BBC 100 Women 2022:From the courageous Iranian protestors calling for a change in 2022 to the women who have become the faces of violence and resistance in Ukraine and Russia, this list captures the diversity of women at the center of armed conflict throughout the globe. This year is the first time we've invited the previous year's BBC 100 Women 2022 list
Introducing the Inspiring BBC 100 Women 2022
The BBC has just released its BBC 100 Women 2022 Who Have the Most Influence list.
The list of the world's top 100 most influential women was just released by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC). The list includes women from various fields, including politics, science, athletics, entertainment, and literature.
The following are some of the prominent women whose names appear in the BBC 100 Women 2022 most critical living women:
1. Lina Abu, Akleh
Palestinian-Armenian human rights campaigner Lina Abu Akleh is the niece of Palestinian-American Al Jazeera reporter Shireen Abu Akleh, who was assassinated in May while documenting an Israeli operation in the occupied West Bank. The Israeli military believes a soldier "accidentally" murdered her.
2.Dima Aktaa, Syria
Syria attacked Dima Aktaa's house in 2012. She lost her leg and her favorite hobby, running. UN statistics show 28% of Syrians are disabled, roughly twice the worldwide rate. Ten years later, Aktaa trains in the UK for the 2024 Paralympics.
She joined England's Lionhearts alternative football team after fundraising for refugees during the epidemic.
3.Maeen Al-Obaidi, Yemen
Picture Credit: BBC
Lawyer Maeen Al-Obaidi has worked on peacebuilding in Taiz despite the Yemeni civil war's escalation this year. She mediates prisoner swaps between warring parties. She returns warriors' corpses even if she can't save them.
4. Zar Amir-Ebrahimi, Iran
Zar Amir-Ebrahimi, an actress and director, won Best Actress at Cannes for her role in Holy Spider, a film about a serial murderer who attacked sex workers.
5. Fatima Amiri, Afghanistan
Fatima Amiri, an Afghan adolescent, survived a Kabul tuition center suicide bombing that murdered more than 50 people, primarily female pupils. Her jaw, ear, and eye were severely damaged.
6. Velmariri Bambari, Indonesia
Velmariri Bambari advocates for sexual abuse victims in Central Sulawesi from a distant location. She convinced the local council not to penalize sexual assault survivors.
7. Aye Nyein Thu, Myanmar
Aye Nyein Thu volunteers in distant and impoverished Chin State. She started treating patients in November 2021 after building a makeshift hospital with a tiny operating theater.
8.Sirisha Bandla, India
Sirisha Bandla, the second Indian woman in space, flew on Virgin Galactic's first fully crewed sub-orbital journey, Unity 22, in 2021.
9.Victoria Baptiste, US
Maryland nurse Victoria Baptiste promotes immunizations. She understands blacks' medical skepticism: Baptiste is a descendent of Henrietta Lacks, a black woman who died of cervical cancer in 1951 and whose unconsented-to cells were the first to be produced in a lab.
10. Bayani, Iran Nilouf
Niloufar Bayani was one of many Iranian environmentalists arrested in 2018 for deploying cameras to monitor endangered wildlife. Bayani received a 10-year sentence for acquiring classified information regarding strategically essential areas.
11. Nathalie Becquart, Vatican
Pope Francis appointed her the first female Synod of Bishop's undersecretary. She is one of many Catholic Church authorities advising the pope and the only woman with voting privileges. In 2021, the secretary-general claimed her appointment created "a door" for women.
12.Taisia Bekbulatova, Russia
In 2019, Russian journalist Taisia Bekbulatova established Holod. The organization has covered Ukraine's conflict, injustice, brutality, and women's rights. During a crackdown on independent media, Russia shut down the website in April.
13.Kristina Berdynskykh, Ukraine
Kristina Berdynskykh, an award-winning journalist, has reported from Russian-shelled districts of Ukraine. Her work has focused on conflict-torn city life.
14.Selma Blair, US
Selma Blair, an American actress, starred in Cruel Intentions, Legally Blonde, and Hellboy.
She was diagnosed with MS in 2018 and has since been lauded for being open and honest about her experience with the disease and the difficulties she has faced as a result.
15. Tarana Burke, US
Five years ago, millions of people used #MeToo to discuss sexual harassment. Survivor and activist Tarana Burke began the campaign in 2006. She created the term to draw attention to women's maltreatment.
