Launched in 2018, the Girl Child & Her Long Walk to Freedom is a joint project of the Imago Dei Fund and the Institute for Faith and Gender Empowerment.
Our mission is to nurture a community of faith-inspired change agents putting “faith to work through love” to liberate the world from the deep roots of patriarchy.
Our vision is a world where girls grow up feeling safe and equally valued and everyone can become all they were meant to be.
The Girl Child Long Walk project is inspired by the e-book, The Girl Child & Her Long Walk to Freedom: Putting Faith to Work through Love to Break Ancient Chains, written by Emily Nielsen Jones and Domnic Misolo, and dedicated to their daughters, Lexi, Mimi and Emily, and girl children around the world. The universal protagonist of the Girl Child is rising up to reclaim Her full human agency from centuries of traditions, ideas, and practices that have systematically denied Her of the dominion we are all created to enjoy as image-bearers of the Divine. And it is for Her that we take whatever next step is ours to take to create a better world.
We offer a hope and a prayer for Her rising. May we think new thoughts for Her. May we not lose faith. May we set Her free from the chains that still bind Her and the human family. May we create a world that gives Her wings to fly. May She lead us to the better world we all seek.
Amen
There are many ways to walk alongside the Girl Child on the journey to gender equality. We invite you to join us in whatever ways spark your curiosity…
Watch our Videos to deepen your understanding of patriarchy, and the ways that it intersects with our faith traditions. They’re available in English, Kiswahili, French, Portuguese, Hausa, Spanish, and Burmese.
Join the Girl Child Long Walk Hub, our app and online community, to access the e-book, connect with others on the journey, participate in live events, and create a global network of people inspired to take action at the intersection of faith and gender equality.
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Our Values
The Girl Child & Her Long Walk to Freedom project is grounded in core values that represent a journey, from inquiry to the emancipatory path that we believe is universal across all cultures and faith traditions.
CURIOSITY is the driving force behind the Girl Child: Her innocent and persistent questioning— wondering, What’s going on here?—takes Her down unexpected pathways that can lead to discouragement alongside deeper truths and understanding. She intuits that inquiry can be a central expression of faith in action and embraces the seekers She meets along the way.
AWARENESS grows as the Girl Child’s questions are answered: Why wouldn’t girls and women be able to contribute to our shared journey in faith? How are boys and men, alongside women and girls, prevented from realizing their highest and best selves and expected to fit into neat boxes of behaviors and beliefs? The more She learns, and the more Her consciousness expands, the more rooted in love Her faith becomes.
LIBERATION is achieved as more of us seek to cast off old, oppressive paradigms. No matter our age, gender, religion, or politics, we know that the Promised Land welcomes all believers who are committed to a journey of knowing and righteous action. Our pursuit of shalom insists on liberation for all people seeking a better future.
About the Authors
Emily Nielsen Jones
is a donor-activist engaged in promoting human equality, justice, and peace around the world. She is particularly passionate and engaged in the nexus of faith, gender, and development and working to mobilize our faith traditions to more fully and unambiguously embrace gender equality. In her role at the Imago Dei Fund, Emily has helped the foundation to adopt a “gender-lens” in its grantmaking with a particular focus on partnering with inspired female change agents, locally and around the world, to build bridges of peace and create a world where girls and women can thrive and achieve their full human potential. Emily brings a contemplative posture to both faith and philanthropy and is passionate about supporting the inner lives of change agents to lead with love and be their best selves in the challenging work they do.
Emily is actively engaged in the women-led philanthropy movement, and is the author of numerous articles. She is the recipient of the Christians for Biblical Equality 2013 Micah Award and was named a 2014 Women’s eNews “21 Leaders of the 21st Century” honoree.
Emily has served on various boards including the Boston Women’s Fund, Women Thrive, New England International Donor Network, Girl Rising, Union Theological Seminary, Nomi Network Campaign Leaders Council, and Sojourners Founders’ Circle.
Emily has a BA in Government from Dartmouth College and a Master’s in Educational Policy from Boston University. She is a trained Spiritual Director through both the Selah Spiritual Direction Certificate Program and the Still Harbor Spiritual Direction Practicum.
