Maria Elisa Escobar and Dahlia Edidin Locke were 19 and 17 when they co-founded the World Without Exploitation (WorldWE) Youth Coalition, mobilizing young people from across the country through education and policy advocacy addressing the realities of the commercial sex trade. They have remained committed to anti-sex trafficking and sexual exploitation work ever since. 

Ms. Escobar spent six years with WorldWE advancing the fight against human trafficking and sexual exploitation. As Co-Chair of the WorldWE Youth Coalition alongside Ms. Locke and later WorldWE Communications Manager, she led national advocacy campaigns, testified in support of survivor-centered legislation, and represented the movement on national and international stages, including at the United Nations. In law school, she continued this work through legal research and client advocacy. She now serves as a prosecutor in Brooklyn combating gender-based violence. 

During Ms. Locke's continued work at WorldWE, she leads the organization's state policy initiatives, develops curricula for students on trafficking, digital sexual exploitation, and policy, and speaks as a subject matter expert around the country. She has also worked and spoken at the United Nations, staffed a sexual assault hotline, contributed to direct service provision, and worked abroad, organizing and doing legislative advocacy with activists and survivors from around the world.