According to recent global estimates from UNICEF, over 230 million girls and women alive today have undergone female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C), which is actually a 15% increase from the data eight years ago. The report also shows how the pace of progress to end this human rights violation is slow. Raising awareness of the harmful and dangerous impact is key to pushing for change and ending the heinous practice, which is where media plays a vital and powerful role.
Award-winning podcast The Story of Woman, created and hosted by Anna Stoecklein, released a powerful new three-part series this year, exploring female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) within two communities in Kenya. The series takes listeners on location to rural Maasai villages and urban Nairobi neighborhoods, offering deep insight into the human stories behind a practice that has persisted for millennia.
It reveals both the devastating impacts of FGM/C and the extraordinary resilience of those leading the movement to end it—through the voices of individuals and communities reclaiming their narratives, advancing change, and inspiring a global movement.
In collaboration with Kenyan journalist Evelyn Wambui and international NGO Orchid Project, Anna delves into the complex cultural, social, and economic dimensions of FGM/C through firsthand accounts of survivors, activists, and community leaders. Anna worked with two Kenyan organizations – Coalition on Violence Against Women (COVAW) and Brighter Society Initiative – who introduced her to the interviewees featured in the series. Through the partnership with these non profits, Anna incorporated research insights to show where and how progress is being made, placing lived experiences within a wider evidence-based context.
The Story of Woman Kenya demonstrates how lasting change comes not through legislation or outside intervention alone, but through the gradual transformation of social and gender norms within communities themselves. What happens when women tell their own stories and are empowered as leaders and catalysts for cultural transformation?
“This is a story about the strength and untapped potential of women,” said Anna in a press release. “A story about what it looks like when one human rights issue that’s been around for millennia faces the collective power of women who are determined to create better lives for themselves, their daughters, their communities, and the world.”
In an interview with us about the three-part series, Anna told us how the women she featured in the episodes are reshaping narratives and inspiring collective action from the ground up.
Can you tell us a little bit about The Story of Woman, and how the idea originated?
The Story of Woman is a podcast that explores our world through the female gaze.
It really started, like so many creative projects, during the pandemic lockdown. I was reading so many incredible non-fiction books about women and gender that fundamentally shifted how I understood the world and my own lived experiences as a woman. These books helped open my eyes to the systems I operate in, and I wanted to make the ideas more accessible knowing that not only could individual women greatly benefit, but the entire world could.
We look at everything from healthcare and the economy to sexuality and climate activism, always exploring how our world has been built through a male lens and ways that reality manifests today. Over time, the podcast has evolved from interviews with authors to anyone who can speak to this topic – entrepreneurs, politicians, elite athletes and beyond. Most recently, it’s expanded into immersive, on-location narrative series.
You have completed a few seasons of the show, and this current season you focused on FGM/C, partnering with a non profit. Can you tell me more about the non-profit and why you decided to focus on this topic?
Absolutely. This season focused on Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting (FGM/C) in partnership with Orchid Project, an international NGO working to create a world free from FGM/C. Orchid Project partners with grassroots organizations worldwide, sharing knowledge, accelerating change, and advocating among governments and global leaders to make sure this issue stays a priority.
The series – the first of its kind for the podcast – took us on location in Kenya. I was personally drawn to this topic because women’s sexual and reproductive health isn’t just another issue – it’s the foundation of gender equality. Without bodily autonomy, there can be no autonomy over the rest of our lives.
This is something I learned growing up in a very conservative part of the United States, in Missouri, where anti-abortion rhetoric dominated, teaching me from an early age that women’s bodies were not our own.
Working on this series about FGM/C in Kenya continued to show me how my story was connected to the stories of girls around the world. While the practices may look different globally, they all stem from the same underlying issue: control over women’s bodies – the same control we see in everything from child marriage to the overturning of Roe v Wade.
For some basic background knowledge, what is FGM/C, and what should people know about the practice?
FGM/C involves the partial or total removal of the external female genitalia for non-medical reasons. It’s a form of gender-based violence.
What people should know is that this practice is ancient – it’s been around for over 2,000 years, documented even in Egyptian hieroglyphs. Today, it affects over 230 million women and girls globally, with about 4.3 million more at risk every year.
Crucially, there is no single story of FGM/C. It looks very different in different communities, happening all over the world in more than 94 countries, crossing cultures, religions, and socioeconomic statuses. It happens in Africa, Asia and the Middle East, and it also happens in Europe and the United States. The age of cutting also varies widely, from a couple of weeks after birth to teenagers, and pretty much everything in between.
The reasons communities practice FGM/C also differ – from beliefs around purity, modesty, and marriageability to cultural identity and social belonging – which is one reason understanding context is so essential to creating lasting change.
Knowing all this, what are the connections you can make between this devastating practice and the larger conversations about women’s bodies and bodily autonomy/agency?
