Celebrate Women is an annual photography collaboration asking women around the world to answer the question ‘What empowers you?’.
Since its launch on International Women’s Day 2016, the campaign, led by creator Nicole Chan, has amplified hundreds of stories of joy, resilience, and empowerment, spanning from New York City’s urban landscape to the jungles of Mae Wang, Thailand. Lensational has been a main partner and contributor to the campaign drawing on its extensive network of photographers from countries across Asia and Africa, and championing women from communities, where visual narratives are often stereotypical or externally framed.
‘I am 25 years old and come from Kimironko. From 2022 to 2023, I worked as a domestic worker, but I was determined to change my life. I worked hard and saved money until I could pursue something new. Tired of domestic work, I learned to ride a motorcycle and was fortunate to acquire one of my own. Now, I earn a living as a motorcycle rider and dream of achieving even more, including one day driving big cars. What empowers me is knowing that I can achieve anything I set my heart on.‘
— Ishimwe Sarah, Kigali, Rwanda, 2025, photographed by Lensational’s Diannah Munezero
Women photographed by women
By placing the camera in the hands of women, many of whom are emerging artists from underrepresented communities, Celebrate Women challenges traditional power dynamics in image-making. Each portrait of a subject answering the question ‘What Empowers You’ is accompanied by the subject’s own words, affirming self‐representation and highlighting solidarity, autonomy, and the shared struggles that connect women across cultures.
Impact
Celebate Women stories have been viewed by thousands on social media. The initiative was presented at the United Nations 60th Commission on the Status of Women, and exhibited at Ladyfest Shanghai, the Yenching Global Symposium, and CRITICA Arts Festival.