Gillian Caldwell

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1996

Gillian Caldwell

Global Survival Network (GSN)

Washington D.C., United States

Civil and Human Rights

The Bold Idea:

In response to the growing traffic of women for forced prostitution out of Russia and the Newly Independent States, the Global Survival Network (GSN) works to expose the mechanisms behind trafficking. Along with producing a detailed report and a documentary focusing on the issues surrounding trafficking, GSN’s trafficking project will:

• Continue to educate a broad audience about the problem of trafficking, with a focus on targeting women and children in sending countries, as well as relevant government and non-government organizations and media representatives
• Press for effective legislation and enforcement mechanisms to eradicate exploitation and ensure human rights
• Conduct a global survey of trafficking to further uncover and understand the linkages between sending and receiving countries worldwide.

Biography:

Gillian is a film maker and an attorney with thirty years of experience advocating for social justice in the United States and around the world. She is currently the Campaign Direct for 1Sky, an organization aimed at building a diverse, society-wide mobilization that will convince the federal government to take action on climate change by 2010. Gillian was formerly the Executive Director of WITNESS, which uses the power of video to open the eyes of the world to human rights abuses. Prior to her work at WITNESS, Gillian worked as Co-Director of the Global Survival Network.

Gillian has won numerous awards, including the Rockefeller Foundation Next Generation Leadership Award (2000), the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship Award (2001-present), the Tech Laureate of the Tech Museum (2003), Ashoka: Innovators for the Public (2003), Journalist of the Month by Women’s Enews (2004), and the Skoll Social Entrepreneurship Award (2005-2007).

Video for Change: A Guide for Advocacy and Activism, co-authored by Gillian Caldwell "It's a rare image that can really grab hold of our insides and say, 'I've got you an you'll never be the same again.'" - Tim Robbins, Actor, Director, and WITNESS Advisory Committee member