To me, FGM/C is one expression of a much wider issue – the ongoing control of women’s bodies. It might look different across cultures or laws, but the root is the same. Whether it’s FGM/C or restrictions on reproductive rights, these are all connected by systems that decide what women can do, earn, or be. FGM/C just makes that control visible in a very physical way. And as I mentioned before, bodily autonomy is the foundation of gender equality – without it, nothing else can truly follow.
What were the most surprising things you learned from interviewing the women in this season?
Actually, what I found was not surprising at all, but it’s what I want to call out because it goes completely against the common narrative we often see about FGM/C and other issues of gender inequality. When I told people about this project, so many responded with something along the lines of, “Oh, that must have been so sad.” Of course, many of the stories are tragic, but I walked away inspired and energized, not disheartened in the slightest.
The most powerful takeaway was seeing how these women have transformed their lived experiences into fuel for change. They are absolutely in their power, and are using their stories to advocate for a better future for the next generations – for their daughters and granddaughters. Survivors like Christine, Fariha, and Anne are paving the way for lasting change and leading the charge to bring the practice to an end.
What does the Orchid Project do, and why is their work so vital today?
Orchid Project is an international NGO dedicated solely to ending FGM/C globally. They accelerate change through three main strands of work. First, they focus on capacity strengthening, partnering with grassroots organizations around the world to provide funding and ensure they are equipped with the skills needed to carry out their work toward ending the practice within the communities they serve.
Second, they engage in global advocacy, sharing knowledge and best practice, collecting stories of change, and pushing governments and global leaders to prioritize and resource the work to end FGM/C.
Finally, they conduct crucial research. This research illuminates important statistics and ensures interventions are tailored to the unique nuance of the “why, the when, the what, the how, the who” in each individual community.
What are some current stats about FGM/C in Kenya, and how is it being addressed?
Kenya is actually a very progressive country when it comes to FGM/C policies. They have federal legislation, the Prohibition of the Female Genital Mutilation Act, which criminalized all forms of the practice in 2011, and it’s one of the most comprehensive laws in Africa.
In terms of numbers, the national prevalence for women aged 15 to 49 has been declining significantly, dropping from nearly 38% in 1998 to just under 15% in 2022. So great progress has been made.
However, FGM/C is deeply tied to ethnic identity, so the statistics vary wildly between groups. For instance, we saw positive progress among the Maasai community we spoke with for the podcast, with the rate steadily decreasing and a positive change in community attitudes toward abandonment.
But there are still some areas and communities with a prevalence upward of 95% or higher. Among the Somalis in the northeastern region, another community we spoke with, progress has stalled, and the absolute number of affected women and girls actually doubled between 1998 and 2022.
While the law is crucial, it’s not a silver bullet – it needs to be matched by cultural change on the ground.
Why is personal storytelling a key ingredient in raising awareness and potentially making change where there is injustice?
Storytelling is powerful because it puts humanity behind the statistics and brings these issues to life. But really, it’s not about hearing stories from survivors and then making changes on their behalf – it’s about ensuring that survivors are leading the way. True progress happens when survivors and communities are at the forefront of efforts to end the practice. Real change can only last when it’s shaped by those who live it.
Beyond that, statistics aren’t what move hearts and minds – stories do. As Sean Callaghan put it perfectly in the podcast, “Spreadsheets can be deathly boring,” but the truth sits behind the data: the stories of lives transformed. Storytelling builds empathy, yes, but more importantly, it’s a crucial vehicle for change and action – when led by the people and communities whose lives it represents.
From your work on The Story of Woman, what have you learned about the power of women sharing their own stories?
The impact is massive, because if stories are what move hearts and minds, and women don’t tell their own stories, then the story is fundamentally incomplete. For nearly all of humankind’s history, our story has been told by men – and really, only a certain demographic of men. Our systems and world are shaped by gender, so when half the population is left out, the story becomes something else entirely.
Women’s storytelling fuels movements and drives inner change – helping women see they’re not alone and giving language to shared experiences. But it also drives outer change: when perspectives shift, so do policies, priorities, and possibilities. Ultimately, adding women’s voices back into the story isn’t just good for women – it’s good for everyone.
What kind of action or awareness do you hope these three episodes will inspire in listeners?
I hope these episodes open people’s eyes and start conversations, helping listeners see FGM/C for what it really is – a global human rights issue that is interconnected with the same systems restricting women everywhere, including right here at home. I hope it inspires listeners to keep learning and keep speaking out. You can directly support the incredible women leading this charge by making a donation to Orchid Project.
The goal is to spark understanding and dialogue far beyond the podcast – unlocking the extraordinary potential that lies within women and girls, their families, and communities around the world.
Listen to all three episodes of ‘The Story of Woman in Kenya’ HERE, or watch the videos on TSOW Youtube Channel. You can also follow TSOW on Instagram.
*Names listed are pseudonyms, shared by the podcast to protect the privacy of individuals featured.
