When two of the team met anti-FGM campaigner Nimco Ali

Stylist Live - meeting Nimco Ali

By Jade Campbell

On the 11 November Louise and I awoke to another grey November morning, dashed out for our daily run, and readied ourselves (as stylishly as two unstylish people can) for our day at the Stylist Live Expo.

Jade and Louise meet Nimco Ali at Stylist Live

Having booked the tickets in May, we'd been looking forward to this for a while. We'd carefully selected the inspirational talks we wanted to see, and had a strategy planned out to get as many free edible treats as possible. 

We thought we had struck gold when we managed to bag some great seats for all of the talks on our list, particularly the last talk on our list “Politics, why bother?”. It was hosted by Catherine Mayor, co-founder of Women’s Equality Party, Jess Philips, Labour MP and Social Activist Nimco Ali. As two self-confessed politi-phobes Louise and I thought this would be a good opportunity to gain a better understating of the government policies and the possible changes that affect us as women in today’s society. So we settled in with a couple of mini white wines and prepared ourselves to be educated.

The talk far surpassed our expectations, the ladies were passionate and relatable. We were captivated as they explained the reasons why women need to get in involved and unite for a fairer and more equal nation.  It was empowering and inspiring.

Nimco on the panel of "Politics, why bother?"

During the talk, Nimco Ali really caught our attention. She spoke about her life as an activist and she touched the widespread issue of genital mutilation abuse on young girls. Our ears pricked up with this being the very cause we are running for. 

Emboldened by the general good vibes of the day and a little bit of the aforementioned wine, Louise plucked up the courage to speak to Nimco the end of the session, to tell her about our challenge. We were a bit nervous, but  Nimco was easy to talk to and very supportive. After getting a couple of excited photos with her, we walked away grinning and determined to continue. Now we just need to convince her to come for a run with us...

It was a brilliant day even if the free treats were too healthy for our liking!

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