Amanda Ngoc Nguyen

While studying at Harvard, Amanda Nguyen survived sexual assault and discovered that her rape kit could be destroyed after just six months unless she continually petitioned to preserve it. Refusing to accept this injustice, she set out to change the law.

In 2014, Nguyen founded Rise, a non-profit organisation dedicated to protecting the rights of sexual assault survivors. Just two years later, she helped draft and pass the landmark Survivors' Bill of Rights Act in the US, which was signed into law by President Barack Obama and transformed protections for millions. Since then, she and Rise have helped pass dozens more laws across the US and internationally, including a United Nations General Assemble (UNGA) resolution: the Universal Survivor Bill of Rights, which serves as guidance for the treatment of sexual assault evidence in all UN countries. It was the first UNGA resolution focused on sexual violence survivors’ rights.

In 2025, Nguyen published her memoir Saving Five: A Memoir of Hope, giving voice to her own experience and those of countless others.

Nguyen’s work has earned her global recognition, including a Nobel Peace Prize nomination. But it doesn’t stop at civil rights activism. A bioastronautics researcher who had always aspired to become an astronaut, in April 2025, the daughter of Vietnamese refugees became the first Vietnamese woman in space as part of the six-person, all-female crew on the Blue Origin suborbital space flight. Here, she worked on three projects: how plants respond to low gravity; breast cancer monitoring under extreme conditions; and menstruation in space. Since she returned to earth, she has been continuing her research into women’s health as well as continuing to advocate for justice, equality and human dignity.