By: Shqipe Malushi
Today, beneath the summer sun in Prishtina’s City Park, something extraordinary happened—women danced their stories, their resilience, their joy. As part of FemArt 13’s final day, World Dance for Humanity brought a circle of celebration, color, and connection that moved both body and soul.
Women of all ages—some in the bloom of youth, others gracefully seasoned by life—arrived dressed in flowing, colorful clothes, flowers adorning their heads, hearts wide open. They came to dance. They came to celebrate life. Because that is what they do—not just today, but every week. And today, the FemArt family joined them, exchanging what they do best: unconditional love.
Like FemArt, World Dance for Humanity is a movement that transforms lives—one step at a time. Founded in 2010 by dancer, anthropologist, and humanitarian Janet Reineck, this Santa Barbara-based nonprofit uses dance as a universal language to inspire healing, connection, and action—across neighborhoods and across continents.
Janet’s calling was born from witnessing the aftermath of war in some of the world’s most devastated regions. She saw clearly:
War is the cruelest blow to women.
It strips away their dignity, breaks apart families, and robs the future from their children’s eyes. It silences women, erases their choices, and forces them into survival. And yet—even in this silence—women endure. They rise.
Janet realized that dance is not just movement—it is medicine. It strengthens the body, awakens the mind, and heals the soul. Dance restores what war tries to steal: dignity, joy, and the sacred act of celebration. Through dance, women remember themselves. They reconnect. They rise.
World Dance for Humanity brings this joy to the world in powerful ways. In Rwanda, for example, the organization supports women-led cooperatives with:
• Livestock programs, donating goats and pregnant cows to ensure sustainable income and nourishment.
• Education support, sponsoring over 220 students in primary, high school, and college each year.
• Community-run businesses, offering training and tools to help women turn dreams into ventures, and survival into sustainability.
The spirit is simple but profound: Dance locally. Act globally.
And today in Kosovo, we danced. We rose. We dreamed out loud. As one woman said with tears in her eyes, “Here, I dance not only with my body, but with my memories, my hopes, and the dreams of all women who still wait to be free.”
We are deeply grateful to World Dance for Humanity for joining the final day of FemArt 13 with such radiant presence. Their dance reminded us that we are never too old, too broken, or too late to move, to rise, to love.
So we say this to every woman, every girl, and every man:
Dance. Let no number define you. Let no fear hold you. Let your spirit move.
Join Janet Reineck and this global sisterhood of change-makers. Learn. Dance. Heal. Give.
And together, let us keep changing the world—one step, one beat, one heart at a time.
For more, connect with:
Janet@WD4H.org
+1 (805) 966-5439
