What We Do.
We Work Locally to End a Global Injustice.
The Collaborative to End Human Trafficking helps Cuyahoga County work together
to prevent and respond to human trafficking. Our work focuses on strengthening
coordination, building shared understanding, and implementing prevention-
focused practice across sectors.
We do not provide direct services. Instead, we strengthen the infrastructure that allows partners to intervene earlier and respond more effectively.
We Lead and Coordinate an Impactful Coalition.
We serve as the backbone organization for Cuyahoga County’s Anti-Human Trafficking Coalition. In this role, we unite over 75 partners that span sectors like healthcare, housing, education, public safety, labor, and community services.
In leading this coalition, we:
- Convene partners around shared prevention priorities.
- Support common language and aligned strategy.
- Strengthen coordination across systems that do not naturally work together.
- Reduce fragmentation and duplication of effort.
We empower the community to respond more consistently and effectively.
View PartnersWe Provide Education and Training.
Our education and training programs are prevention-focused, and are designed to:
- Improve early identification of risk.
- Increase confidence in trauma-informed response.
- Clarify referral pathways and coordinated response.
- Strengthen prevention practice across sectors.
In the past year, we’ve:
Trained 3,277 professionals and community members.
Delivered 54 specialized trainings.
Increased training reach by 49%.
We Listen to Survivors.
Survivor leadership is central to our approach as these individuals contribute to training design, coalition planning, advocacy efforts, and policy conversations.
We prioritize ethical engagement by:
- Centering lived experience in system design rather than personal storytelling
- Ensuring consent, choice, and narrative control
- Avoiding the use of survivor stories for fundraising or persuasion
In 2025, 83% of our trainings were co-facilitated by Survivor Advisory Council leaders.
We Engage the Community.
We promote a culture of prevention and shared responsibility.
Humans Over Human Trafficking (HOHT) was a recent awareness and engagement campaign that invited our community to take everyday actions to help end this injustice. Through this initiative, 5,223 individuals pledged action in the ongoing fight against human trafficking.
Become a Human Over Human TraffickingWe Affect Policy and Drive Change.
Our policy work focuses on:
- Elevating prevention and early intervention in public systems
- Supporting survivor-informed policy development
- Aligning partners around shared advocacy priorities
In 2025, we:
Contributed to preserving $9 million in statewide funding for survivor services
Hosted Ohio’s first Statewide Human Trafficking Advocacy Day
How This Work Fits Together.
Each of these functions reinforces the others. Coalition coordination creates
alignment, education builds shared understanding, survivor leadership strengthens
system design, community engagement builds prevention culture, and policy
advocacy sustains long-term impact.
Together, this work improves Cuyahoga County’s ability to
recognize risk earlier and respond more effectively to human trafficking.
A community united to prevent exploitation before it starts.
Learn more