About this podcast
Welcome to Changing Narratives, the official podcast of The U.S. End FGM/C Network. This podcast is a platform for bold conversations, survivor-led advocacy and the stories that inspire change. Together with activists, experts, and change-makers, we explore the multifaceted fight to end female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) and uplift the voices driving progress.
From policy wins to personal triumphs, Changing Narratives shines a light on the efforts shaping a world free from FGM/C. Join us as we challenge norms and build a movement rooted in dignity and action.
🎧 Subscribe now and be part of the change! Contribute to us today: https://endfgmnetwork.org/donation/.
Episodes
The newest 20 of 24 episodes
- Before It Happens: What It Takes to Stop FGM in Real Time · 44 min · Season 2 Episode 9What does it actually take to stop FGM before it happens? In this episode of Changing Narratives, host Patricia Mars sits down with Domtila Chesang, grassroots advocate…
- Uncovering the Hidden Reality: FGM/C in Canada · 30 min · Season 2In this episode of Changing Narratives, host Patricia Mars turns the spotlight on Canada — a country often missing from global discussions about female genital mutilation/cutting…
- Who Tells the Story? Power, Ethics and Narrative Control on the Movement to End FGM/C. · 31 min · Season 2 Episode 8Storytelling shapes movements — but when stories involve trauma, harm, and lived experience, the way they are told can either advance justice or cause further harm. In this…
- Beyond the Conference: What Women Deliver Revealed About the Movement to End FGM/C · 42 min · Season 2 Episode 7Recorded live at Women Deliver 2026, this episode of Changing Narratives brings together reflections from advocates, organizers and movement leaders working across different…
- The Purple Chair and the Power of Youth-Led Conversations · 13 min · Season 2How do we engage a generation that has grown up online in conversations about FGM/C? In this special collaboration with the End FGM European Network, Patricia Mars is joined by…
- What does it mean to address FGM/C in regions that are often left out of the global conversation? · 18 min · Season 2 Episode 6In this episode of Changing Narratives, host Patricia Mars is joined by Leandra Becerra, Legal Advisor and Advocacy Programmes for Latin America and the Caribbean with Equality…
- One Year Later: How the DMV Coalition Made History · 13 min · Season 2 Episode 5In this episode of Changing Narratives, we shine a spotlight on the DMV Coalition and a historic milestone: the passage of Washington, D.C.'s law to end FGM/C a year ago. Joining…
- CSW70: What Does Global Advocacy Look Like In Practice? · 12 min · Season 2In this special episode of Changing Narratives, host Patricia Mars brings listeners inside the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW), capturing reflections from advocates…
- Why Data Matters: Filling the Gaps in U.S. Research on FGM/C · 33 min · Season 2In this episode of Changing Narratives, host Patricia Mars sits down with Sean Callaghan, a researcher whose work is shedding new light on female genital mutilation/cutting…
- The Report Everyone's Talking About: Naimah Hassan Breaks It Open · 11 min · Season 2 Episode 3In this episode of Changing Narratives, host Patricia Mars sits down with Naimah Hassan to unpack a new report produced through a collaboration between AWRA and Vavengers. Naimah…
- What's Really at Stake: FGM/C, Gender-Affirming Care & Misleading Narratives · 25 min · Season 2 Episode 2In this episode of Changing Narratives, host Patricia Mars sits down with two leading voices working at the intersection of medicine, policy, and human rights. Dr. Marci…
- Building HOPE in Massachusetts: Prevention, Care and Collective Action · 40 min · Season 2 Episode 1In the season 2 premiere of Changing Narratives, host Patricia Mars sits down with Dr. Crista Johnson-Agbakwu and Olivia Harris from the Hope MA Project (Holistic Organized…
- Behind the Mic: Our Year of Advocating, Learning and Leading · 53 min · Season 1 Episode 12As we close out an incredible first year of Changing Narratives, we're taking a moment to pause, reflect, and celebrate. In this special year-end episode, host Patricia Mars is…
- 1 Every 12 Minutes: The Hidden Death Toll of FGM/C · 27 min · Season 1 Episode 11What does it mean to say that 1 girl dies every 12 minutes from female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C)? In this gripping episode of Changing Narratives, host Patricia Mars…
- Unstoppable Individuals: How Indonesia's Change-Makers Are Ending FGM · 27 min · Season 1 Episode 10FGM/C is too often seen as only an African issue — but across Asia, millions of girls are at risk every year. In this bold conversation, host Patricia Mars is joined by Ika…
- From Iowa to the Frontlines: Nisaa African Family Services Revolution Against FGC · 45 min · Season 1 Episode 9"Change doesn't happen to communities—it happens with them." In this inspiring episode of Changing Narratives, host Patricia Mars is joined by Hibo Jama and Barwaqo Aden of Nisaa…
- Stepping Forward: Reflections from Global Woman P.E.A.C.E. Foundation's Walk to End FGM in Washington, D.C. · 15 min · Season 1In this special episode of Changing Narratives, we revisit the energy, urgency and solidarity at the Annual Walk to End FGM, hosted by the Global Woman P.E.A.C.E. Foundation in…
- Radical Hope: Youth-Led Activism to End FGM/C with Dr. Costly Abosede Aderibigbe · 50 min · Season 1What does it look like when a survivor leads a global youth movement to end female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C)? In this bold and moving episode of Changing Narratives, we…
- Innovating Health Solutions and Ending FGM/C with LastMile4D in Kenya · 40 min · Season 1 Episode 6In this episode of Changing Narratives, host Patricia Mars is joined by Mahnaz M. Harrison, founder of LastMile4D, to discuss the groundbreaking work being done to end FGM/C in…
- Faith & Action: How Athia Carrim is Driving Change Against FGM/C in California · 40 min · Season 1 Episode 5In this episode of Changing Narratives, host Patricia Mars sits down with Athia Carrim, a leader in interfaith dialogue and a key figure in The FGM Taskforce of Greater Los…
