In the western world, pioneering work often took place earlier. Nobody looks up anymore from female truck drivers, nor from motorcyclists or pilots. A number of (still living) pioneers were born in the 1920s and 1930s. World War II drivers, for example. Yet female crane drivers or sea captains are still very thin on the ground. Outside the West, it often happens now: Iranian truck drivers, skateboarding girls in Cambodia, a pilot in Pakistan, 4x4-driving Bedouin in Oman, cycling girls in rural India, train drivers in Saudi Arabia, taxi scooter drivers in Bangladesh and Tanzania.
Move she does will be the platform for these pioneers, in photos, text, audio and short videos. The project targets the widest possible diversity of ages, cultures, classes, backgrounds and vehicles, and will take several years to develop that breadth broadly enough.
With this project, Trui Hanoulle aims to track down a series of untold stories, highlight the courage, strength and ongoing struggles of these often unsung heroines, keep their inspiration rolling on, locally and globally, and create more equality, justice, sisterhood, understanding and empathy.
Book
In September 2026, the project will become a book published by Borgerhoff & Lamberigts (in Dutch, my native language) as Baanbreeksters (final title still to be decided). Goal is to publish it also in German as Wegbereiterinnen, in Italian as Rompi-pista (still tossing with the title) and in English (with an Indian publisher) as Trailblazers. For French a good friend found this perfect title: Rebelles de la route.
Photo: © Trui Hanoulle
