What is the name of your organization?
Survivor Alliance
What is the name of your solution?
Survivor Alliance Institute
Provide a one-line summary or tagline for your solution.
Catalyzing the global anti-trafficking movement through online learning and community building for survivors and allied professionals.
In what city, town, or region is your solution team headquartered?
Our team is based in the United States, but is remotely located!
In what country is your solution team headquartered?
United States
What type of organization is your solution team?
Nonprofit
Film your elevator pitch.
What specific problem are you solving?
Many people are trafficked because of poverty and the intersection with systematic inequalities that pre-existed exploitation, such as racism and ableism. Survivors of human trafficking experience ongoing poverty, even after they have exited exploitation. The First National Survivor Study conducted by Polaris in the US found that 43% of survivors’ households made less than $25,000 per year, which is still below the living wage. In a global study of employment programs for survivors of human trafficking, 91% of programs were delivered in English only, and most were focused on job readiness, rather than job placement. A study conducted by The Royal College of Psychiatrists concluded that a majority of survivors experience negative mental health effects of trauma, which also impacts their income-earning potential. There is a lack of accessible and trauma-informed workforce development programs and careers for survivors, which is exacerbated by geographical, cultural, linguistic, and digital divides.
What is your solution?
Survivor Alliance will transform our digital Learning Management System (LMS) built on Moodle, an open-source technology, to house our workforce development curriculum. The platform provides free, global access to training that will support career pathways into financially secure positions. Our curriculum is authored by survivors and addresses knowledge, skills, and experiences that will prepare survivors for roles within the anti-trafficking and social impact sectors. The platform will offer self-paced courses in multiple languages, for different levels of education and professional experience. SA will recommend course bundles to support learners’ specialization in research, direct service, and advocacy.
Survivors can also join curated cohorts to engage in online learning with peers. SA staff will facilitate live, virtual sessions to enhance community building and collaborative learning. Guest speakers will bring fresh perspectives each year. Participants who complete specific tracks will gain opportunities to expand professional networks and apply to exclusive paid opportunities within the social impact sector.
The LMS is a part of our broader ecosystem-based approach, connecting survivors of human trafficking, organizations, businesses, and sector professionals through shared learning and capacity building. Organizations that hire survivors and serve as intern supervisors will also benefit from the platform through training and co-leading opportunities.
Who does your solution serve, and in what ways will the solution impact their lives?
Our solution directly serves survivors of human trafficking who desire to be leaders in the anti-trafficking movement and/or sector. Survivor Alliance currently has 1,200 members who come from 44 countries and speak 17 languages, forming a truly global community with diverse experiences, cultures, and needs.
Survivors remain vastly underrepresented in leadership and workforce development opportunities across the ecosphere. Too often, they are invited to share their stories without being supported to shape solutions or lead systemic change. Language barriers, regional inequities, digital divides, and exclusion from decision-making spaces all contribute to their continued marginalization.
The Survivor Alliance Institute centers survivors as experts and leaders. Through survivor-designed, trauma-informed online learning, we are creating spaces that are multilingual, accessible, and rooted in lived experience. Job readiness and a focus on workforce capacity building foster the ability for survivors to gain sustainable economic opportunities within the sector. We equip survivors not just to participate, but to lead. However, the qualitative impact goes far beyond skill-building: survivors report feeling more empowered, less isolated, and more prepared to influence their communities, workplaces, and ecosystems.
