When a victim of human trafficking is identified at an airport, the next hour can shape everything that follows.
For years, there was no established model for what happened next. Survivors often found themselves entering environments designed for investigation and processing rather than recovery and support. At one of the most vulnerable moments of their lives, many were left navigating a fragmented network of organizations, services, and handoffs.
United Abolitionists set out to change that.
In collaboration with Orlando International Airport, PRR Group, and a coalition of public, private, nonprofit, and academic partners, United Abolitionists launched the world's first airport soft room for human trafficking survivors—a secure, trauma-informed space designed to provide immediate support, safety, and connection to services from the moment a survivor is identified.
Rather than entering a police station or processing facility, survivors are welcomed into an environment built around dignity, trust, and recovery. Trained advocates provide immediate support, including food, clothing, medical attention, legal resources, trauma counseling, transportation assistance, and connections to safe housing and long-term services.
The initiative represents a significant advancement in how communities respond to victims of human trafficking and demonstrates what is possible when organizations come together around a survivor-centered model of care.
"Most victims identified at airports are scared, disoriented, and unsure whom to trust. This room offers a safe space where they can meet trained advocates and begin their journey to healing."
— Tomas Lares, Founder and President, United Abolitionists
More Than a Room
While the physical space is an important innovation, the true impact of the soft room extends beyond its walls.
Supporting a survivor requires coordination among advocates, medical providers, housing organizations, legal resources, transportation partners, researchers, and community organizations. Each partner plays an essential role, but historically those organizations have often operated across disconnected systems, creating challenges in communication, referrals, service delivery, and continuity of care.
The Orlando soft room was designed not only to provide a safe place for survivors, but also to create a model where organizations can work together more effectively to ensure survivors receive the support they need without falling through the cracks.
The goal is simple: make sure that when a survivor reaches out for help, the response remains coordinated, connected, and centered around their needs from the first interaction through long-term recovery.
The Technology Behind the Response
As part of the initiative, PRR Group & The BRIGHT Network partnered with United Abolitionists to provide the data collection, case management, and care coordination infrastructure that supports the response behind the scenes.
Through PRR's Clarity Case Management and USF's BRIGHT Network, participating partners can securely collect information, coordinate services, manage referrals, track outcomes, and maintain continuity of care across the organizations involved in supporting a survivor.
The platform serves as the operational backbone of the response, helping ensure that critical information does not become fragmented as survivors move between providers and services.
From the initial interaction in the soft room through ongoing support and recovery, Clarity helps organizations work from a shared system of record that strengthens collaboration and improves visibility into the services being delivered.
While technology does not replace the advocates, counselors, healthcare providers, and organizations doing the work on the ground, it can help ensure that support does not break down during the transitions that often occur between organizations.
A Coalition Working Together
The soft room is the result of a broad coalition committed to improving outcomes for survivors of human trafficking.
United Abolitionists led the effort and partnered with the Greater Orlando Aviation Authority to establish the space inside Orlando International Airport.
PRR Group collaborated with United Abolitionists to design and implement the data collection, case management, referral, and care coordination systems that support the initiative.
The University of South Florida's Trafficking in Persons Lab and the University of Central Florida's Center for the Study of Human Trafficking and Modern Slavery continue to contribute research, training, and insights that help strengthen the model and improve outcomes over time.
Additional support has been provided by Frontier Airlines, McKibbon Hospitality, Kingdom Strategies Charitable Fund, Rotary District 6980, and numerous community partners committed to serving survivors.
Together, these organizations have created a new model that combines trauma-informed care, coordinated services, research, and technology to better support survivors during one of the most critical moments in their journey.
Building a Blueprint for the Future
The Orlando soft room is believed to be the first initiative of its kind in the world, but its significance extends far beyond a single airport.
It demonstrates what becomes possible when survivor advocates, airports, researchers, service providers, technology partners, and community organizations align around a common mission.
The room changes what happens in the first hour after a survivor is identified.
The coordinated response ecosystem behind it helps improve everything that happens afterward.
As organizations across Florida and other states continue looking for ways to strengthen anti-trafficking efforts, improve service coordination, and create better outcomes for survivors, the Orlando model offers a blueprint for what collaborative, survivor-centered response can look like.
PRR Group is honored to support this effort alongside United Abolitionists, Orlando International Airport, and the many organizations working every day to provide survivors with safety, support, and a path forward.
About United Abolitionists
United Abolitionists is a nonprofit organization dedicated to preventing human trafficking, supporting survivors, and mobilizing communities to combat exploitation. Through innovative programs, survivor services, training, outreach, and strategic partnerships, United Abolitionists works to create lasting impact in the fight against human trafficking.
About Clarity Case Management
Clarity Case Management is PRR Group's platform for secure data collection and case management platform across human services organizations. Designed for mission-driven environments where multiple organizations must collaborate around shared outcomes, Clarity helps providers coordinate care, improve visibility, and maintain continuity of support for the individuals they serve.
About The PRR Group
The PRR Group is an AI, data, cloud, and technology modernization firm that designs and delivers production systems for mission-driven, public sector, healthcare, and enterprise organizations. The company specializes in building secure, scalable platforms that help organizations improve operations, coordinate services, and generate meaningful outcomes through technology.
https://stophumantrafficking.com/soft-room-orlando/