More than a seat at the table: Inside Girl Rising’s Girl Board Member model

Think about a girls' organisation that you love to keep up with. (We hope Girl Rising is one of them!) If you look at almost any campaign, there’s usually a girl on their webpage, with a big smile towards the camera. Global girls' organizations love to celebrate girls and put their faces on big campaigns to showcase their wins to amplify their mission. And there is so much to celebrate there.

But at Girl Rising, we celebrate them a little differently; we give these girls a voice at the table and a direct platform to spark organisational change. The Girls Advisory Council comprises girls* ages 14-22 who help guide Girl Rising’s strategy, collaborate closely with staff, and bring the perspectives of girls from their communities into key organisational decisions. 

Two council members are voted each year by the girls to serve as representatives on our Board of Directors. 

Our two Girl Board Members, Abigail and Allison, sat down today to chat about their experiences on the board and about why they believe it is important for organisations to have Girl Board Members.

[Aby]: Hi, I’m Abigail Eyo (Aby)! I’m a law student speaking to you, all the way from Nigeria.

[Ally]: And I am Allison Choong (Ally), and I am speaking to you from George Town, Penang. A small historic island in the Northwest of Malaysia where I was born and raised in a Chinese-Malaysian family.

Before becoming Girl Board Members, what first sparked your passion for girls’ rights, and how did that journey lead you to Girl Rising?

[Aby]: Honestly, long before I ever sat in a boardroom, I was a young girl with a fierce passion for girls' rights and advocacy. When I first found out about She’s The First (now Girl Rising), I was so nervous about applying to join the council; my friends even had to give me a pep talk about it, but yeah, I found the courage and gave it my best. On the council, I was very shy and would find it difficult to speak at meetings. But with time, I found my voice and ended up being elected as the junior board member by my peers, with the hope that I could speak up for girls like myself.

[Ally]: I started out my advocacy as a singer, and that was where I first realised that using my voice for good led me to be able to fundraise money for organisations and spark change in my community. Now, I advocate in the sector of education, public health, and girls’ rights. With Girl Rising, I am an alumna of their Girl Rising fellowship, where my friends and I co-authored ‘Safiya Speaks Up!’ a book to teach young girls about sexual violence. I am currently serving on the Girls Advisory Council and, of course, a Girl Board Member at Girl Rising alongside Aby! 

Many young people struggle with feeling like they belong in leadership spaces, especially spaces traditionally dominated by adults. What helped you realise that your voice deserved to be in those rooms?

[Aby] My mum would always say, if you want to change how they make something, then you have to go to where they make it and involve yourself. For me, I applied to be a girl board member because I wanted to be in the room where the girl-centred programmes are actually formed and be an active part of that design and formative process. I wanted a real, moving seat where my voice could help shape policies that actually work for girls in my community. 

Thinking about it now, I remember speaking to my friends about the whole application process, and they even encouraged me to go for it. However, I didn’t know where to begin. Most girls have touching emotional stories of how they began their advocacy journey, or how gender biases affected them directly, but I didn’t really have much, yet I felt incomplete. Picking up my pen, I decided to write about my journey on the council instead, the journey of my growth, my confidence, and how it shaped my journey; the story of silence. That became my why: to change the story of every girl, encouraging them to speak up.

[Ally]: I was never one to raise my hand in class, and anyone who went to primary school with me would know me as a quiet follower, not a leader. Deep down, I had always been very envious of those who were able to lead naturally, and I had always thought that it was never in the cards for me if I didn’t start as early as kindergarten. As I grew older, I realised that sitting around moping about not being handed these leadership opportunities would not get me where I wanted to be. It wasn’t a quick change; it took years of confidence-building, which started by believing in myself, my abilities, and my voice. I still struggle with self-confidence, as many other young people do, however, the most impact I’ve been able to make for others and myself, has always stemmed from trusting my gut and thrusting myself straight into the fear.

When it came to nominations for the Girl Board Member position back in 2024, I almost did not apply. I was struggling with my first year as a scholarship student at university in the United States, far away from everything and anyone I knew. In the midst of my own uncertainty, girls' rights, safety, and education faced even bigger uncertainties, and this gave me the urge to do more. I decided that I wanted to serve Girl Rising and do more with the platform and opportunities presented to me. I wanted to learn how a high-level organisation such as Girl Rising is able to function and familiarize myself with the ins and outs on a board level. I don’t have a background in the business side of things; I’m always more creative when it comes to projects. However, I was willing and eager to learn so I could represent girls in a way I had never had the chance to before. 

Many organisations talk about including girls in their work, but fewer share real decision-making power with them. What was it like to experience a space where your voice carried the same weight as everyone else’s?

