Farah Abdi is a Somali-born trans refugee rights advocate who serves as Policy Officer for Asylum and Migration at Trans Europe and Central Asia (TGEU), the regional network for trans rights in Europe and Central Asia. Having fled persecution because of her gender identity and arrived in Europe at the end of 2012, she channels her lived experience into her work, advocating for better protection and social inclusion for trans refugees and migrants across the region. In recognition of her impact, she was named among Forbes’ 30 most influential people under 30 in Europe in 2017 for her contributions to human rights and social change.
Before joining TGEU, Farah made her mark as a journalist and author. Her 2015 autobiography Never Arrive tells the story of her journey through multiple countries, detention, and refugee camps. She has written columns on immigration for publications such as Malta Today and The New Internationalist. Described as “a bridge-builder between grassroots communities and European institutions,” she now campaigns for asylum systems that recognise the specific vulnerabilities of trans and gender-diverse people and works to shape EU-level policy on migration, equality, and gender diversity.
