Ioana Bauer has been active in the area of protecting human rights and human dignity since 2005, with a clear focus on preventing and combating human trafficking since 2010. In 2014, she joined eLiberare, an NGO focusing on creating a social movement against modern slavery and sexual exploitation in Romania. Besides leading and shaping the prevention activities, developing materials on this issue and conducting capacity building activities across the country, Ioana has worked directly with survivors of human trafficking, which convinced her of the need to address the issue at a macro level, as well. With a clear focus on public policy, Ioana has advocated for the rights of victims, better legislative framework in protection and prosecution, proactive identification and creating political will behind the subject.
Ioana is passionate about fighting injustice and is a firm believer in the power of community and collective action. Ioana is an Ashoka Fellow, a Resilience Fellow, and is recognized as one of the women leaders advancing the UN SDGs globally, having presented these during the 2020 UN Global Compact.