17.Sandy Cabrera Arteaga, Honduras
Philosophy student, writer, and feminist activist Sandy Cabrera Arteaga advocate for sexual and reproductive rights. She speaks on emergency contraception and gives morning-after pill classes.
18. Ona Carbonell, Spain
Ona Carbonell, a Spanish artistic swimmer, wants to normalize being a mother and an outstanding athlete. She's competed in the Olympics three times and won over 30 medals, including a pair of silver and a pair of bronze.
18. María Fernanda Castro Maya, Mexico
Fernanda Castro advocates for other intellectually disabled women to engage in politics. She is part of a Human Rights Watch-supported group of disability rights campaigners urging all Mexican political parties to integrate intellectual and learning impairments in their policy.
19. Sarah Chan, South Sudan
Sarah Chan mentors African teens in basketball. The Toronto Raptors' first female African scouting manager is her.
20. Priyanka Chopra Jonas, India
Priyanka Chopra Jonas is a Bollywood superstar with over 60 films. The former Miss World became the first South Asian actress to headline an American network drama after her 2002 film debut (Quantico, 2015).
21.Sanjida Islam Choya, Bangladesh
Sanjida Islam Choya is working to reduce child marriage in Bangladesh, which has one of the highest rates. A school presentation moved Choya on child marriage to act. Her mother was married young.
22. Chanel Contos, Australia
Chanel Contos, founder of "Teach Us Consent," asked her Instagram followers in 2021 whether they had been sexually harassed in school. Two hundred individuals said "yes" in 24 hours.
23. Eva Copa, Bolivia
Eva Copa, an Aymara former student leader, is changing Bolivian politics. She defeated her party's nominee for mayor of El Alto, the country's second-largest city, with 69% of the vote. She presented the city's strategy to improve women's rights via policy and investment.
24.Heidi Crowter, UK
Heidi Crowter has promoted Down's syndrome awareness. She sued the UK government over discriminatory rules enabling fetuses with the disease to be terminated until birth. The High Court rejected her case and found the legislation balances the rights of mothers and unborn children.
25. Billie Eilish, US
From her song Your Power, which calls out abusers of teenage girls, to All The Good Girls Go To Hell, on climate change, Billie Eilish is renowned for pushing boundaries.
26. Sandya Eknaligoda, Sri Lanka
Sandhya Eknaligoda, a human rights activist and crusader, helps thousands of mothers and spouses who lost loved ones in Sri Lanka's civil conflict. Her spouse, the acclaimed investigative journalist and cartoonist Prageeth Eknaligoda disappeared in January 2010. He strongly criticized the government and probed Tamil Tiger separatist atrocities.
27.Gohar Eshghi, Iran
Iran's Gohar Eshghi symbolizes perseverance. Since her son, blogger Sattar Beheshti, died in detention a decade ago, Eshghi has been campaigning for justice, accusing Iranian authorities of torture and murder.
28. Joy Ngozi Ezeilo, Nigeria
Joy Ezeilo is a famous international human rights expert and retired dean of law at the University of Nigeria.
29. Ibijoke Faborode, Nigeria
Ibijoke Faborode's ElectHER disrupts Nigeria's women's political movement. Her organization has involved over 2,000 African women in politics to reduce political inequality. Her organization supports 35 women in the 2023 general election with the #Agender35 campaign.
30.Samrawit Fikru, Ethiopia
Samrawit Fikru, a founder of Hybrid Designs, one of the firms behind Ethiopia's cab app RIDE, didn't use a computer until 17.
31.Ceci Flores, Mexico
In 2015, shooters kidnapped Ceci Flores' 21-year-old son Alejandro. Four years later, criminals abducted Marco Antonio, 31, another son. Flores fears dying without knowing what happened to her children, victims of Mexican forced disappearances.
32.Geraldina Guerra Garcés, Ecuador
Geraldina Guerra Garcés has protected Ecuadorian women from assault for 17 years. She collects data to raise awareness of femicides. Abera Wegahta, Tigray,
33. Wegahta Gebreyohannes Abera, Ethiopia
Wegahta Gebreyohannes Abera founded Hdrina to eliminate war-related hunger in Tigray. Hdrina helps war-torn mothers and children via emergency meals in an IDP camp and urban gardening.
34. Moud Goba, UK
Moud Goba, a refugee, has worked with grassroots refugee integration organizations for over two decades. She manages Micro Rainbow, an LGBTQ+ refugee shelter. She oversees their housing and employment programs, which give 25,000 bed nights to the homeless.
