Amanda Nguyen

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provided by Wisconsin Union Directorate

A close-up of Amanda Nguyen.

Amanda Nguyen

Activist, entrepreneur, and 2019 Nobel Peace Prize nominee Amanda Nguyen comes to UW-Madison for what should be a thought-provoking talk about the power of collective action. Nguyen founded the nonprofit Rise to advocate for the civil rights of sexual assault survivors and fight inequities in law; the organization’s work led to the Sexual Assault Survivors’ Bill of Rights Act of 2016, signed into law by President Barack Obama. This Wisconsin Union Directorate Distinguished Lecture Series talk and Q&A will explore how resilience can be a political force, and how healing often begins with demanding to be seen.

media release: Activist and entrepreneur Amanda Nguyen will speak at Shannon Hall in Memorial Union Apr. 7 at 7:30 p.m. on resilience and healing through action as part of the Wisconsin Union Directorate (WUD) Distinguished Lecture Series (DLS) Committee's free lecture lineup.

The event, titled “An Evening with Amanda Nguyen” will feature a 60-minute lecture followed by a 30-minute audience Q&A. No tickets are necessary – admission is free and open to the public, with live captioning and American Sign Language interpreters upon request prior to the event.

CEO and founder of Rise, a social movement accelerator focused on policy and law inequality, Nguyen works to bring justice and equality to sexual assault survivors across the country and around the world.

Creator of the 2016 Sexual Assault Survivors’ Bill of Rights, she has penned her own civil rights movement into existence with a unanimous vote, and has influenced thirty laws protecting sexual survivors across the world.

Previously, Amanda was appointed by President Barack Obama to the United States Department of State as his deputy White House liaison and served at NASA. Nguyen’s awards include the Nelson Mandela Changemaker, Forbes 30 under 30, and Marie Claire Young Woman of the Year. 

“No one is invisible when they demand to be seen. No one is powerless when we come together,” Nguyen said in a 2019 podcast with Lewis Howes entitled “Take Your Power Back with Amanda Nguyen and Lewis Howes.”

Nguyen is a Harvard graduate with a focus on national security and astrophysics. She will be the first Vietnamese woman to go to space, and is set to fly on Bezos’s upcoming Blue Origin Mission. Her recently released book, “Saving Five: A memoir of Hope,” shares a story of determination, survival, and hope through activism and resilience. 

This event is made possible, in part, by the Ed Garvey Lecture Fund.

The student-led WUD DLS Committee brings engaging and influential people to the UW–Madison campus to encourage thought-provoking conversations. WUD includes 11 committees and six Wisconsin Hoofers clubs that program thousands of events each year.

Patrons can learn more about the upcoming free talk featuring Amanda Nguyen here.