Martha Harrison

Martha Harrison is the co-founder of Calico, a social enterprise that uses creativity to combat gendered violence. She founded the organisation alongside her best friend and fellow activist, Daz Cox, after the two met while studying Drama at university. In their final year, the murder of Sarah Everard by a serving Met Police officer became a turning point. Shocked not only by the crime but by narratives that questioned Sarah’s actions, they felt compelled to respond.

While still students, they created their first short film, Curfew. They asked their peers: “What would you do if men had a 6pm curfew?” and brought those answers to life in public spaces. Shared online, the film sparked national conversation. In 2022, Curfew was cited in VAWG evidence presented to the Department for Transport.

That project laid the foundation for Calico. Today, the organisation works with lived experience communities across the UK to design creative campaigns that amplify voices to policymakers. Central to this is their virtual reality empathy training, exploring the fem experience of navigating public spaces at night. Featured by BBC, Channel 5 and Police Oracle, it is delivered to all new West Midlands Police recruits, with over 300 trained so far.

You can follow Martha on LinkedIn, and find out more about Calico on their website and Instagram.