ALEZANDRA RUSSELL
Advisor
Alezandra is an entrepreneur, author, activist, and founder of Urban Light, a non-profit organization dedicated to restoring, rebuilding, and empowering the lives of young men affected by human trafficking in Thailand.
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Alezandra was spurred to found Urban Light after a 2009 visit to Thailand, where she witnessed firsthand the trafficking, violence, and exploitation of young boys in Chiang Mai. Upon returning home from her two-week trip, she sold her engagement and wedding rings to raise capital to launch the first non-profit of its kind in Thailand and much of the world.
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To date, Urban Light has provided services to over 6,000 vulnerable young men and boys through an array of health, education, creative and recreational activities at its Urban Light Youth Center in Chiang Mai. By providing desperately needed services that directly address the needs of young men and boys, Urban Light is empowering at-risk young males to live a life outside the grasp of exploitation and trafficking.
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In Nov 2019, Alezandra was awarded the prestigious Mother Teresa Memorial Award for social justice as a result of her activism and work fighting human trafficking. She continues to advocate across the globe for the rights of males, and is currently working on a documentary detailing the sex-trafficking of boys in the feature-length film "The Often Forgotten."
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