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The adult industry spans everything from on-screen cam performers to street-based workers, yet all share common struggles for rights, safety, and respect. Enter the Global Network of Sex Work Projects (NSWP) – a worldwide alliance championing sex workers’ human rights and health across all sectors of the industry. Founded in the early 1990s, NSWP has grown into a powerful voice connecting local sex worker groups on every continent. It works to amplify sex workers’ voices, influence policy, and provide resources that help people in the adult industry lead safer, healthier, and more empowered lives.

In this post, we’ll explore NSWP’s mission and structure, its global advocacy efforts, peer-led research and community empowerment initiatives, and why its harm reduction approach is so relevant to online adult performers (including those on platforms like Cambunny). By the end, you’ll see why awareness of NSWP is vital for anyone who supports or works in the adult industry.

NSWP’s Mission and Structure

NSWP’s core mission is simple yet profound: to uphold the voice of sex workers globally and connect regional networks advocating for the rights of female, male and transgender sex workers. In practice, this means NSWP brings together sex worker-led organisations from around the world to fight for health, safety, and human rights.

Founded in 1992 and formally registered in 2008 in Edinburgh, Scotland, NSWP is a membership-based NGO with a truly global reach. It includes hundreds of sex worker organisations across Africa, Asia and the Pacific, Europe, Latin America, North America, and the Caribbean. Through a structure that ensures representation and leadership from every region, NSWP operates as a network of networks.

A Board of 11 Directors governs NSWP, elected by sex workers from regional networks, ensuring that every decision reflects the lived experience of those working in the industry. Its Secretariat, based in Scotland, manages coordination and communication globally. NSWP’s multilingual approach and commitment to equity between Global North and South voices reinforces its inclusive and peer-led identity.

Advocating Rights, Health, and Safety on a Global Stage

At its heart, NSWP believes that sex workers’ rights are human rights. It has earned recognition at international policy levels, including partnerships with UNAIDS, WHO, and UNFPA, and has helped shift global institutions toward rights-based language and policies that center sex workers’ health and dignity.

For example, NSWP played a key role in advocating for the adoption of the term “sex work” over stigmatizing alternatives, changing not just language but the way major health agencies address sex workers’ needs. NSWP also co-developed the WHO’s Sex Worker Implementation Tool (SWIT), a major global guide for HIV prevention and care in sex work settings.

Violence prevention is a major focus. NSWP campaigns globally for access to justice, protection from police abuse, and safety from client violence. Their Consensus Statement on Sex Work, Human Rights, and the Law outlines eight essential demands, including the right to health, safety, and freedom from discrimination.

All of this advocacy is not done “for” sex workers but with sex workers. NSWP ensures that sex workers are present and heard in every space where decisions are being made about them.

Driving Policy Change and Legal Reform

Many laws around the world still criminalize or marginalize sex work, exposing workers to violence and exclusion. NSWP advocates for full decriminalisation of sex work—the removal of all criminal penalties for consensual adult sex work—as the best approach to protecting sex workers’ rights.

Through detailed briefings, model legal frameworks, and lobbying, NSWP provides sex worker groups with tools to fight bad laws and promote good ones. A key example is their response to the U.S. FOSTA/SESTA legislation, which NSWP warned would undermine safety for online sex workers by criminalizing the platforms they use to communicate and work.

NSWP not only critiques these laws but also helps write better ones. Its Smart Sex Worker’s Guides are trusted resources for community advocates and policymakers alike. Whether it’s educating sex workers about their legal rights or lobbying governments to adopt better laws, NSWP’s work is both grassroots and global.

Peer-Led Research and Community Empowerment

Unlike many NGOs, NSWP doesn’t just speak on behalf of sex workers—it empowers them to lead. A cornerstone of this is community-led research. A recent multi-country study coordinated by NSWP spanned 27 countries and was led by sex worker groups investigating access to social protection and health services.

NSWP also publishes the journal “Research for Sex Work,” which features studies, commentary, and community insights from sex workers, researchers, and activists. This journal ensures sex worker perspectives are front and center in academic and policy conversations.

Empowerment also comes through direct training. NSWP runs workshops on advocacy, financial planning for sex worker-led orgs, leadership development, and more. Its regional members are encouraged to exchange knowledge and collaborate, fostering a sense of international solidarity.

Events like “Sex Worker Pride,” initiated by NSWP in 2019, celebrate community strength and survival, promoting dignity and shared pride among sex workers everywhere.

Supporting Online Sex Workers and Cam Performers

Sex work isn’t confined to physical spaces. Increasingly, it happens online—on platforms like Cambunny, subscription-based sites, and social media. NSWP acknowledges and supports these forms of sex work, recognizing that cam performers and online workers face unique challenges.

From banking discrimination to sudden platform bans, online workers often operate in unstable conditions. NSWP has raised the alarm about how laws like FOSTA/SESTA target online workers under the guise of anti-trafficking. These laws have forced websites to shut down sex work-related sections, endangering workers who depend on them for income and safety.

NSWP produces resources specifically addressing online work and digital safety. They provide guidance on how to navigate platform policies, manage digital privacy, and advocate for more just treatment by financial institutions. For performers on Cambunny, NSWP’s work provides a foundation of support and international advocacy for their right to work freely and securely.

Harm Reduction in Action: Resources, Guides, and Campaigns

NSWP champions harm reduction not just in health, but in every aspect of sex work. This means acknowledging sex work as a reality and offering strategies that make it safer. Through their Smart Sex Worker’s Guide series, they offer practical resources on topics like:

• Digital safety and online privacy
• Navigating social protections and government support
• Accessing HIV services
• Combating violence and stigma

NSWP also runs global campaigns like the International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers (December 17) and Sex Worker Pride. These initiatives raise public awareness while offering sex workers a chance to connect and organize.

Their advocacy extends into media and education. In 2024, NSWP released “Let’s Talk About Sex Work,” a terminology guide to encourage respectful language. This kind of language shift is key to reducing stigma and fostering public understanding.

Why NSWP Awareness Matters for Adult Performers and Allies

Whether you’re a cam model on Cambunny, a content creator navigating online policies, or a supporter of adult work, knowing about NSWP matters. This organization is fighting the legal, social, and economic battles that directly impact your ability to work safely and with dignity.

NSWP shows that sex workers are not isolated. They are part of a vibrant, resilient, and organized global community. By staying informed, sharing NSWP’s resources, and getting involved in campaigns, adult performers and allies can strengthen this network and help push for lasting change.

Sex work is work. And as NSWP reminds us: only rights can stop the wrongs.

References

1. NSWP Official Website: //www.nswp.org
2. NSWP Twitter: //twitter.com/GlobalSexWork
3. NSWP Facebook: //www.facebook.com/GlobalNSWP/
4. WHO: Sex Worker Implementation Tool (SWIT)
5. NSWP Briefing on FOSTA-SESTA
6. Smart Sex Worker’s Guide series (via NSWP)
7. NSWP Consensus Statement on Sex Work, Human Rights and the Law
8. Research for Sex Work journal
9. NSWP Campaign: Sex Worker Pride
10. Let’s Talk About Sex Work: NSWP Terminology Guide