Every so often I get contacted by various NGOs to share important advocacy and awareness campaigns. If you follow my blog, you know how seriously I take my social good advocacy especially when it comes to poverty, violence against women and girls, global health and education. When you have witnessed some of these horrendous tragedies firsthand, you will forever be changed and feel compelled to tell the countless stories you’ve heard along the way.

Living in the slums of India can be a dangerous place for a young girl.

Recently I was contacted by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) advising me of an awareness campaign that is near and dear to my heart: Gender violence. From November 25 to December 10, USAID is promoting an awareness campaign called 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence (#16Days) in attempt to shed light on this important issue.

When I was in India this past May on a social good blogging trip, I visited a beautiful school for abused girls in the heart of a Delhi slum. Almost every child at the school had been either physically or sexually abused yet their perseverance to move beyond their pain made my heart melt and fulfilled me with hope and commitment that I would never forget them nor their cause. No one should have to suffer because of their gender. Yet sadly many do.