#LikeAWoman
A global International Women's Day campaign designed for women across diplomacy, civil society and grassroots networks to tell their own stories.
Office of the President of the UN General AssemblyMarch 2026
Context and challenge
International Women's Day is one of the busiest moments in the UN communications calendar. Organisations across the system are publishing at the same time, often approaching the same public figures and competing for attention around similar messages.
#LikeAWoman began with a simple reversal. Phrases such as "like a woman" or "like a girl" have often been used to diminish women. The campaign invited participants to reclaim that language through their own experiences of leadership, work, resistance and change.
The campaign included prominent figures, but it could not depend on celebrity participation alone. It needed to feel open to women working across diplomacy, science, activism, civil society and local communities, including people without large public platforms.
The challenge was therefore not only to produce a set of strong campaign portraits. It was to build a format that could travel through different networks, remain recognisable and still leave enough room for each participant to tell a specific story.
My role
My main focus was the grassroots participation component of the campaign.
I helped build the route through which people outside the central campaign could take part. I assembled the campaign toolkit in Trello, created an Instagram Story template and supported outreach through diplomatic, civil society, youth and UN networks.
The toolkit brought the participation materials into one place, including the campaign framing, visual assets, suggested wording, hashtag and instructions. The Story template gave people a lighter way to join if they did not have the time or resources to produce a full feed post.
I also helped coordinate participant outreach, track the content being published and identify posts for amplification through OPGA's Instagram Stories and X account.
This work formed one part of a wider campaign developed by the OPGA media and communications team, which also managed the main campaign identity, high-profile contributors, central content and reporting.
Key decisions
Create a format people could make their own
The central structure needed to be recognisable without forcing every participant into the same story. The "They told me..." and "So I..." format gave each person a clear starting point, while leaving space for a specific experience, achievement or act of resistance. Recurring action words and campaign graphics connected the individual posts to one shared identity.
Build participation into the campaign
Publishing the main campaign assets was not enough. People needed a simple route to join. The Trello toolkit collected the materials and instructions in one place, while the Instagram Story template reduced the effort required to participate. These were not supporting documents added after the campaign had launched. They were part of the campaign design.
Distribute through networks, not only accounts
The grassroots rollout used existing communities rather than relying on OPGA's audience alone. Outreach moved through Member State contacts, women leaders' networks, parliamentary groups, UN initiatives, civil society organisations and youth networks. Direct outreach supported the wider distribution, giving the campaign several routes into different professional and regional communities.
Value local resonance
Several participants had modest global followings, but their posts travelled through communities with a direct connection to their work. Scientists, activists, diplomats and youth leaders brought the campaign into national and professional conversations that a small group of celebrity posts could not have reached. Grassroots participation was therefore not a fallback when access to public figures proved limited. It became one of the campaign's strengths.
Outcome
The campaign generated approximately 45 participant posts across platforms. OPGA amplified 21 Instagram posts through Stories and 10 posts on X. Participants ranged from youth activists and civil society leaders to ambassadors and foreign ministers, with contributions from every continent.
The full campaign reached approximately 2.2 million people across campaign posts. It featured participants from 11 countries, with contributions from every continent. It was amplified by UN entities, partner organisations and media outlets in several countries.
Some of the most useful results happened outside the central accounts. Participant stories were discussed in national media, adapted by UN information centres in different languages and shared within local advocacy communities. The format felt accessible enough for people to see themselves as possible contributors, rather than assuming the campaign was limited to celebrities or senior officials.
The rollout also exposed two practical lessons. Earlier outreach would have helped secure contributors before International Women's Day calendars became crowded. More real-time collaboration and cross-posting would also have allowed OPGA and partner accounts to combine their audiences while attention was highest.
The grassroots component showed that participation depends on more than a strong slogan. People also need clear instructions, usable assets and a format with enough room for their own voice.
- ~2.2M
- total campaign reach
- ~45
- participant posts
- 21
- Instagram posts amplified
- 10
- X posts amplified
- 11
- nationalities
Credits Developed by the OPGA media and communications team. My main focus was grassroots outreach, participation tools and partner amplification.
