Louise Donovan

Louise Donovan is an award-winning journalist, focusing on investigations and global reporting. She covers human rights, labor exploitation and international supply chains, often at the intersection of climate change or health.

Prior to this, she worked closely with the editorial team of Kenya’s largest newspaper, The Nation, teaming up with Kenyan journalists to cross-publish stories in both African and international outlets.

Her work has been published in The New York Times, The Guardian, TIME, The Associated Press, CNN, Foreign Policy and Vice World News, among others.

Louise’s groundbreaking stories have taken her across the globe, from Africa to the Middle East and Latin America. Several have led to systemic changes in garment factories and helped rescue migrant workers in exploitative conditions.

She won a One World Media award for her reporting on sexual violence in India, while her work examining the deadly consequences of curbing reproductive rights in Kenya was shortlisted for the Anthony Shahid Award for Journalism Ethics. In 2021, she won the ILO’s Labor Migration award for reporting on domestic workers in the Gulf using TikTok, published with The New York Times.

Previously the Deputy Digital Editor of ELLE UK, Louise edited the multiple award-winning Warrior series published in partnership with The Fuller Project.

COP28: How climate change hits women and the world of work

With scientists declaring 2023 likely to be the hottest year ever recorded, discussions at this year’s COP28, the annual U.N. climate summit, have never felt more urgent. As diplomats and leaders gather in Dubai from Thursday, one…

by Louise Donovan

African fashion is booming. It could create millions of jobs for women.

African fashion is booming as the continent’s middle class expands. It could create millions of jobs for women.

by Louise Donovan

Soccer’s fight for workers’ rights

Women soccer stars are seeing some success in their push for equal pay. The same isn’t true for the women in FIFA’s supply chain.

by Louise Donovan

Reporter’s Notebook: Migrant women in Qatar’s hotels speak out

Migrant women working in Qatar's World Cup hotels have said they were ignored when they made allegations of harassment or abuse.

by Louise Donovan

Female migrant workers speak out about harassment in Qatar’s World Cup hotels

As the FIFA World Cup starts, migrant women working in Qatar's hotels say their allegations of harassment or abuse have been ignored.

by Louise Donovan

Eighteen months in, Myanmar’s garment workers face widespread abuse under military rule

New research documents the alleged abuse of over 60,000 garment workers under military rule, with Zara, H&M, Lidl and Bestseller linked to the most cases.

by Louise Donovan

Reporter’s Notebook: A toxic trash site in Kenya is making women sick

While it’s understood that exposure to the toxic chemicals found on dumpsites can result in cancer, respiratory problems and skin infections, relatively little attention has been paid to their impact on the reproductive health of…

by Louise Donovan

From the Archives: Group that helps FGM survivors wins prestigious UK award. Meet the founder.

Stigma can stop survivors of female genital mutilation from seeking help, but Hawa Bah, who was cut at eight, reaches those suffering in silence to get them the care they need.

by Louise Donovan

‘The smoke enters your body’: A toxic trash site in Kenya is making women sick

As rubbish piles up on a vast dumpsite, the women who sift through it for their livelihood are suffering reproductive health problems that scientists say have been overlooked.

Related: Air pollution’s impact on women’s health is not getting the attention it needs, scientists warn

by Louise Donovan

She made jeans for Americans. When they stopped shopping, she turned to sex work

As the garment sector—one of the Lesotho’s largest employers—crumbles during the coronavirus pandemic, a 30-year-old factory worker turns to sex work to make do.

by Louise Donovan

Violence spikes as Myanmar garment workers say factories are colluding with the junta

With tensions rising in alleged military-linked factories, brands such as Mango and Zara have cut ties in recent months. But at what cost to the mostly female workforce?

by Louise Donovan

Female Migrant Workers And The Families They Support Are Being Abandoned By The Money-Transfer Industry

The flow of money sent home by foreign workers remained resilient in the face of COVID-19. But migrant women—and their home communities—still face significant financial barriers, particularly domestic workers in the Gulf living with ongoing…

by Louise Donovan

Exclusive: Workers in Factory That Makes Kate Hudson’s Fabletics Activewear Allege Rampant Sexual and Physical Abuse

In a joint investigation with TIME, The Fuller Project has spoken to 38 workers who allege instances of abuse and harassment at a garment factory in Lesotho that predominantly supplies Fabletics, Kate Hudson’s athleisure brand.

by Louise Donovan

Domestic Workers in Gulf Countries Vent Woes on TikTok

Foreign employees in wealthy households — most of them women — have been using the video-sharing app to bring abuses to light.

by Louise Donovan

‘It Felt So Freeing’: Why Young Women Are Dropping the Pill

As the pill’s 60th anniversary approaches outside of the U.S., young women and people with wombs are increasingly interrogating the lack of information doctors provide about side effects when prescribing the pill and calling for…

by Louise Donovan

Pandemic crushes global supply chains, workers at both ends

The lives—and livelihoods—of two women some 10,000 miles away from each other have become linked by a global pandemic that has not only crushed one of the world’s supply chains but economies, and millions of…

by Louise Donovan