35. Dilek Gürsoy, Germany
Dr. Dilek Gürsoy, a top cardiac surgeon and artificial heart expert, was born in Germany to Turkish immigrants. She was the first European female surgeon to install an artificial heart, earning her a Forbes cover in Germany.
36.Mahsa Amini, Iran
This year, Iran saw widespread demonstrations after the murder of 22-year-old Kurdish woman Mahsa Amini, who was detained by morality police in Tehran on September 13 for allegedly breaching Iran's stringent hijab, or headscarf, laws.
37.Gehad Hamdy, Egypt
Dentist Gehad Hamdy founded and managed to Speak Up, an Egyptian feminist organization that utilizes social media to expose gender-based violence and sexual harassment. Egypt's 2022 violent crimes against women have highlighted the problem.
38.Sofía Heinonen, Argentina
Biologist Sofía Heinonen rewilded Argentina's most significant wetland environment, the Esteros del Iberá, to reverse the extinction catastrophe in South America. She helped establish protected areas for over 30 years.
39.Judith Heumann, US
Judith Heumann has devoted her life to disability rights. She was the first wheelchair-using NYC teacher after having polio as a youngster. BBC 100 Women 2022
40.Erika Hilton, Brazil
Brazilian National Congress' first black trans woman. Erika Hilton fights racism, LGBTQ+, and human rights. BBC 100 Women 2022
41.Kimiko Hirata, Japan
Kimiko Hirata, a coal power opponent, has spent almost half her life trying to wean Japan off fossil fuels, the most significant contributor to climate change. Her grassroots movement canceled 17 coal power facilities. First Japanese woman to receive Goldman Environmental Prize. BBC 100 Women 2022
42.Jebina Yasmin Islam, UK
Jebena Yasmin Islam, the sister of primary school teacher Sabina Nessa, who was killed in a London park in September 2021, advocates for UK women's public safety. She lobbied for a sentence in court. BBC 100 Women 2022
43.Ons Jabeur, Tunisia
Tunisian tennis player Ons Jabeur became the first Arab or African woman to reach a Grand Slam final in the Open era at the 2022 Wimbledon Championships. She reached the US Open final months later. BBC 100 Women 2022
44.Sneha Jawale, India
In December 2000, Sneha Jawale's husband burned her with kerosene because her parents couldn't pay extra money. The family did not report it. She became a tarot card reader and playwright when her husband left with their kid. BBC 100 Women 2022
45.Park Ji-Hyun, South Korea
Park Ji-Hyun anonymously helped break South Korea's giant internet sex crime ring, the Nth rooms, while in university. She campaigned for young female voters this year.
46.Zahra Joya, Afghanistan
Zahra Joya attended school as "Mohammad" for six years under the Taliban. Zahra returned to school after US-led troops overthrew the Taliban in 2001. In 2011, she became a journalist. BBC 100 Women 2022
47. Reema Juffali, Saudi Arabia
Reema Juffali became Saudi Arabia's first female racing driver in 2018. She formed Theeba Motorsport this year to participate in the International GT Open and increase Saudi Arabian motor racing participation. The professional driver's squad provides several instructional programs. BBC 100 Women 2022
48.Kadri Keung, Hong Kong
Kadri Keung loves designing beautiful clothes for the elderly and disabled. After caring for her grandma, Kadri, and her mother, Ophelia Keung, founded the adaptive fashion business RHYS in 2018. BBC 100 Women 2022
49.Judy Kihumba, Kenya
When she discovered that certain Kenyan hospitals lacked sign language interpreters, Judy Kihumba intervened to make healthcare information accessible to all women.
50.Marie Christina Kolo, Madagascar
Marie Christina Kolo, an ecofeminist and green social entrepreneur, represented Madagascar at COP27. As her nation faces successive droughts threatening food availability for millions, she campaigns on climate change's human rights and gender issues. The UN labeled it the first climate change-induced famine.
51.Iryna Kondratova, Ukraine
Dr. Iryna Kondratova and her colleagues at the Kharkiv Regional Perinatal Centre cared for pregnant women, babies, and mothers despite intense bombardment. They built up a labor ward in the hospital basement and risked their lives to remain with critical care newborns who couldn't be transferred during air raid sirens.
