Evoca 2023 in Review

A Reflection from Naza Alakija,
Evoca Founder & CEO

“Even in the darkest of times, compassion has a way of prevailing. Your unwavering encouragement and belief in the organisation were invaluable, and I will forever cherish the impact you've had on me in these trying times.”

This year has been a journey of both challenges and significant achievements – thank you for following our progress and staying in touch.

Despite the difficulties so many of us have faced over the last twelve months, Evoca remains forever grateful for the inspiring partners we’re lucky enough to work with, and the ingenious creatives with whom we’ve had the opportunity to collaborate.

STARTING AFRESH AS ‘EVOCA FOUNDATION’

For those of you who have been familiar with our work for a while, you’ll be aware that until early this year we were the ‘SAGE Foundation’. On Monday 27th February 2023, we relaunched as Evoca Foundation, opening the next chapter in fuelling creative solutions to our world’s most challenging problems.

The most pressing global issues of our time are growing in scale and evolving in nature. Meanwhile, across the globe, creative minds at the forefront of progress, await the opportunity to spring into action. These changemakers, brimming with transformative ideas, require crucial support to turn their visions into reality. This support includes connections, education, resources, and funding, all essential fuels to ignite and sustain their innovative solutions.

That’s why, in our fifth year of supporting powerful grassroots ideas to grow from the ground up, we wanted to sharpen our focus and begin afresh as Evoca Foundation. With renewed priorities and strengthened understanding, this year we’ve been reaching deeper into the detail that underpins meaningful change.

WOMAN LIFE FREEDOM, CHILD MARRIAGE AND CONSERVATION – A YEAR IN CREATIVE CAMPAIGNS

This year, Evoca has had the privilege to work with an influential spectrum of experts, visionaries and creatives to tell the stories we all need to hear and drive change in challenging spaces across the globe.

Click the plus buttons on the right to learn more about each project.

  • ‘RISE’ بپاخیز captures the #WomanLifeFreedom movement through the story of a teenage girl who resists the patriarchal ‘morality police’. Presented by Evoca Pictures and Executive Produced by Naza Alakija, Rise pays tribute to the movement, celebrating and honouring the fierce women of Iran along with women and girls across the globe. Featuring Dr Maya Angelou’s seminal feminist poem ‘Still I Rise’ and the music of Kurdish artist Hani Mojtahedy and Iranian rapper Gdaal, Rise was created by an anonymous female Director ‘SHIRZAN’ along with a team of production partners who remain anonymous due to the risk of retribution by the Iranian authorities.

    Raise your voice: like and share ‘Rise.’

    Amplify women's voices and share Iranian stories.

    Rise Up for #WomanLifeFreedom.

  • On Earth Day this year, through animated illustrations from Kiana Naghshineh, Evoca told the story of Omid, the male Siberian Crane whose name means ‘hope’ in Farsi. We highlighted cranes’ status as endangered and aimed to engage and inspire audiences to ‘Invest in Our Planet’ in line with the 2023 Earth Day theme.

    By fostering a shared sense of connection with Omid’s emotive story, and by capturing the beauty and sadness of Omid’s loss and loyalty, we sought to awaken curiosity and commitment in viewers, encouraging them to explore how they themselves can protect the health of our planet.

  • Overheated Live returned on August 30th this year at Flipper’s Roller Boogie Palace in London.

    Sessions included discussions of the power of plant-based diets, methods of sustainable fashion, the importance of activism, and actions we can all take to mitigate climate change. Billie Eilish dropped in to say hello and the sessions were followed by a roller-skating party!

    We were so grateful to be joined by such incredible environmental activists, indigenous leaders, and inspirational talent as Alice Aedy, Brother Spirit of Plum Village, Dominique Palmer, Liv Simpliciano, Support+Feed founder Maggie Baird, Samata Pattinson, and Tori Tsui. Thank you to everyone who participated and attended!

    You can watch the full Overheated documentary here.

  • Evoca Foundation and Equality Now joined forces this year to mark the International Day of the Girl Child 2023, observed annually on October 11th.

    Our visual campaign ‘Untie the Knot’ helps us understand how and why climate change compounds child marriage and creates a vision of a world in which every girl’s right to freedom is upheld. This short film, produced by Evoca Pictures in partnership with Equality Now, calls attention to climate change as one of the drivers of child marriage rates.

    As climate disasters become more frequent and extreme, families resort to desperate coping mechanisms, and girls all over the world lose the right to forge their own horizons: to go to school, to build careers, to choose if, when or who they marry. On International Day of the Girl Child 2023, “Let’s grant our girls the dreams they’ve sought – brighter futures, as they untie the knot.”

    You can still participate in this campaign – we encourage you to Watch, Share, and Explore!

  • We’re delighted that towards the end of 2023, our film ‘Just a Girl’ won 1st place at the My Hero International Film Festival.

