Molly Melching (1st Plenary)

Molly Melching is the founder and executive director of Tostan, a Wolof word meaning "breakthrough". Tostan's mission is to empower African communities to bring about sustainable development and positive social transformation based on respect for human rights. Since 1991, Tostan has brought its holistic, 30-month education program -The Community Empowerment Program - to thousands of communities in nine African countries. Molly Melching has gained international recognition thanks to the outreach work of grassrootss communities to abandon female genital cutting and child/forced marriage in Senegal, Burkina Faso, The Gambia and Guinea after having participated in the Tostan program.

Molly has been honored by many organizations for her expertise in non formal education, human rights training, and social transformation. In 1999, Molly Melching was awarded the University of Illinois Alumni Humanitarian Prize and in 2002, the Sargent Shriver Distinguished Award for Humanitarian Service. Molly and Tostan received the Anna Lindh Human Rights Award (Sweden) in 2005. In 2007, Tostan received the Conrad N. Hilton Humanitarian Prize and the UNESCO King Sejong Literacy Prize. Molly and Senegalese women were also voted the 2007 OneWorld Person of the Year. To date, many international films, radio programs, newspaper and magazine articles have been produced on Tostan, and the Community Empowerment Program.

Read more:
Innovative Approach to Ending Female Genital Cutting in Africa Praised in New Book by Kristof and WuDunn