[Aby] The 2025 merger had to be one of the most eye-opening events in my entire advocacy journey. There I was, just a council member, holding a vote that would completely change the future of a huge global organisation. In most places, a girl my age would just be sitting in the corner, nodding along to look good for the cameras. But at this table, my vote carried the exact same weight as a seasoned executive. It was scary, but it was one of the things that helped build my voice and gave me confidence to speak up.

[Ally]: I am proud to say that our role as Girl Board Members is far from being tokenistic. We sit in all the same meetings as the other board members and have equal voting power on things that dictate the organisation’s future. (Sukeji, our 2024-2025 girls board member) And I were the first two girls (and among the first few people to know about the merger with She’s The First). It was an equally scary time and empowering moment as we played a part in dictating the organisation’s future. We got to understand the reasons why the merger was on the table and the strategic elements on why this decision was being considered. I remember our voices being central to the merger and I knew that if we both were strongly opposed to the merger, the conversation would’ve shifted to ensure that what we said mattered. As a global organisation that strives to cultivate a world where girls are at the forefront of discussions, we need to ensure that we do even more than just creating spaces for girls at the seat of the table. 

In September 2024, I spoke at the ‘What Girls Want’ rally with She’s The First and in my speech I said, “...all girls not only deserve a seat at the table, but an amplifying microphone as well”. Four months later, this seat on the board of directors was given to me, alongside the amplifying microphone to create genuine leadership decisions. To serve the girls in Girl Rising programming, and to represent a whole community of girls in Girl Rising and beyond. 

What has it meant to you to be trusted, challenged, and valued as a true decision-maker at Girl Rising?

[Aby]: Joining the board, I was really scared. I remember panicking and telling Ally all about it, but she assured me that it would be wonderful and it was. Truth is, sitting through board meetings with lots of big reports and everything was tiring at first, but I learnt every single time. Each meeting came with a new word, a fresh perspective and even a new way of thinking, because beyond the fancy titles, being on a global board shaped my habits… It shaped the way I interact with people and how I advocate.

[Ally]: It’s not every day as a student that I get to sit in meetings with leaders who have spent years serving different organisations such as our board co-chairs whom we adore, Tara Abrahams and Meg Porfido! I always feel so empowered after our meetings, the same way one would feel after a discussion-heavy lecture… with pages of notes filled to the brim and new ways of thinking and innovating. The difference is that instead of discussing case studies and hypotheticals as one does in university, we get to talk about ongoing decisions that shape Girl Rising’s future. I am also always happy to pick up plenty of boardroom and nonprofit lingo along the way (Thank you, Tara!). I am constantly in awe of how much we are treated as a partner, instead of a girl invited to hit a particular checkbox. Aby and my contributions are carefully trusted and greatly prioritised, and has given us greater confidence as leaders, far beyond our role as Board Members at Girl Rising.

What does meaningful girl leadership look like beyond simply giving girls a seat?

[Aby]: From my perspective, I believe that every girl-centred organisation which really aims to thrive should try to have girl representation. It doesn’t just boost youth engagement and participation; it ensures that the organisation better understands the demographic it caters for. Beyond this, Girl Rising continues to be a trailblazer for other organisations.

[Ally]: We hope our conversation allowed you to catch a glimpse into what it means to serve as a Girl Board Member at Girl Rising and why meaningful girl leadership on a board-level matters. 

If you are a leader of a youth-focused organisation, we hope you take some inspiration from Girl Rising’s model. There is so much to celebrate when we have young people on your board influencing decisions and helping shape the work that is ultimately designed for them.

And if you are a girl reading this, applications for the next Girls Advisory Council open soon, where you get a chance to be a part of the next cohort of changemakers.

*gender-nonconforming, genderfluid, transfeminine experiences included. 

About the writers

Abigail Eyo

Abigail Eyo is a law student, child rights advocate, public speaker, and writer committed to using law, leadership, and storytelling to drive social change. With a strong passion for child rights law, she is actively developing the skills to influence policies that protect and empower children worldwide. As a Girls Advisory Council member at Girl Rising and an active volunteer with Girls in Power and the CYPF Girls Movement in Nigeria, Abigail contributes to global and local initiatives advancing gender equality, education, and child protection.

Allison Choong

Allison Choong is a dedicated girls’ rights advocate from Penang, Malaysia, passionate about empowering young voices. She is a writer for UNICEF Malaysia and is the illustrator and co-author of Safiya Speaks Up, a children’s book available in four languages with an accompanying mentor’s guide that educates on sexual violence and trauma. She created this project while in the first cohort of She’s the First’s Girl Activist Fellowship program. Recognised as a 2026 Forbes 30 Under 30 in Social Impact and a 2025 Canon Young Champion, Allison has shared her insights as a youth activist at global forums, championing rights and resilience for young girls.