Nabila Tauhida

Nabila Tauhida (she/her) is a human rights advocate and researcher from West Kalimantan, with Dayak Iban heritage–indigenous people of Indonesia. Her work focuses on modern slavery, including human trafficking, forced labor, and labor rights. She is also known for her strong emphasis on gender equality, disability, and social inclusion (GEDSI). 

She works with Destructive Fishing Watch (DFW) Indonesia as a Human Rights Officer, tackling labor exploitation, forced labor, and trafficking in the fisheries sector. This role places Nabila squarely at the grassroots level, engaging with fishing communities, unions, civil society organizations, and other stakeholders to advance advocacy on labor conditions in the fishing and seafood sectors. 

Within DFW Indonesia, she directs capacity building, training, and policy advocacy focused on labor protections and the rights of fisheries rights for fishing crews, seafood processing workers, cadets, and prospective workers. Additionally, she spearheaded research into tuna processing conditions. She also represents DFW Indonesia at grassroots, national, and international forums. 

Aside from her work, since 2018, Nabila has been involved with Emancipate Indonesia as a Youth Participation and Meaningful Engagement Specialist. As a representative of Emancipate Indonesia, she has been actively playing a vital role in a lot of coalition/network Indonesian Civil Society Coalition of Anti Sexual Violence, the Indonesian Women's Alliance (Koalisi Masyarakat Sipil Anti Kekerasan Seksual/KOMPAKS), the Civil Coalition for the Protection of Domestic Workers (Koalisi Sipil untuk Undang-Undang Perlindungan Pekerja Rumah Tangga/Koalisi Sipil untuk UU PPRT), the Youth Movement Against Criminalization (Gerakan Muda Lawan Kriminalisasi/GMLK), etc. She then became a paralegal to support political prisoners in Indonesia after the August 2025 incident.

She is also part of the Indonesian Women Coalition for Justice and Democracy DKI Jakarta (a mass grassroots women's organization and movement focused on social justice and gender equality), Generation 4Ward as Youth Advocate, and Mad Women Coalition (a feminist collective of women with mental or psychosocial disabilities and neurodivergent).

Nabila serves as a Junior Research Fellow at Paramadina South-East Asia (SEA) Peace and Diplomacy Lab. Her research journey started in her college years: first, she joined the research lab as a transcriber, progressed to research assistant on projects spanning migration governance, labor rights, and regional security, and was soon appointed Junior Research Fellow. She researches labor rights, migration, and modern slavery. She was aware of and understood her own privileges early in her research journey, followed by her sustained engagement with social justice; she understands how important it is to bridge academic knowledge with on-the-ground realities and the effectiveness of multi-stakeholder environments. 

With a multifaceted background and a passion for social change, Nabila is dedicated to making a positive impact in her community and beyond. 

Nabila is a participant in the 2026-2027 Human Rights Advocates Program at the Institute for the Study of Human Rights at Columbia University.