The Life Story Initiative
Survivors of the sex trade are clear: We need to close on-ramps into prostitution for those who don’t want to be there, and open exit ramps for those who wish to leave. Movement leaders came to Perennial to ask: how do we elevate these often unheard stories and ensure they lead to action?
Sector
Social Justice & Philanthropy
Services
Strategic Planning
Audience Analysis
People-Centered Insights
Stakeholder Engagement
Comms Strategy
Strategic Messaging
Comms Tools & Practices
Tools & Practices
Collaborators
Owen Jones
Studio DAD
Irene Taylor Brodsky
AWARDS
Anthem Awards, Bronze
Humanitarian Action & Services
Webby Nomination
Websites and Mobile Sites, Activism
Webby Nomination
Websites and Mobile Sites,
Best User Experience
Strategizing through the lens of race and gender justice
Perennial drove a multi-year strategic planning process with the ultimate goal of shaping a transformative new approach to new solutions in the sex trade. Originally developed as a storytelling website and accompanying grant portfolio with the NoVo Foundation, the Initiative is now a sponsored project of Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors.
The voices in the room matter
To ensure the website centers and lifts up the wisdom of those with lived experience, we worked closely with an advisory committee of survivors, an award-winning documentary filmmaker, an incredible website developer and nearly 50 organizations who contributed their time and expertise.
Amplifying stories, expanding resources
We launched the Anthem Award-winning and Webby-nominated website alongside a new $10 million portfolio of grants to bring services to affected women and girls — particularly those of color, immigrants and trans women. In the following years, we supported the Initiative’s evolution to include thought-partnership to funders and practitioners, while building connections across the field.
Results
Today, the Life Story website continues to connect the dots between the failure of social systems for marginalized communities and the realities of sexual exploitation — and the persistence of survivor wisdom. This view has slowly and steadily mobilized resources: people, solutions, funding, policy and community. The Initiative is convening that emerging ecosystem of survivors, practitioners, funders and allies.
