacy campaign for Civil Partnerships bill in Ukraine, working with partner organizations on an informational campaign organizing a photo exhibition "Relatives" in Kyiv, which tells stories of LGBTIQ soldiers and their loved ones. In 2022, after the Russian invasion started, Edward’s work expanded to humanitarian work to support LGBTIQ+ people in Kyiv.

Innovation: Created an extensive advocacy campaign with numerous media publications, videos and interviews, including international media, and a photo exhibition to support the Civil Partnerships bill in Ukraine.

Jau Ramírez (all pronouns) - Movimiento SOMOS
A journalist and LGBTQ+ rights advocate, Jau founded Movimiento SOMOS, which works to achieve visibility and protection of LGBTIQ+ rights in context of the current Venezuelan humanitarian emergency. They also founded the first and only LGBTIQ+ Center in Venezuela that provides legal and psychological care services, support groups, housing, food programs, a livelihood and entrepreneurship program, guidance and endocrinological care for trans people and HIV services.

Innovation: Developed the Voto Queer project to increase the political participation of LGBTIQ+ people, create a space for dialogue, and increase the number of LGBTQ+ people in electoral and institutional spaces, emphasizing the importance of LGBTQ+ inclusion to the recovery processes of democracy in Venezuela.

Mino Likwasi (they/them) - Women’s Alliance for Equality Limited (WAfE)
Mino is the co-founder and current Programs and Operations Manager of WAfE, an LBTQ led and focused organization working in Zambia around community mobilization and movement building, social services provision and linkage, economic strengthening and livelihood development, business development, advocacy, mental health and wellness initiatives. They are is a member of the board of trustees of The Other Foundation, a member of the Meta Queer Advisory Council, and former member of the board of directors of the African Queer Youth Initiative.

Innovation: Developed economic strengthening and livelihood development programs to strengthen the spending power of queer communities and utilizing economic resources to create social change and acceptance empowering small and medium sized businesses, engaging with businesses and corporates as change agents, and direct business and entrepreneurial skills building among LBTQ communities.

Sam Gcinekile Ndlovu (he/him) - TREAT (Trans Research Education Advocacy and Training)
A long time trans rights activist, Sam is the Executive Director of the organization Trans Research Education Advocacy and Training (TREAT). Sam also serves as the Chairperson of the Southern African Trans Forum which is a community of practice of trans and gender diverse serving institutions, which constitutes 19 partner organizations currently from 11 Southern African countries. Previously, he worked at the Sexual Rights Centre as a Programmes Officer and was a part of the founding leadership of VOVO, a LBTI feminist collective in Bulawayo.

Innovation: In partnership with other local institutions and the Ministry of Health, his organization is conducting a research study on gender affirming healthcare, which would result in the first national protocol on gender affirming healthcare.

Lilit Martiroysan (she/her) - Right Side Human Right Defender NGO
Lilit, a longtime activist for LGBTQ rights in Armenia, founded the first organization by transgender people and for transgender people across the South Caucasus region. Through her work, Right Side, NGO has helped secure legal name changes for transgender people and other advances for her community. Lilit was a 2020 Global Innovator, and has received numerous recognitions for her work.

Rasel Ahmed (Any pronouns)
Rasel is a filmmaker, cultural organizer, and Assistant Professor at The Ohio State University. His filmmaking and research revolve around themes of queer displacement, kinship, and memory. He is the co-founder and executive director of an archiving organization called Queer Archives of the Bengal Delta. This transnational archive collects, preserves, and reflects on Bangladeshi queer lived experiences that have been erased from public memory. He is also the co-founder and editor of the first Bangladeshi LGBTQ magazine, Roopbaan.

Pau Gonzalez
Pau is a trans-masculine activist from Panama City, Panama and the co- founder of Hombres Trans Panama and PFLAG Panama. He served as a board member of both organizations until 2022, and now serves as a consultant for the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in the 2023 Free & Equal National Campaign. Pau was selected as an HRC Global Innovator in 2020, and through a subsequent HRC Global Small Grant, was able to support the creation of the first trans leaders assembly which helped draft a gender identity law that has been shared with trans leaders and NGO’s for discussion and strategy. Pau has also worked with PFLAG Panama in an innovative project to bring LGBTQ+ diversity and faith leaders together. In his professional life, Pau works in a real estate and property management company and is a medical interpreter/translator.

Kenita Placide (they/them) - Eastern Caribbean Alliance for Diversity and Equality (ECADE)
Kenita is a non-binary native of the island/country of Saint Lucia, and a social justice and human rights advocate with specific focus on Health and HIV, women’s rights, LGBT rights, youth and climate change. They are the Founder and Executive Director of the Eastern Caribbean Alliance for Diversity and Equality(ECADE). They have advocated around HIV and human rights inclusive of women, youth and LGBTI issues for over 16 years. They are the founder and organizer of the only Caribbean Women and Sexual Diversity Conference (CWSDC) from 2013 to present. The CWSDC plays an important role in bringing women together, increasing their knowledge and helping to empower and inspire them to action as part of a wider movement of equality.