53. Asonele Kotu, South Africa
After being unable to locate someone to remove her contraceptive implant, Asonele Kotu started her company. She subsequently established FemConnect, a software startup that combats period poverty and adolescent pregnancy.
53.Layli, Iran
A behind-the-scenes photograph of a young lady tying her hair in a ponytail and preparing to protest in Iran was memorable. Her picture was mistaken for Hadis Najafi, a 22-year-old woman murdered in the protests.
54.Mie Kyung (Miky) Lee, South Korea
Miky Lee is spearheading a Korean culture wave as an artist's advocate. She created KCON and helped K-pop go worldwide. She produced Parasite, the first foreign-language Oscar winner.
55.Ursula von der Leyen, Germany
German politician Ursula von der Leyen was the first female European Commission president. German defense minister Angela Merkel appointed her.
56.Erika Liriano, Dominican Republic
Erika Liriano's Dominican Republic-based profit-sharing export startup reimagines the cocoa supply chain. Liriano and her sister Janett launched INARU to make cocoa production and distribution more equitable and sustainable. Their startup was seed-funded this year.
57.Naomi Long, Northern Ireland
This year, former Justice Minister Naomi Long passed laws against downblouse, cyber-flashing, and the "hard sex" defense in Northern Ireland. Long has raised awareness of female politician harassment after receiving death threats.
58.Naja Lyberth, Greenland
Trauma therapist Naja Lyberth was 13 when Danish physicians forced Inuit Greenlanders to wear intrauterine devices (IUDs), or coils, as part of a birth control effort in the 1960s and 70s. Denmark and Greenland decided to investigate these practices, which may have harmed 4,500 women and girls, this year.
59.Ayesha Malik, Pakistan
Justice Ayesha A. Malik, the first female Supreme Court judge of Pakistan, has written pro-women rulings. Her historic ruling outlawed the two-finger test for rape victims. In 2021, "virginity tests" were banned from sexual assault investigations. BBC 100 Women 2022
60.Hadizatou Mani, Niger
Hadizatou Mani was sold as a "fifth wife" at 12 to serve a powerful man's four legitimate wives. Mani wedded after being liberated in 2005, but her previous master sued her for bigamy. She was convicted and sentenced to six months. BBC 100 Women 2022
61.Nigar Marf, Iraq
Nigar Marf, the chief nurse of Iraqi Kurdistan's primary burns hospital, treats self-immolating women. Protesting young ladies in the area still do this. BBC 100 Women 2022
62.Oleksandra Matviichuk, Ukraine
Oleksandra Matviichuk has directed the Center for Civil Liberties (CCL) for 15 years, which shared the 2022 Nobel Peace Prize for exposing Russian war crimes following the invasion of Ukraine. BBC 100 Women 2022
63. Laura McAllister, Wales
Laura McAllister, former Wales women's football captain, has held many sports governance positions. In April 2021, she ran for Uefa's representative on the Fifa Council. She is a Football Association of Wales Trust board director. BBC 100 Women 2022
64. Milli, Thailand
Milli, aka Danupha Khanatheerakul, utilizes provocative songs to discuss sexual consent and unattainable beauty standards. She uses transgender lingo in her raps. BABB BUM BUM is her first album. BBC 100 Women 2022
65.Zara Mohammadi, Iran
Zara Mohammadi, a founder of the Nojin Socio-Cultural Association, has taught Kurdish in her birthplace of Sanandaj for almost a decade. BBC 100 Women 2022
66.Narges Mohammadi, Iran
Journalist and Nobel Peace Prize finalist Narges Mohammadi is vice president of Iran's Defenders of Human Rights Center and has diligently worked for the death penalty's repeal. She wrote to the UN from Evin Prison to dissuade the Iranian government from executing protestors during the current protests. BBC 100 Women 2022
67.Rita Moreno, Puerto Rico/US
Rita Moreno is one of the few artists to win an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony. The Puerto Rican actress, singer, and dancer debuted on Broadway at 13 and has enjoyed a 70-year career. BBC 100 Women 2022
68.Mia Mottley, Barbados
In January, Mia Mottley became Barbados' first female prime minister. Barbados Labour Party leader since 2008. She led the Caribbean island
Palestinian-Armenian human rights campaigner Lina Abu Akleh is the niece of Palestinian-American Al Jazeera reporter Shireen Abu Akleh, who was assassinated in May while documenting an Israeli operation in the occupied West Bank. The Israeli military believes a soldier "accidentally" murdered her.
