About us
Who we are and what we do
Vision
We aim to unlock and expand the resilience of Christian women and men experiencing persecution for their faith.
We are women and men who recognise the complex and hidden nature of gender-specific persecution of Christian women and girls, alongside the severe and focused nature of religious persecution of men and boys.
We are a network committed to hearing the authentic voices of the whole church, knowing that men, women, boys and girls can each be silenced in their own way due to pressures and vulnerabilities specific to their gender and age.
We are committed to collaborative, evidence-based and interdisciplinary approaches.
Aims
To create spaces to share relevant research, reports and broader communications on the subject of gender and religious persecution.
To be an accessible network that ensures expertise both in enhancing change at the grassroots and through policy and practices at its highest level. GRF connects with organisations and other networks, joins Freedom of Religions or Belief (FoRB) forums and is part of working groups allied to government departments and international bodies.
To work for the good of all in our field of influence, we actively avoid competition between organisations or individuals and promote the achievements of all whilst contributing robust and respectful debate and discussion where appropriate.
To be intentionally intergenerational, reaching out to those beginning their career in the area of FoRB and gender and religious persecution. We seek to mentor those who are growing and developing in this field.
To create equity of voice, we aim to share platforms of influence ensuring that our communication allows for women or men, old or young, any nation, tribe or tongue to be represented and valued without hierarchy or primacy.
As a forum, we are Christian and we believe in freedom of religion or belief for all. We work and network across a broad range of actors in the area of FoRB whilst maintaining our Christian Identity.
Journey
GRF began with women working for organisations such as Release International in the UK and Open Doors recognising that the experience of Christian women facing persecution was very different to that of men. Work began in several places to address this disparity, and in 2016, in the village of Marcham just outside Oxford, UK, a group of 28 people gathered to discuss women and persecution, a meeting that would become known as the Marcham conference.
Our Team
Dr Elizabeth
Regional Director for MENA
As dermatologist and international development graduate, she empowers Arab women through trauma healing, counselling, and leadership training. Co-founder of a regional MENA women's ministry, she blends medical expertise and deep faith to support spiritual growth, character building, and community transformation across the Middle East. Passionate about healing, unity, and purpose.
Elizabeth Lane Miller
Chief Research Officer
Based in the USA, Elizabeth reports on global patterns of how gender, age, socio-economic status or displacement compound the experiences of religious persecution. Elizabeth advocates through research, reporting and curriculum for a more complete understanding of how religious persecution affects communities because of the various ways individuals are differently targeted.
Emma van der Deijl
Chief Executive Officer
Based in the Netherlands, Emma is an experienced leader, trainer, facilitator, mentor and coach. She has lived and worked in the context of the global persecuted Christian church for close to three decades. She specialises in grassroots faith communities, specific religious persecution and gender-justice issues. Emma has a background in international development and education.
Helene Fisher
Chief Advocacy Officer and co-founder of GRF
Based in France, Helene has tracked patterns in religious persecution and faith community resilience since 2007. She has co-published reports and articles as well as co-authoring and leading resilience workshops. Helene takes a particular interest in the process of managing change so that organisations reflect biblical, resiliency principles.
Karen Shaw
Operations Manager
Based in the UK, Karen is passionate about creating systems that support meaningful impact. She has spent time working in Europe and Africa focusing on the importance of play in helping children to develop, learn and process trauma. With degrees in Early Childhood Studies and Biblical and Intercultural Studies, she brings compassion and cross-cultural insight to her work.
Kate Ward
Regional Director for Asia and co-founder of GRF
Kate is based in Oxford, UK with extended times in Asia. She is a practitioner who is an enabler for communities facing oppression and persecution by applying research to training at the grassroots and advocating to the highest levels of power and influence.
Trustee Profiles
Aashima
Aashima, a human rights lawyer and executive director in India, is committed to protecting the rights of marginalized communities and religious minorities. She addresses religious freedom violations, supports trafficking survivors, and builds the capacity of at-risk Christians. Renowned for her expertise in human rights and religious liberty, Aashima remains a leading advocate for justice, equality, and dignity.
Brent McBurney
Brent is a semi-retired attorney from the USA who is passionate about connecting people to help the Kingdom of God. He was the President & CEO of Advocates International for 10 years, traveling globally to encourage and equip legal professionals to follow Christ in their spheres of influence. He also holds degrees in Political Science and Russian language from Baylor University.
Brian Wickens (Treasurer)
Brian Wickens is the Managing Director of Capernwray Hall, a Bible School and Christian Holiday centre in the north of England. He has previous experience as a senior finance leader working for an international healthcare company. He is married to Liz and they have a son, a daughter and a daughter-in-law.
Jane Showell-Rogers (Chair)
Jane has been a magistrate for over 30 years, has been involved with her husband in the Religious Liberty Partnership for several years, has worked with different mission agencies and now serves as a board member for others. Jane has also taught in adult education, worked in events co-ordination, and led team building based on psychometric profiling.
Kathryn Wright
Kathryn is an experienced charity leader and educator, serving as chief executive of Culham St Gabriel’s Trust. She brings strategic insight, sector expertise and a strong commitment to Freedom of Religion or Belief, having led national education initiatives and contributed to the UK FoRB Forum. Kathryn champions equity, inclusion and transformative change.
Mandy Marshall
Mandy Marshall is Director for Gender Justice at the Anglican Alliance and Anglican Communion, working across global Anglican networks on safeguarding, gender justice, and family issues. A trustee of two international charities and co‑founder of Restored, she contributes widely through teaching, writing, and advocacy on preventing and ending gender‑based violence.
Rebecca Symes
Becca holds a master's degree in Human Rights and has contributed to independent research projects focused on advancing gender equality for religious minority women. Currently, she is a Conduct and Governance Senior Manager at a global financial services firm, where she brings her expertise in ethical oversight and corporate governance to support systemic integrity.