During the 2025 16 Days of Activism to End Gender-Based Violence, the Zonta Club of Central Goldfields Inc, Australia, launched an awareness campaign centered on the message “R for Respect.” Local cafes, government offices and private organizations received takeaway coffee cups featuring messages designed to encourage conversations about respect and healthy relationships.

Through the campaign, the club sought to challenge harmful attitudes, encourage open dialogue and help build a more informed and supportive community. By placing advocacy messages on an everyday item, members were able to bring conversations about preventing gender-based violence into community spaces.

The project was made possible through the support of Community Bank Avoca, Maryborough and St Arnaud Bendigo Bank.

Following the campaign’s success, the club has shared information about the initiative with other Zonta clubs in District 23 interested in bringing the “R for Respect” message to their own communities.

The Zonta Club of Central Goldfields plans to continue the campaign during the 2026 16 Days of Activism, building on its efforts to promote respect and encourage community action to end gender-based violence.

In celebration of World Breastfeeding Week, the Zonta Club of Metro Greenhills, Philippines, conducted a breastfeeding webinar, bringing together 111 participants, including mothers, expectant parents, doctors, nurses, midwives and community advocates.

The webinar highlighted that breastfeeding is more than a health practice, but an investment in stronger families and safer communities.

The sessions addressed common concerns that often discourage mothers from breastfeeding, including Unang Yakap (a protocol for newborn care in the Philippines that uses four steps right after birth to save infant lives), overcoming low milk supply, and relactation. Participants also explored evidence-based approaches that dispelled long-held myths and cultural practices, replacing fear and uncertainty with confidence and practical solutions. Mothers were encouraged to trust their bodies, seek support when challenges arise and recognize that every breastfeeding journey is unique.

The webinar emphasized that responsive caregiving and early parent-child bonding help build trust and open communication within families. While breastfeeding alone does not prevent violence, nurturing relationships can become important protective factors that help children feel safe to speak up, reducing their vulnerability to abuse, including online sexual abuse and exploitation of children.

Beyond providing complete nutrition and immunity, breastfeeding also eases the financial burden on families by reducing dependence on costly formula milk.

Participants were challenged to become advocates by sharing the webinar’s messages with other families and healthcare professionals.

Love Smart, Live Safe

Share an Opportunity (SOA) Philippines conducted “Love Smart, Live Safe,” a webinar designed to equip young people with practical tools to develop healthy relationships, recognize and communicate boundaries, prevent violence and become advocates for positive change.

Through the Zonta Club of Metro Greenhill’s partnership with SOA, they are helping promote a culture in which respect, personal boundaries and safety become part of everyday relationships.

The importance of the discussion became clear when a participant shared the experience of a mother who attended the webinar and recognized unhealthy patterns in her own relationships. Her boundaries with siblings and friends had gradually disappeared, something she had previously considered normal. The session helped her view those relationships differently and feel more confident about establishing healthier boundaries.

Together, the webinars demonstrate how education and advocacy can give individuals practical tools to strengthen relationships, make informed choices and help prevent violence.

For the 16 Days of Activism, the Zonta Club of Ibadan II, Nigeria, planned a lineup of advocacy activities designed to engage the public, carried out media publicity efforts and distributed awareness jingles to raise awareness on violence against women.

The Zonta Club of Riverside, USA, recently held an impactful community outreach as part of The SOAP Project, an initiative dedicated to combating human trafficking. Volunteers gathered early in the morning to prepare hundreds of bars of soap, each discreetly labeled with the National Human Trafficking Hotline number and a short message offering help to potential victims.

The team visited local hotels, motels and community centers, engaging with staff to raise awareness about the signs of trafficking and how to respond if they suspect someone is in danger. These conversations were compassionate and practical, ensuring that employees understood the importance of vigilance and the discreet role these soaps can play in reaching victims who may have no other safe way to seek help.

By the end of the day, many of the hospitality businesses had received supplies, along with informational materials and training resources. The effort was not only about distributing soap but also about building a network of informed allies within the community.

The club’s work today reflected their ongoing commitment to protecting vulnerable individuals, empowering survivors, and fostering a safer environment for everyone in Riverside.

The Orange Lady took action at Veliko Tarnovo University in Bulgaria, spreading awareness and information on saying NO to violence against women to students, staff and passerby.

The Zonta Club of Pampanga, Philippines, participated in a radio advocacy program on 6 December 2025, as part of the 18 Days of Activism to End Violence Against Women campaign, using the platform to raise awareness about gender-based violence and encourage community action.

The program aired on 91.9 Bright FM and featured Club Gina Millan and Attorney Karen Guevarra as guest speakers.

During the discussion, Guevarra addressed questions about the realities faced by women and girls affected by violence, emphasizing the importance of education, awareness and community involvement in preventing violence against women. She also discussed legal protections and support systems available to victims and survivors.

Millan highlighted the significance of the annual 18 Days of Activism campaign, including its purpose, timeline and the activities organized by the club to promote women’s rights and gender equality. She shared information about the club’s advocacy initiatives and encouraged community participation in efforts to end violence against women.

The program also provided an opportunity to highlight the club’s recent projects and ongoing initiatives focused on empowering women through advocacy, service and partnerships within the community.

Hosted by Ma’am Vee and Ma’am Jo, the broadcast helped amplify key messages surrounding women’s rights, protection and empowerment while reaching a broader audience across the region.