Syria attacked Dima Aktaa's house in 2012. She lost her leg and her favorite hobby, running. UN statistics show 28% of Syrians are disabled, roughly twice the worldwide rate. Ten years later, Aktaa trains in the UK for the 2024 Paralympics.
She joined England's Lionhearts alternative football team after fundraising for refugees during the epidemic.
Picture Credit: BBC
Lawyer Maeen Al-Obaidi has worked on peacebuilding in Taiz despite the Yemeni civil war's escalation this year. She mediates prisoner swaps between warring parties. She returns warriors' corpses even if she can't save them.
Zar Amir-Ebrahimi, an actress and director, won Best Actress at Cannes for her role in Holy Spider, a film about a serial murderer who attacked sex workers.
Fatima Amiri, an Afghan adolescent, survived a Kabul tuition center suicide bombing that murdered more than 50 people, primarily female pupils. Her jaw, ear, and eye were severely damaged.
Velmariri Bambari advocates for sexual abuse victims in Central Sulawesi from a distant location. She convinced the local council not to penalize sexual assault survivors.
Aye Nyein Thu volunteers in distant and impoverished Chin State. She started treating patients in November 2021 after building a makeshift hospital with a tiny operating theater.
Sirisha Bandla, the second Indian woman in space, flew on Virgin Galactic's first fully crewed sub-orbital journey, Unity 22, in 2021.
Maryland nurse Victoria Baptiste promotes immunizations. She understands blacks' medical skepticism: Baptiste is a descendent of Henrietta Lacks, a black woman who died of cervical cancer in 1951 and whose unconsented-to cells were the first to be produced in a lab.
Niloufar Bayani was one of many Iranian environmentalists arrested in 2018 for deploying cameras to monitor endangered wildlife. Bayani received a 10-year sentence for acquiring classified information regarding strategically essential areas.
Pope Francis appointed her the first female Synod of Bishop's undersecretary. She is one of many Catholic Church authorities advising the pope and the only woman with voting privileges. In 2021, the secretary-general claimed her appointment created "a door" for women.
In 2019, Russian journalist Taisia Bekbulatova established Holod. The organization has covered Ukraine's conflict, injustice, brutality, and women's rights. During a crackdown on independent media, Russia shut down the website in April.
Kristina Berdynskykh, an award-winning journalist, has reported from Russian-shelled districts of Ukraine. Her work has focused on conflict-torn city life.
Selma Blair, an American actress, starred in Cruel Intentions, Legally Blonde, and Hellboy.
She was diagnosed with MS in 2018 and has since been lauded for being open and honest about her experience with the disease and the difficulties she has faced as a result.
Five years ago, millions of people used #MeToo to discuss sexual harassment. Survivor and activist Tarana Burke began the campaign in 2006. She created the term to draw attention to women's maltreatment.
Philosophy student, writer, and feminist activist Sandy Cabrera Arteaga advocate for sexual and reproductive rights. She speaks on emergency contraception and gives morning-after pill classes.
Ona Carbonell, a Spanish artistic swimmer, wants to normalize being a mother and an outstanding athlete. She's competed in the Olympics three times and won over 30 medals, including a pair of silver and a pair of bronze.
Fernanda Castro advocates for other intellectually disabled women to engage in politics. She is part of a Human Rights Watch-supported group of disability rights campaigners urging all Mexican political parties to integrate intellectual and learning impairments in their policy.
Sarah Chan mentors African teens in basketball. The Toronto Raptors' first female African scouting manager is her.
Priyanka Chopra Jonas is a Bollywood superstar with over 60 films. The former Miss World became the first South Asian actress to headline an American network drama after her 2002 film debut (Quantico, 2015).
Sanjida Islam Choya is working to reduce child marriage in Bangladesh, which has one of the highest rates. A school presentation moved Choya on child marriage to act. Her mother was married young.
Chanel Contos, founder of "Teach Us Consent," asked her Instagram followers in 2021 whether they had been sexually harassed in school. Two hundred individuals said "yes" in 24 hours.
Eva Copa, an Aymara former student leader, is changing Bolivian politics. She defeated her party's nominee for mayor of El Alto, the country's second-largest city, with 69% of the vote. She presented the city's strategy to improve women's rights via policy and investment.
