Sharon Bhagwan-Rolls
Sharon Bhagwan-Rolls the Network Coorindator for the Pacific Women’s Mediators Network.
She is a second-generation Fiji Island feminist working on the intersection of gender, media, communications and peace by supporting the development and production of appropriate and accessible media.
She is the Chairperson and Gender Liaison of the Board of Global Partnership for the Prevention of Armed Conflict, Co-Chair of the Global Fund for Women Board of Directors, and a member of the Feminist Alliance on Rights, coordinated by the Centre for Women’s Global Leadership. Ms Bhagwan-Rolls was a member of the Civil Society Advisory Group on UNSCR1325+10 (2009-2010), convened by UN Women; the first UN Women Global Civil Society Advisory Group (2012-2014); and the High-Level Advisory Group for the Global Study on UNSCR1325+15 (2014-2015). Between 2010 and 2012, she coordinated civil society input into the development of the Pacific Regional Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security (2012-2015) as well as the GEAR campaign.
Ms Bhagwan-Rolls is a co-founder of femLINKpacific, which emerged from the women-led Blue Ribbon Peace Vigil initiative in Fiji in 2000. Through her leadership, femLINK has developed a program infrastructure applying peacebuilding practice and a people’s communications for development approach to a regional women’s community media network.
Ms Bhagwan-Rolls was included in the 1000 PeaceWomen for the Nobel Peace Prize (2005) and was the recipient of the 2014 NGO Committee on the Status of Women Forum Woman of Distinction award in recognition of her dedication to enable and empower community media production in print, digital storytelling, online/social media and television to increase visibility of women and young women’s viewpoints and realities.
