Nice Nailantei Leng’ete recently received the 2022 Roosevelt Foundation Freedom from Want award. Each year, the Roosevelt Four Freedoms Awards are presented to men, women, and organizations that inspire Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Four Freedoms: Freedom of Speech, Freedom of Religion, Freedom from Want, and Freedom from Fear.

Growing up in a rural Maasai community, Nice observed other young women getting “the cut” and how the practice was a deep-set aspect of cultural ideals of womanhood. She plays a key role in the fight against female genital utilization, ensuring that girls and women transition to womanhood without undergoing the cut and educates her community, including Maasai cultural elders, traditional birth attendants (TBAs), mothers and girls, chiefs and church leaders on the negative effects of FGM.

Learn more about her work and the award.