Heidi Crowter has promoted Down's syndrome awareness. She sued the UK government over discriminatory rules enabling fetuses with the disease to be terminated until birth. The High Court rejected her case and found the legislation balances the rights of mothers and unborn children.
From her song Your Power, which calls out abusers of teenage girls, to All The Good Girls Go To Hell, on climate change, Billie Eilish is renowned for pushing boundaries.
Sandhya Eknaligoda, a human rights activist and crusader, helps thousands of mothers and spouses who lost loved ones in Sri Lanka's civil conflict. Her spouse, the acclaimed investigative journalist and cartoonist Prageeth Eknaligoda disappeared in January 2010. He strongly criticized the government and probed Tamil Tiger separatist atrocities.
Iran's Gohar Eshghi symbolizes perseverance. Since her son, blogger Sattar Beheshti, died in detention a decade ago, Eshghi has been campaigning for justice, accusing Iranian authorities of torture and murder.
Joy Ezeilo is a famous international human rights expert and retired dean of law at the University of Nigeria.
Ibijoke Faborode's ElectHER disrupts Nigeria's women's political movement. Her organization has involved over 2,000 African women in politics to reduce political inequality. Her organization supports 35 women in the 2023 general election with the #Agender35 campaign.
Samrawit Fikru, a founder of Hybrid Designs, one of the firms behind Ethiopia's cab app RIDE, didn't use a computer until 17.
In 2015, shooters kidnapped Ceci Flores' 21-year-old son Alejandro. Four years later, criminals abducted Marco Antonio, 31, another son. Flores fears dying without knowing what happened to her children, victims of Mexican forced disappearances.
Geraldina Guerra Garcés has protected Ecuadorian women from assault for 17 years. She collects data to raise awareness of femicides. Abera Wegahta, Tigray,
Moud Goba, a refugee, has worked with grassroots refugee integration organizations for over two decades. She manages Micro Rainbow, an LGBTQ+ refugee shelter. She oversees their housing and employment programs, which give 25,000 bed nights to the homeless.
Dr. Dilek Gürsoy, a top cardiac surgeon and artificial heart expert, was born in Germany to Turkish immigrants. She was the first European female surgeon to install an artificial heart, earning her a Forbes cover in Germany.
This year, Iran saw widespread demonstrations after the murder of 22-year-old Kurdish woman Mahsa Amini, who was detained by morality police in Tehran on September 13 for allegedly breaching Iran's stringent hijab, or headscarf, laws.
Dentist Gehad Hamdy founded and managed to Speak Up, an Egyptian feminist organization that utilizes social media to expose gender-based violence and sexual harassment. Egypt's 2022 violent crimes against women have highlighted the problem.
Biologist Sofía Heinonen rewilded Argentina's most significant wetland environment, the Esteros del Iberá, to reverse the extinction catastrophe in South America. She helped establish protected areas for over 30 years.
Judith Heumann has devoted her life to disability rights. She was the first wheelchair-using NYC teacher after having polio as a youngster. BBC 100 Women 2022
Brazilian National Congress' first black trans woman. Erika Hilton fights racism, LGBTQ+, and human rights. BBC 100 Women 2022
Kimiko Hirata, a coal power opponent, has spent almost half her life trying to wean Japan off fossil fuels, the most significant contributor to climate change. Her grassroots movement canceled 17 coal power facilities. First Japanese woman to receive Goldman Environmental Prize. BBC 100 Women 2022
Jebena Yasmin Islam, the sister of primary school teacher Sabina Nessa, who was killed in a London park in September 2021, advocates for UK women's public safety. She lobbied for a sentence in court. BBC 100 Women 2022
Tunisian tennis player Ons Jabeur became the first Arab or African woman to reach a Grand Slam final in the Open era at the 2022 Wimbledon Championships. She reached the US Open final months later. BBC 100 Women 2022
In December 2000, Sneha Jawale's husband burned her with kerosene because her parents couldn't pay extra money. The family did not report it. She became a tarot card reader and playwright when her husband left with their kid. BBC 100 Women 2022
Park Ji-Hyun anonymously helped break South Korea's giant internet sex crime ring, the Nth rooms, while in university. She campaigned for young female voters this year.
