Eight female activists you should follow on social media
These young women will keep you up to speed on climate justice, challenging menstrual stigma, gender disparity in sports and more.
As digital manager at Malala Fund, I browse the internet a lot (a lot) and I’m in awe of the young women filling social media with honest, expressive, energising content.
Around the world, girls are taking to digital platforms to speak out on the issues that matter to them. They’re voicing their opinions, rallying their peers and demanding action from leaders. And on the same social channels where girls are building movements, they’re also sharing about their friendships, their favourite memes and what life is like for girls in their communities.
Here are eight activists you should be following for girl-powered content from around the world.
Aranya Johar, @aranyajohar
21-year-old Aranya Johar uses slam poetry to discuss issues like gender equality, girls’ education, mental health and body positivity in India. Her videos like “A Brown Girl’s Guide To Gender” and “A Brown Girl’s Guide To Beauty” resonate with viewers around the world. Aranya now boasts 96.5k followers on Instagram and recently became the youngest member of the Gender Equality Advisory Council for the G7.
“It’s time for decision-makers to invest in our futures because we are the future of India,” Aranya said on why she’s using poetry as a tool for change.
Like her poetry, Aranya’s posts challenge gender assumptions in India and promote self-care. She encourages her followers to push boundaries while also reassuring them that it’s OK not to be OK and to take time for yourself. Follow Aranya for inspiring content laced with humour and pop culture references.
What you can expect from her accounts: retweets of other young women’s encouraging messages, self-reflection, thoughts on current events and candid proclamations of “doing it for the gram.”
Maryam and Nivaal Rehman, @theworldwithmnr
This set of Canadian twins began speaking out for girls’ education at 8 years old. After visiting a school in Pakistan, where they were born, Maryam and Nivaal learned that many Pakistani girls can’t complete their education because of poverty and discrimination. These stories inspired the duo to begin advocating for girls’ education.
Today, the 17-year-olds have an impressive resume of accomplishments: they run a successful YouTube channel and have interviewed the likes of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Bollywood actress Preity Zinta and acclaimed economist Christine Lagarde. Most recently, the twins released their documentary film, “Destined to Soar,” on the status of girls’ education in Pakistan.
While Maryam and Nivaal’s social media is mostly dedicated to advocating for the causes they’re passionate about, the girls also share about their travels, post movie reviews and fill your feed with amazing portraits and selfies.
What you can expect from their accounts: super cute photos of them in even cuter matching outfits, updates on their life and work and fun travel vlogs.
(Courtesy of Hajra Khan / Facebook)
Hajra Khan, @hajrakn
A fierce advocate for women in sports and the captain of the Pakistani National Women’s football team, Hajra is the role model every young female athlete needs. Pakistan doesn’t have the funding or platform to develop female footballers and Hajra often faces discrimination for being a woman. But these hurdles haven’t stopped her from playing the sport she loves and from doing “anything in [her] capacity to be the voice of women and girls.”
Hajra’s fearlessness on the football pitch is mirrored in her social media. While she uses the platform to encourage girls to play sports, she doesn’t shy away from exposing the challenges of being a female athlete in Pakistan.
What you can expect from her accounts: updates, in real time, on the day-to-day difficulties she faces as an athlete in Pakistan, open conversations about mental health and lots of Pakistani pride.
(Courtesy of PERIOD)
Nadya Okamoto, @nadyaokamoto
At 16 years old, Nadya founded the nonprofit PERIOD to tackle stigma around menstruation and to help those in need access menstrual products. Today, it is the largest youth-led women’s health NGO and boasts 150 registered chapters across 16 countries. Nadya’s work has led to a TEDx talk, a nomination to Teen Vogue’s 2017 21 under 21 list and profiles on the BBC, MTV and Broadly.
Nadya amplifies her organisation's work and encourages her followers to talk about periods. “We change the stigma by literally breaking the silence,” she said in an interview with Malala Fund. Follow Nadya for content that’s punchy, colourful and full of glam.
What you can expect from her accounts: stunning portraits and awesome fashion, hard-hitting questions about menstrual equity and fun behind-the-scenes content from her shoots and speaking events (think makeup and hair, bloopers and outfit previews).
Nibras Basitkey, @nibraskhudaida
Nibras is a 21-year-old student and Yazidi refugee. When ISIS invaded her village in northern Iraq, Nibras and her family fled and she had to drop out of school. After relocating to the U.S., Nibras was able to continue her education and became the first in her family to graduate high school. Nibras now studies economics and international relations at university and plans to become a human rights lawyer.
Nibras advocates for refugee rights and girls’ education. And she also gives followers a glimpse of the new life she’s built for herself at university in Nebraska. Follow Nibras for fun, optimistic content and to see what life is like for a student activist.
What you can expect from her accounts: questions that world leaders should think about and answer, precious photos of her friends in college who’ve “become family” and representation of Yazidi culture and their plight as refugees.
(Courtesy of Global Shakers)
Helena Gualinga, @helenagualinga
17-year-old climate change and Indigenous rights activist Helena Gualinga lives in a small community in the Ecuadorian Amazon. In September 2019, she joined Greta Thunberg and other young activists in New York to advocate for environmental justice. Helena worries about the future of her community, which is under threat from wildfires caused by climate change. Helena also speaks out against oil companies coming to Indigenous territories and putting the Pachamama (mother earth) at risk.
Helena’s Instagram is colourful and full of stories about her community and the physical and sentimental connection they have to their land. She uses storytelling to show the magnitude of what they’re losing when leaders and corporations make decisions that harm the environment.
What you can expect from her accounts: climate justice narrative that’s inclusive of Indigenous voices, memories she and her family have with nature — and stunning photos to go along with them and a glimpse into what her community, friendships and traditions look like.
Betelhem Dessie, @betelhem_dessie
Betelhem (Bettie) Dessie is a software developer and tech entrepreneur from Ethiopia. Her prodigious talent for technology caught the media’s attention soon after she began coding at 10 years old — and then Prime Minister of Ethiopia Meles Zenawi invited her to build software for the government. Since then, Betelhem has developed and copyrighted four software programmes.
“The biggest thing we have in Africa is a young generation. So if we train the young generation in tech, we’ll be able to build something that is everlasting,” Bettie shared with Assembly earlier this year.
Bettie uses her social media to share about her work, amplify African voices in tech and inform her followers about the positive impact of coding. Follow Bettie to stay on top of the latest from African — and especially Ethiopian — tech innovators.
What you can expect from her accounts: powerful moments like this, Bettie repping Ethiopia’s booming tech sector to industry giants, like Twitter co-founder and CEO @Jack Dorsey, and recommendations on actions you can take to support women in tech.
Other young women you should check out on social media:
Kiara Nirghin (@kiara_nirghin), STEM activist, South Africa
Aurelia Durand (@4ur3lia), artist, France
Melanie Dantes (@MelanieDantesC), education advocate, Mexico
Amanda Gorman (@AmandaSCGorman), poet, U.S.
Peace Ayo (@PeaceAyo2), education activist, Nigeria
Tiyi Ayeva (@tiyiayeva), entrepreneur, Japan
Darkowaa (@AwoDeee), book blogger, Ghana
Amika George (@AmikaGeorge), period poverty activist, U.K.
Tracie Leost (@tracieleost), Indigenous advocate, Canada
Sofia Ongele (@sofiaomegle), app developer, U.S.
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