Club leaders said the radio engagement supported the goals of the 18 Days of Activism campaign by strengthening public awareness and encouraging collective action to build communities where women and girls can live free from violence.

The Zonta Club of Toronto, Canada, invited Dr. Bazlul Khondker, an internationally recognized economics scholar, to speak about the economic impact of violence against women.

Dr. Khondker holds a Master of Science degree in quantitative development economics and a Ph.D. in economics from the University of Warwick. During the presentation, he shared insights from five reports he lead author for UN Women and the European Union examining how violence against women affects a country’s economy.

The discussion explored the reasoning behind the studies, the research methodology used and the findings from the reports. The research focused on five countries: Seychelles, Lesotho, Jamaica, Grenada and Guyana.

Dr. Khondker generously agreed to have the session recorded so it can be shared with other Zonta clubs. Watch the session here. Passcode: D!Uc&L0$

The Zonta Club of Chittagong, Bangladesh, continues to advocate for women’s and girls’ rights through legal support initiatives and public calls for justice in cases of violence against women and children.

The club recently extended support to Ms. Nurjahan, a survivor of child marriage and domestic violence. Ms. Nurjahan endured abuse and torture from her husband and in-laws related to dowry demands and was later abandoned by her husband, who remarried. She is now solely responsible for caring for her 10-year-old son while relying on the limited income of her father, a local taxi driver.

In response, the Zonta Club of Chittagong coordinated legal assistance by contacting Advocate Rahonoma Alam, who agreed to handle Ms. Nurjahan’s legal matters. As a result of these efforts, the court issued an arrest warrant for Ms. Nurjahan’s husband and also pledged to help provide her with financial assistance.

As part of its advocacy initiatives, the club also organized an awareness program on “Say No to Violence Against Women and Girls” at Jonab Ali Pilot School. The session featured presentations from Advocate Asaduzzaman and Inspector PBI Morzine Akhter, who discussed the importance of women’s rights, the legal impacts of violence and gender discrimination. Approximately 150 parents and local residents attended the program.

The club also organized a human chain demonstration following the tragic rape and murder of eight-year-old Ramisa Akter in Dhaka on 19 May 2026. Authorities recovered the child’s body after she was reportedly assaulted and killed in a rented flat in the Pallabi area. A neighbor, Sohel Rana, and his wife, Swapna Akter, were subsequently arrested in connection with the case.

Through the human chain, members of the Zonta Club of Chittagong sought to raise awareness and urge government and judicial authorities to pursue justice and strengthen protections for girls and women. The demonstration highlighted concerns about the safety of girls and called for stronger laws and action to prevent violence against children.

The Zonta Club of Roskilde, Denmark, organized an expanded series of events in 2025 as part of the Zonta Says NO to Violence Against Women campaign, working closely with local authorities and community partners to raise awareness about domestic and psychological violence.

The campaign began on 22 November in the Roskilde marketplace, where club members hosted an orange-themed information tent alongside representatives from the local women’s shelter. The display included 20 pairs of orange shoes symbolizing the 20 women killed by violence in Denmark in 2025.

As part of the campaign, the club received permission to dress Roskilde’s iconic statues in orange clothing, an initiative that drew significant public attention throughout the city. The ARGO Energy Tower was also illuminated in orange light, while approximately 25 local shops displayed large orange bows with QR codes linking to information about the Zonta Says NO campaign.

Additional activities included a free self-defense training session and an educational event at a local high school attended by 75 students ages 17-19. The two-hour session focused on psychological violence and featured videos produced by the Danish public service organization Lev Uden Vold (Live Without Violence), followed by a panel discussion with experts in law enforcement, violence prevention, digital violence and victim support, as well as the mother of a young woman killed by her former boyfriend.

The campaign concluded with a public screening of the Danish film “Violence in the Name of Love” by award-winning director Christina Rosendahl, who attended the event and led a discussion following the film.

Local newspapers and television stations covered the campaign extensively, highlighting the orange-clothed statues and interviewing club members about Zonta International and the Zonta Says NO to Violence Against Women campaign.

In collaboration with its long-standing partner Sindalan National High School, the Zonta Club of Pampanga, Philippines, conducted an advocacy symposium on 24 March focused on the Safe Spaces Act and the promotion of safe, inclusive environments for young people.

Held from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., the symposium reached 2,025 students and highlighted the importance of addressing gender-based sexual harassment in public spaces, educational institutions, workplaces and online platforms.

The session was led by legal expert Attorney Eunice Aura Santos, who provided a comprehensive discussion on the provisions and relevance of the Safe Spaces Act. Santos emphasized that creating safe spaces is a shared responsibility that requires awareness, courage and collective action.

By connecting legal concepts to real-life situations, the discussion helped students better understand their rights and the protections available to them under the law.

A question-and-answer segment followed, allowing students to raise concerns and engage in open dialogue surrounding safety, respect and accountability. Organizers said the discussion encouraged greater understanding and empowered students to become advocates for safer and more respectful communities.

The program concluded with the presentation of certificates of appreciation. School Principal Lyn Esguerra recognized the contributions of Santos, as well as Zonta Club of Pampanga President Gina Millan, Past President Gilda Padua and Vice President Leonor Bais for their leadership and support of the initiative.

Organizers described the symposium as more than an educational activity, calling it a transformative experience that increased awareness of the Safe Spaces Act while inspiring collective responsibility and action among students.