Name: Molly Melching and the Women of Senegal and West Africa Country: Senegal, West Africa Organization (optional): Tostan Issue(s) of Focus: Human Rights Empowerment and Community-Led Development This past August marked the ten-year anniversary of the first declaration of the abandonment of female genital cutting in Senegal. Thousands from neighboring villages, regions and countries gathered in the village of Malicounda Bambara to celebrate this historic declaration and announce a renewed effort to see the practice ended across West Africa. Among those in attendance was Molly Melching, the founder of Tostan, the organization whose program has been at the core of this growing movement. Ten years ago, neither Molly nor the women of Malicounda Bambara knew their decision to end the harmful practice would lead to a nation-wide grassroots movement to completely abandon FGC in Senegal and across West Africa. Today, nearly half of all villages that once practiced FGC in Senegal have made similar declarations and the movement continues to grow in both in Senegal and in several other West African countries. Many attribute Tostan’s success not only to Molly’s commitment to human rights, but to her unique and innovative way of approaching education and community development. Working exclusively in local languages and reinforcing traditional means of communiciation such as song, poetry, and theater, Tostan’s program engages participants through holistic and inclusive methods. The Tostan Community Empowerment Program equips participants with the knowledge and tools to discuss issues important to them and become changemakers in their communities. Amazingly, the abandonment of FGC is just one of many results to have come out of the program. Thousands of communities have abandoned child marriage, led campaigns for education and health, and brought about many other results. The Tostan organization has been widely recognized this past year and was awarded two international prizes in 2007, one for its pioneering work in literacy and one for its ability to relieve human suffering. However, both Molly Melching, a woman who defers any and all recognition to the populations she serves, and the women of Malicounda Bambara have yet to be singled out for their amazing achievements. Molly Melching has lived and worked in Senegal for over 33 years and has dedicated her life to education and development in Africa. Through her work, Molly has empowered Malicounda Bambara and thousands of other communities in West Africa to stand up for themselves and for their communities. Of course, Molly and the many women leading the movement for the FGC abandonment are the last people to ask for recognition—they are busy making sure their vision becomes a reality. However, we know of no one who deserves recognition more—both to document their amazing past achievements and to reinforce the work they take on in the future, as this movement spreads. For this reason, we nominate Molly Melching and the women of Malicounda Bambara as OneWorld’s “Person of 2007” and hope their historic and inspiring work will be recognized for being exactly that.