Zahra Joya attended school as "Mohammad" for six years under the Taliban. Zahra returned to school after US-led troops overthrew the Taliban in 2001. In 2011, she became a journalist. BBC 100 Women 2022
Reema Juffali became Saudi Arabia's first female racing driver in 2018. She formed Theeba Motorsport this year to participate in the International GT Open and increase Saudi Arabian motor racing participation. The professional driver's squad provides several instructional programs. BBC 100 Women 2022
Kadri Keung loves designing beautiful clothes for the elderly and disabled. After caring for her grandma, Kadri, and her mother, Ophelia Keung, founded the adaptive fashion business RHYS in 2018. BBC 100 Women 2022
When she discovered that certain Kenyan hospitals lacked sign language interpreters, Judy Kihumba intervened to make healthcare information accessible to all women.
Marie Christina Kolo, an ecofeminist and green social entrepreneur, represented Madagascar at COP27. As her nation faces successive droughts threatening food availability for millions, she campaigns on climate change's human rights and gender issues. The UN labeled it the first climate change-induced famine.
Dr. Iryna Kondratova and her colleagues at the Kharkiv Regional Perinatal Centre cared for pregnant women, babies, and mothers despite intense bombardment. They built up a labor ward in the hospital basement and risked their lives to remain with critical care newborns who couldn't be transferred during air raid sirens.
A behind-the-scenes photograph of a young lady tying her hair in a ponytail and preparing to protest in Iran was memorable. Her picture was mistaken for Hadis Najafi, a 22-year-old woman murdered in the protests.
Miky Lee is spearheading a Korean culture wave as an artist's advocate. She created KCON and helped K-pop go worldwide. She produced Parasite, the first foreign-language Oscar winner.
German politician Ursula von der Leyen was the first female European Commission president. German defense minister Angela Merkel appointed her.
Erika Liriano's Dominican Republic-based profit-sharing export startup reimagines the cocoa supply chain. Liriano and her sister Janett launched INARU to make cocoa production and distribution more equitable and sustainable. Their startup was seed-funded this year.
This year, former Justice Minister Naomi Long passed laws against downblouse, cyber-flashing, and the "hard sex" defense in Northern Ireland. Long has raised awareness of female politician harassment after receiving death threats.
Trauma therapist Naja Lyberth was 13 when Danish physicians forced Inuit Greenlanders to wear intrauterine devices (IUDs), or coils, as part of a birth control effort in the 1960s and 70s. Denmark and Greenland decided to investigate these practices, which may have harmed 4,500 women and girls, this year.
Justice Ayesha A. Malik, the first female Supreme Court judge of Pakistan, has written pro-women rulings. Her historic ruling outlawed the two-finger test for rape victims. In 2021, "virginity tests" were banned from sexual assault investigations. BBC 100 Women 2022
Hadizatou Mani was sold as a "fifth wife" at 12 to serve a powerful man's four legitimate wives. Mani wedded after being liberated in 2005, but her previous master sued her for bigamy. She was convicted and sentenced to six months. BBC 100 Women 2022
Nigar Marf, the chief nurse of Iraqi Kurdistan's primary burns hospital, treats self-immolating women. Protesting young ladies in the area still do this. BBC 100 Women 2022
Oleksandra Matviichuk has directed the Center for Civil Liberties (CCL) for 15 years, which shared the 2022 Nobel Peace Prize for exposing Russian war crimes following the invasion of Ukraine. BBC 100 Women 2022
Laura McAllister, former Wales women's football captain, has held many sports governance positions. In April 2021, she ran for Uefa's representative on the Fifa Council. She is a Football Association of Wales Trust board director. BBC 100 Women 2022
Milli, aka Danupha Khanatheerakul, utilizes provocative songs to discuss sexual consent and unattainable beauty standards. She uses transgender lingo in her raps. BABB BUM BUM is her first album. BBC 100 Women 2022
Zara Mohammadi, a founder of the Nojin Socio-Cultural Association, has taught Kurdish in her birthplace of Sanandaj for almost a decade. BBC 100 Women 2022
Journalist and Nobel Peace Prize finalist Narges Mohammadi is vice president of Iran's Defenders of Human Rights Center and has diligently worked for the death penalty's repeal. She wrote to the UN from Evin Prison to dissuade the Iranian government from executing protestors during the current protests. BBC 100 Women 2022
Rita Moreno is one of the few artists to win an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony. The Puerto Rican actress, singer, and dancer debuted on Broadway at 13 and has enjoyed a 70-year career. BBC 100 Women 2022
In January, Mia Mottley became Barbados' first female prime minister. Barbados Labour Party leader since 2008. She led the Caribbean island