Domnic Misolo
is an ordained priest in the Anglican Church of Kenya in the Bondo Diocese. After discovering biblical equality online through CBE International, Domnic became a tireless advocate for gender equality, working in myriad ways to change the harmful gender norms that he witnessed firsthand as a child growing up in a polygamous household, many of which are still highly prevalent in his culture today.
With the blessing of his bishop, Domnic launched the Ekklesia Foundation for Gender Education (EFOGE) in 2013, now called Institute for Faith and Gender Empowerment (IFAGE), to promote gender equality across Africa. By facilitating dialogue and increased theological understanding, Domnic’s foundation is seeing church leaders become motivated and equipped to make gender equality a reality in their communities.
Rev. Misolo studied theology both at Great Lakes University of Kisumu and St. Paul’s University in Kenya. Currently, he is pursuing a master’s degree at the University of Nairobi, Kenya. He has been recognized as a social entrepreneur with high impact ideas for positive transformation both in the church and wider society. Among others, he was nominated as an “Inspired Individual” entrepreneur by Tearfund for his work on gender justice in East Africa.
Rev. Misolo has been awarded recognition by New York–based Worldwide Branding for his founding of the Ekklesia Foundation. He has been acknowledged and trained as a Canterbury Scholar by the Church of England at Canterbury Cathedral for his ideas on justice and equality for women and girls.
While working full time as the executive director of IFAGE, Rev. Misolo also serves as a part-time adjunct lecturer in theology and gender studies at Great Lakes University of Kisumu and at Bishop Okullu College of Theology. He and his wife, Christine, are blessed with four children and are partners in their shared work of promoting the empowerment of girls and women. With his wife, Domnic is the cofounder and board member of Geno Women Participatory Research and Development (GEPARD). For more about Domnic’s work and call into ministry, see his article “Truth Discovered” on the CBE International website.
The Girl Child Long Walk Program Team
Kazi Mghendi, Project Manager
Kazi is passionate about leadership development at all levels and uses her experience and expertise to identify and support community-led solutions to ending injustices caused by poverty and inequalities. With over 12 years of experience in humanitarian, leadership training, social development, community development, and financial inclusion, she leverages her expertise to solve some of the world’s challenging and complex issues, including improving education standards in rural communities in Kenya. Kazi joins the Girl Child Long Walk Team as a Project Manager to support the project and its mission to liberate our societies from patriarchal beliefs, values, and cultures that have seen girls and women as lesser humans in society for generations. Her focus and passion is in international development, leadership coaching, fundraising, partnerships/relationship management, project/program management, systems design, and strategic thinking to solve community challenges.
Kazi founded Elimu Fanaka, a non-profit organization impacting public primary schools in rural underserved communities in Kenya through improving access to quality education and using systems change to create sustainable communities. She previously worked at Acumen, managing their East Africa Fellows Program and Academy, at Ongoza Institute as Stakeholder Engagement Manager, and at Adaptive Change Advisors as a Project Manager.
She holds a bachelor’s degree in International Development with a concentration in Integrated Community Development from Daystar University and a Master’s in International Relations – Diplomacy and Foreign Affairs at the United States International University.
Marie-Rose Romain Murphy, Senior Project Consultant
Marie-Rose joined the team of the Girl Child & Her Long Walk to Freedom in June 2020, and brings her own personal story and multifaceted career as an entrepreneur and non-profit executive to her role. Born and raised in Haiti, she’s the Founder of ESPWA, Inc. (Economic Stimulus Projects for Work and Action), a Haitian-led organization focusing on the long-term development of Haitian organizations working in Haiti. She’s also the Co-founder of the Haiti Community Foundation, Haiti’s first community foundation. She has over 25 years of experience and a strong track record in community development, human services, humanitarian projects, philanthropy, marketing, executive leadership and social entrepreneurship. Her core interest is the creation of viable and sustainable pathways of development for low-income individuals, marginalized communities and developing countries.
Over the course of her career, Marie-Rose has worked as an executive director, a deputy director, a senior director, a project manager, and a consultant for local, regional, national and international organizations. She has served on boards and advisory committees for organizations such as the Boston Foundation, Respond, and JVS Boston, a regional US organization serving immigrants and refugees where she co-chairs the agency’s client services committee. She currently serves on the advisory council of the Equity Index, a UK–based project, and she is a member of Alliance for Empowering Partnership (A4EP), a network of Global South leaders focused on the localization of international aid.
