BBC 100 Women: Jane Fonda and Sanna Marin named among trailblazing figures for 2020

List includes activists, teachers and politicians

Jane Fonda and Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin are two of the high-profile names that feature on the BBC’s 100 Women list, which celebrates the most inspirational and influential people of 2020.

This year's list focuses on women who are leading change and making a difference during turbulent times and features scientists, public health experts, activists, politicians and teachers.

The women chosen for 2020’s offering include Sanna Marin, who leads Finland's all-female coalition government, Michelle Yeoh, star of the new Avatar and Marvel films and Sarah Gilbert, who heads the Oxford University research into a coronavirus vaccine, as well as Jane Fonda, a climate activist and actor.

Speaking of the accolade, Fonda said: “The world is heating up faster than science anticipated. Humanity faces an existential crisis. This is a collective solution.

“Women understand this. Women understand that we are all interdependent. They bear the brunt of the climate crisis and are the ones to lead us into the solutions. Let’s rise to do this.”

Other names to make this year’s list are Rina Akter, a former sex worker from Bangladesh, who helped serve 400 meals a week to sex workers during the pandemic; Ubah Ali, a female genital mutilation (FGM) educator from Somaliland, who co-founded Solace for Somaliland Girls; and Patrisse Cullors, a human rights activist from the US, who is the executive director of the Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation and founder of Los Angeles-based organisation Dignity and Power Now.

Filmmaker Waad Al-Kateab, who made the Syrian war documentary For Sama, was another prominent name to feature in the collection, while Bollywood actor Mahira Khan was named for speaking out against sexual violence.

In addition to a host of well-known names, this year the BBC has chosen to honour the countless women around the world who have made a sacrifice to help others in 2020, by leaving one name on the list blank as a tribute.

The BBC states that the first space on its list, titled Unsung Hero, is left open to “remember those who have lost their lives while making a difference”.

“Though BBC 100 Women cannot name every woman across the globe who has made a contribution, this space is designed to allow you to think of the people who have had an impact on you, over the course of 2020,” the posting reads.

You can find the full BBC 100 Women list for 2020 here.