It's not unusual for a movie to win awards, get rave reviews and win big (or lose) at the box office. But it's not every day one helps to change the world. Girl Rising is a film that became a powerful movement and gave filmmaker Christina Lowery the role of a lifetime. Now the CEO of a globally recognized non-profit with connections to Michelle Obama and support from Meryl Streep, Alicia Keys, Priyanka Chopra and Freida Pinto, Lowery's work is to show communities the power of education, get girls in school and keep them there. The reason: Educating girls is the single most powerful way to end global poverty.
The original film, which celebrates its fifth anniversary this year, aired in more than 170 countries to over 400 million viewers, and now the multi-faceted organization has programs around the world in some of the most difficult places to be a girl. Lowery and her staff developed a Girl Rising curriculum that is used by thousands of teachers, reaching tens of thousands of students, in the U.S., India, Nigeria and the DRC, with plans to expand later this year. It has also entered into partnerships like the Girl Rising Creative Challenge, powered by HP which calls for people all over the world to share stories, videos or art about how they or people in their communities are working towards gender equality and making the world a better place for girls.
Using storytelling to create change and make a difference is what Lowery has known she wanted to do since she was young. Here, she talks about how she’s helping make the world a better place, one story at a time.