Julienne Lusenge is a Congolese human rights defender, co-founder and president of Women's Solidarity for Inclusive Peace and Development (SOFEPADI) and co-founder of the Fund for Congolese Women (FFC), who has been supporting the victims of wartime sexual violence in the Democratic Republic of the Congo for years. Her boundless courage and tireless activism have shone a light on the desperate plight of thousands of Congolese women subjected to horrific sexual abuse amidst the civil war in the country, exposing the perpetrators and bringing them to justice. In the last 40 years, 2021 Aurora Prize Laureate Julienne Lusenge brought to justice more than 800 perpetrators of violence and war crimes. SOFEPADI's clinic has provided holistic medical care to 7,500 survivors of sexual violence.

Photo: Julienne Lusenge trains women and girls to be the agents of change @ Jonathan Torgovnik/AJWS