Marie-Rose has received various awards from the city of Boston and other civic institutions and has also been the recipient of international fellowships from the Ford Foundation and Community Foundations of Canada, among others. She is currently a fellow for the Inter-Agency Research and Analysis Network, an international network of practitioners focused on humanitarian analysis and foresight, based in France. In 2019, she was selected to be on the Harvard Humanitarian Initiative’s international “Women to Watch” list. Marie-Rose has an MBA from Babson College, an MS in Community Economic Development from University of New Hampshire, and a BS in Journalism with a focus on International Relations from Boston University. She is based in Nîmes, France.
Marie-Rose may be reached at marie-rose@girlchildlongwalk.org.
Tory Dietel Hopps, Strategic Advisor
In her role with The Girl Child Long Walk project, Tory supports strategic planning and partner engagement and contributes insight as a past participant in the reading journey pilot in 2018 – 2019. She is a Managing Partner of Dietel & Partners, and guides clients in planning and managing their philanthropy. Tory manages portfolios for clients with both domestic and international interests, while assisting grantees with their strategies, resource development and capacity building.
For 25 years, Tory focused on resource development, management and governance for non-profit organizations in education, health and human services. She trained with BoardSource as a nonprofit governance consultant, and served as a principal of Turning Point Consulting, specializing in strategic planning and organizational capacity building for nonprofits.
She currently serves on the Board of Directors of Health Care Without Harm, the National Advisory Board of Wholesome Wave, the Advisory Board of Nyaka AIDS Orphans Project in Uganda, Co-Chairs the Virginia Climate and Energy Funders Group.
Tory is a graduate of the Emma Willard School and the University of Vermont. She is an Alum of Rockwood Leadership Institute’s Art of Philanthropic Leaders Program and is an RSF Social Finance Integrated Capital Institute Fellow. She is a financial activist working to align her money with her values and encouraging others to do so. She’s the mother of two grown children and lives with her husband in Maine.
Kristie O’Brien-Oberlies, Systems Architect
Kristie manages all technological aspects of the Girl Child & Her Long Walk to Freedom effort. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering from Villanova University and specializes in systems integration. She has served as Director of Technology for the Imago Dei Fund since 2016. Prior to IDF, Kristie served as Director of Operations and Technology for non-profit Neighbor Brigade. Before her non-profit work, Kristie worked with a professional services firm, delivering analytical solutions to clients such as EMC, Fidelity, and Staples. She spends much of her free time volunteering in her community, goofing around with her five kids, and enjoying the company of extended family and friends.
Advisors
Cynthia Brix
Co-founder and Co-director, Gender Equity and Reconciliation International
Dr. Charlotte Bunch
Founding Director, Center for Women’s Global Leadership and Distinguished Professor, Rutgers University
Kathryn Compton
Chief Development Officer, World Vision, Strong Women Strong World
Christa Foster Crawford
Founder, Freedom Resource International
Naima Dido
Executive Director, Threads For Wellbeing
Rev. Ashley Easter
Abuse Victim Advocate, Courage 365
Riane Eisler, Ph.D.
President, Center for Partnership Studies
Carla Goldstein
President, Omega Institute and Cofounder, Omega Women’s Leadership Center
Mimi Haddad, PhD
President, CBE International
Valerie M. Hudson, PhD
Founder and Co–Principal Investigator, WomanStats Project
Will Keepin
Co-founder and Co-director, Gender Equity and Reconciliation International
Daisy Khan
Founder and Executive Director, Women’s Islamic Initiative for Spirituality and Equality
Katherine Marshall, PhD
Executive Director, World Faiths Development Dialogue
Dr. Jacqueline Ogega
Director, Gender Equality and Social Inclusion, World Vision
Jane Overstreet
President / CEO, DAI
Pamela Shao
Chief of Mbeya, Iringa, Njombe, and Songwe (MINS) Field Office, UNICEF Tanzania
Helen Sworn
Executive Director and Founder, Chab Dai
Organizations listed are for identification purposes only.
Contact
The Girl Child & Her Long Walk to Freedom
A project of Imago Dei Fund
PO Box 170025
Boston, MA 02117
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Email us at info@girlchildlongwalk.org
