Human Trafficking
20th Century Historical Roots & The Importance of Credible Research
In this episode, we had the opportunity to sit down in-person with a special guest who has spent the majority of her career following a passion for empowering vulnerable and minority communities across the nation. This month, we took a closer look at topics like mental health, public health, economic empowerment, social capital, all connected to human trafficking prevention and intervention methods when working with victims and survivors. Through her personal experiences, along with having worked with youth, immigrants, and survivors as a legal advocate, and now focusing on program management and strategic partnerships, our guest has continued creating safe spaces and impacting many lives throughout her career.
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Referenced Services & Materials
Follow Carolyne's recent work on LinkedIn
Applying the Five Tiers of Economic Empowerment (FWV & Freedom Network Training Institute)
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Resources
National Human Trafficking Hotline: 1-888-373-7888 or text "HELP" to 233733
"Let's be real about something .. survivors of labor and sex trafficking are brilliant, innovative, they are resilient. They have dreams and desires .. [having learned] so much from their environments, often out of survival (...) Advocates, service providers, employers, everyone has this misconception that survivors are skill less, that we have to start from ground zero. That's unfortunate because I think the experience of economic empowerment should be what I like to call 'bringing out the lightbulb that already exists' (...) because if we are starting from that misconception and perspective, then we are limiting the options that we are providing to survivors."
- Carolyne Ouya
Carolyne Ouya
COuya@futureswithoutviolence.org
Carolyne Ouya is a Program Manager at Futures Without Violence, where she leads the Promoting Employment Opportunities for Survivors of Trafficking (PEOST) project. This project focuses on improving access to safe and quality education and employment opportunities for survivors of gender-based violence and human trafficking.
She has over 8 years of experience working within Department of Labor Workforce Innovation Opportunity Act (WIOA) programs, legal advocacy for immigrant survivors under the Department of Justice Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), and innovative strategies related to entrepreneurship and professional development for underrepresented communities. Carolyne leverages local and national stakeholders to promote economic security, upward mobility, and wellbeing for all.