    ‘Just A Girl’ brings to light the critical issue of child marriage in Nigeria. It intimately portrays the lives of three young girls, offering a reflection on the innocence and dreams lost due to early marriage and motherhood.

    Under the skilled direction of Yassa Khan, ‘Just A Girl’ is an artful catalyst for change. We firmly believe in the power of these stories to open eyes, stir hearts and spur action toward creating a world that is more equitable for all.

  • This year for the annual 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence, Evoca Foundation presented ‘Do You See Me Now?’, marking each of the 16 days with ‘portraits’ of women from all over the world who have experienced, witnessed, and survived gender-based violence. Evoca’s resident artist Shanley Mitchell worked with artificial intelligence (AI) to create images that depict each woman and evoke her narrative. The figures in these images are characters who embody and represent the individual sharing her experience - whose imagined physicalities bring her story to life without disclosing her identity, and therefore without compromising her safety or privacy.

    We’d like to thank the women and girls who shared their stories for their bravery and generosity. ‘Do You See Me Now?’ exists to pay tribute to their resilience. Every woman, no matter who they are or where they come from, has the right to live a life free from gender-based violence. Thank you also to the partners and their collaborators who showed such courage in sharing their experiences: Bella Foundation, Imagine Her, Slam Out Loud, and Taskforce Nyx.

    Access resources to combat gender-based violence here.

  • On Human Rights Day 2023, Evoca invited audiences across the world to pause and reflect with our visual poem ‘Echoes of Freedom’, directed by Yassa Khan, edited by Fabio Meirelles and featuring music from Charlie Smith and the voice for Fatou Wurie. Watch the film and read Shanley Mitchell’s poem in full here.

FOUNDATION HIGHLIGHTS

Our brilliant partners continue to deliver ground-breaking programmes across climate action, education and supporting women and girls. This year has been busy for them all.

  • Saw 47 young people immersed in the world of green business for two months in their Green Jobs project. This culminated in nine business plans of which the winning six companies received a total of $26,152 USD reward money to launch.

  • The Bella Foundation continued to support 500 boys and girls in schools by running comprehensive workshops on sex education and launched the Too Young To Marry Magazine with two volumes.

  • The Braveheart Ladies have new kits for their team and will continue to expand their football team into the coming year!

  • Our new partner Imagine Her successfully launched a Business Incubator which supported 430 female entrepreneurs to launch 400 in-market social enterprises.

  • Project Avaza continues in India with Slam Out Loud as hundreds of students receive a creative education to bolster their confidence.

  • With the support of Evoca, Charmaghz Mobile Libraries reached approximately 20,000 child visitors ages 7 - 14 in Dasht-e- Barchi, an underserved Hazara neighborhood in Kabul, including at least 9,000 girls.

  • Task Force NYX was able to safely relocate a woman and her family out of Afghanistan with funding from Evoca.

EVOCA ON TOUR:
VISITING OUR PARTNERS

Slam Out Loud – India – April 2023

In Spring this year, the Evoca team was lucky enough to visit Slam Out Loud in India and attend the Bol Art Mela in Delhi – a showcase of poetry, plays, music, and performances from the students and fellows participating in the Evoca-supported Jijivisha Fellowship. The Fellowship places professional artists directly into classrooms, who help build essential life skills with children through the art forms of poetry, storytelling, theatre, visual arts, and photography. 


Slam Out Loud (SOL) proved to be the dream hosts, introducing us to a raft of talented young people, showing us the very best Delhi has to offer, and ensuring we visited all the most delicious places to eat. It was truly brilliant to see the impact SOL’s programmes are having – on children, on teachers, on schools, and on communities in full. It was a pleasure and a real privilege to attend the showcase and to meet the brilliant poets, artists, and storytellers that Slam Out Loud is supporting. The Evoca team thanks SOL for arranging so many opportunities for us to see how the programme works in different settings, and to meet the team members who drive SOL's programmes with such care, commitment, and intelligence. We left feeling inspired by their expertise and invigorated by their determination!

Legacy of War & Land for Women – Rwanda – November 2023

In November of 2023, our growing team had the opportunity to visit the ‘Land for Women’ project in Rwanda and spend time with the incredible women at the forefront of this initiative. Inspired by Olive, a survivor of the Rwandan genocide, 'Land for Women' blends sustainable cooperative farming with innovative land ownership models. 

This project, run by the Legacy of War Foundation, embodies a belief in the women themselves as architects of change. Over a five year educational programme, they evolve into adept farmers, practicing organic and climate-resilient agriculture. This evolution is a journey towards self-reliance, shaping a future where their voices lead, and their hands nurture the land that sustains them. From the individual stories of strength to the collective efforts towards environmental balance and food sovereignty, this project is a vital part of a larger narrative. This story resonates globally, reminding us of the profound connection between our well-being, the earth we inhabit, and the communities we build. We felt so grateful to spend quality time with this incredible group of women, sharing food, and songs, and seeing these seeds of change first-hand.

Evoca in the News