Education, skills, gender, and equality

Pyone Thet Thet Kyaw is a fashion designer and social entrepreneur who is the founder and lead designer at Virya Myanmar, an ethical fashion brand based in Yangon. Pyone’s unique designs make use of traditional fabrics and patterns to create modern clothing, bags, and shoes. Having herself worked in garment factories from a young age, witnessing the exploitative labour conditions faced by young, female, employees, Pyone was inspired to develop an alternative, ethical model of fashion production in Myanmar. Virya Myanmar is a social enterprise which provides work benefits, training opportunities, and safe working conditions for its female employees, who mainly come from underprivileged backgrounds. Pyone’s background is in international development and, prior to entering the social enterprise sector, she spent five years working as a governance advisor for the UK’s Department of International Development (DFID). She still offers her expertise in this sector as an independent governance consultant.

Fatuma is a lawyer and peace ambassador who has dedicated her life to breaking cycles of violence and championing women’s rights. After training as a lawyer and being admitted to the bar, she founded the Horn of Africa Development Initiative (HODI), a non-governmental organisation which uses football to bring divided communities together and promote the rights of women and girls in rural Kenya. Her ‘Shoot to Score, not to Kill’ campaign brings together young people from warring ethnic groups and encourages them to engage on the football pitch as teammates. This model is now being replicated in more than 60 countries around the world. In 2008, Fatuma launched a ‘break the silence’ campaign, encouraging women and girls to speak out on issues such as female genital mutilation and child marriage. Fatuma is a UN Champion on Gender Equality and was the recipient of the Stuttgart Peace Prize, in recognition of her work ‘combining soccer and emancipation’.

Amna is the first female judge in Gilgit-Baltistan (G-B), Pakistan. Since her appointment in 2017, she has ruled on hundreds of pending cases, and has been lauded for her commitment to fair judicial processes for women and other marginalised members of society. As one of few female judges in Pakistan, she aims to make the justice system more approachable for women who might feel intimidated by a male-dominated judiciary. Before studying in the UK, Zamir completed her Bachelor of Laws at the International Islamic University, Islamabad. She received the top score in the Federal Public Service Commission (FPSC) examinations, before being appointed as a civil judge. Zamir has been associated with various civil society organisations which offer free legal aid, and has worked with the Aga Khan Conciliation and Arbitration Board on a voluntary basis for over ten years. In 2017, she was recognised by the Study UK Alumni Awards for her considerable professional achievements.

Amanda is the cofounder of Serenas, an NGO providing capacity-building for gender-based violence response services and implementing anti-sexist educational policies within educational departments across Brazil. Aiming to change the root causes of violence against women and girls, Serenas has already impacted over 60,000 public leaders and students in 2,5 years. This year, in partnership with the British Embassy and the Minister of Women, Serenas is responsible for training the national hotline, which supports 720,000 domestic violence survivors annually. Her work is inspired by the legacy of the survivors of rights violations in her family, including her great grandmother, Serena. She was a global finalist in StudyUK’s Social Action Awards 2024.