Anu Kumar
Leader of Ipas, a global organisation advancing access to safe abortion and contraception as core components of gender equality and reproductive justice.
BACKGROUND
With a background in anthropology and public health, Anu Kumar has built a career exploring how culture, policy, and systems shape access to care. She began as a social scientist at the World Health Organization’s Reproductive Health Research Division, where she observed how structural barriers and stigma limited access to reproductive health services. She then spent seven years as a Senior Program Officer in the Population and Reproductive Health program at the MacArthur Foundation, supporting organisations globally and deepening her understanding of the intersection between policy, funding, and reproductive rights. These experiences strengthened her commitment to reproductive justice and led her to join Ipas in 2002.
WORK AND IMPACT
Today, Anu leads Ipas, a global organisation working to ensure access to safe abortion and contraception as fundamental components of gender equality and reproductive justice.
Under her leadership, Ipas has expanded clinical training, strengthened health systems, and influenced national policies that protect reproductive rights. By integrating abortion care into public health systems and partnering with local organisations, her work has reduced unsafe procedures and empowered communities to drive rights-based reforms.
Through a model that combines evidence, policy advocacy, and local leadership, Ipas continues to create lasting systemic change in how reproductive healthcare is organised and delivered worldwide.
WHY ANU IS A FINALIST
The jury nominates Anu Kumar as a finalist for the 2026 WIN WIN Award for her principled and strategic leadership, demonstrating how reproductive rights can be translated into concrete systems and processes. Her work shows how bodily autonomy and reproductive justice are essential for gender-equal societies and long-term social stability.
”At a time when reproductive rights, human rights, and democracy itself is under attack, the WIN WIN Gothenburg Sustainability Award’s recognition of my work to advance reproductive justice is a light of hope during a dark time.
I have dedicated my life to the cause of reproductive justice because the ability to control one’s body and reproductive life is critical for women to have power - economic power, social power, political power. It is critical to achieving gender equality and more just societies. I’m deeply honored to be among the changemakers working towards such a future.”
- Anu Kumar