#YWCA was founded in the United Kingdom in 1855 by Lady Mary Jane Kinnaird and Emma Robarts.

The YWCA traces its origins to the initiative and leadership of two women in England in 1855.

Both women—Lady Mary Kinnaird, who founded a hostel for nurses, and Emma Robarts, who organized prayer groups for young women—established organisations to provide support for women amid the industrial revolution. After the two groups merged in 1877, the movement grew quickly and spread to other countries.

The World YWCA was officially founded in 1894 by Great Britain, Norway, Sweden, and the United States.

The YWCA has been at the forefront of the fight for women’s rights and human rights around the world, including the European refugee crisis after World War II, the civil rights movement in the United States, and the struggle to end apartheid in South Africa.

Today, the World YWCA is truly a global movement, with a presence in over a hundred countries, working to connect and mobilize the power of millions of women, young women, and girls from across regions, cultures, and beliefs to transform their lives and the world, for the better.