Back in October, a remarkable group of women gathered in Cleveland, Ohio for the first-ever meeting of all the Talitha Kum-member networks in the western hemisphere. Talitha Kum is an international network of Catholic sisters who are dedicated to combatting human trafficking all over the world. This particular meeting was titled “Borders Not Barriers.” The sisters met over a unified vision of understanding the particular challenges for each regional group, building relationships with each other, and ensuring that their work moving forward is survivor-informed. Over 60 women from the United States, Canada, Mexico, Peru, Columbia, Honduras, El Salvador, Guatemala, Costa Rica, Brazil, Italy and other countries attended, with translators on hand for all the different languages in the room. 
Strategies and successes from all over the world were discussed. One such project was an app, currently in its second phase of development, that could be used to rescue trafficking victims by cataloguing details of their surroundings in photos.
Sr. Joan attended the meeting and was enthusiastic about its outcomes: “We sisters and guests representing western Hemispheric regions of sisters have created a new moment in our collaborations with each other to bring an end to trafficking in our regions and across borders. A truly exciting meeting!”