The Religious of European Network Against Trafficking & Exploitation (RENATE), was formed in 2009 to realize the dream of a world free of slavery by 2030. RENATE held its 2022 conference on 13th-19th November 2022 to highlight the origin of the network and the efforts the network has put toward ending Human Trafficking.
RENATE was started by individual sisters who wanted to ‘Do More’ towards ending human trafficking. When it started, RENATE had 32 sisters from 26 countries, a large number being from Asia and USA with only 4 countries from Africa (Kenya, Ghana, South Africa, and Nigeria). Currently, RENATE is a network of over 300 persons spread across 31 countries working alongside the church, State, and civil society.
The vision and mission of the RENATE network is to work towards achieving an end to Human Trafficking:
- To free the world from modern slavery, human trafficking & exploitation.
- Working with victims and survivors, NGOs & corporations to halt the growing demand for trafficked victims.
- Through education, raising awareness, research, sharing best practices, advocacy, and campaigns.
- Increasing the empowerment of victims to share their stories, lead activities, and gather support to Restore their broken lives.
- Increasing investment in education, shelter, and support to build victims' life skills and resilience.
RENATE aims to take care of Human Trafficking victims through :
- Rescue
- Restore to normal life – in as far as possible, multiple needs (e.g. Vani.) Livelihood, Food & Shelter.
- Educational - Themselves or children, long-term commitment.
- Rehabilitation – Medical, Counselling, etc.
- Reintegration
- Repatriation
As a mark of God’s grace in abundance, Sr Mary O’Malley, MMM (the CHTEA Board Chairperson) attended the 2022 RENATE conference in Lisbon, Portugal.