In 2014, Shandra participated in the first US Federal Survivor Forum Listening Session. and was appointed by President Barack Obama to be a Member of the first United States Advisory Council on Human Trafficking.
As a survivor leader, Shandra has testified before the United States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations Ending Modern Slavery, and served as an expert witness in human trafficking – specifically regarding illicit massage parlours and organized crime. – for both the state of New Jersey and the city of New York.
She has consulted with numerous governmental bodies in the United States, Indonesia, Mexico, including UN- ICAT, UN-Women, UNODC, WHO and the OSCE-ODIHR.
From 2013-2017, she was the State of New Jersey Commissioner on Human Trafficking.
Since 2017, Shandra has acted as a Survivor Advisor to the ODHIR-OSCE on the Human Trafficking National Referral Mechanism publication. She is also a “WHY SLAVERY?” Ambassador to the United Nations.
In 2021, Shandra was appointed Chair of the International Survivor Advisory Council to the ODHIR-OSCE.
Shandra has been honoured by multiple government and non-government organizations around the world including:
- 2017 – L’Oreal Paris Women of Worth National Honoree
- 2020-2021 – Top 100 Most Influential Asian Americans in New York politics and policy
- 2022 – Power of Diversity: Asian 100, New York’s Asian American Trailblazers
Shandra is the Founder and CEO of Mentari Human Trafficking Survivor Empowerment Program, Inc. She is the author of a cookbook called Taste of Freedom, Recipes for Resilience – proceeds benefiting survivors of trafficking.
Shandra lives in New York City with her family.
