WLIF: Related Articles and Further Reading

June 4th 2009
Let's Stop Women Suffering
Mary Robinson and Alicia Yamin argue in an op-Ed published in The Boston Globe that preventable maternal death is a violation of women's rights. With the United Nations Human Rights Council's June session just around the corner, they challenge governments to prove that they value women's lives by taking concrete action on this issue.

May 10th 2009
Increasing Momentum for UNSCR 1325 National Action Plans
On April 24, 2009, Mary Robinson and Ambassador Swanee Hunt, Chair of The Institute for Inclusive Security, convened a group of prominent government, United Nations, and civil society leaders in New York to discuss strategies for increasing the development and implementation of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 (UNSCR 1325) National Action Plans (NAPs) and to encourage creative international cooperation on NAPs.

April 27th 2009
A Force for Growth
In these times of economic crisis, women should be viewed as agents of change and worth investing in as a smart way to help rebuild the economies of the world. We already know that investing in women is smart economics. If you want to speed up reconstruction, development and poverty reduction, the intelligent thing to do is put earnings in a woman’s hand.

March 22nd 2009
53rd Session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women
The Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) is a functional commission of the United Nations Economic and Social Council, dedicated exclusively to gender equality and advancement of women. The fifty-third session of the CSW took place at the United Nations Headquarters in New York from 2 to 13 March 2009. Maria Butler represented the Women Leaders Intercultural Forum at the session and provides this account.

March 17th 2009
Robinson travels to DRC, Rwanda, London in quest for 'durable solution' for east Congo
Mary Robinson met with the UK's Foreign Office Minister for Africa, Asia and the UN, Lord Malloch Brown to highlight the situation in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, where civilians have experienced an upsurge of violence in recent months. The meeting follows a fact-finding mission in DR Congo, where Mrs. Robinson met President of DRC Joseph Kabila in Goma. She also met Rwandan President Paul Kagame in the Rwandan capital of Kigali.

March 9th 2009
International Colloquium on Women’s Leadership, Empowerment, Peace and Security
Coinciding with International Women's Day, over one thousand women from around the world gathered from March 7-8 in Monrovia, Liberia for the first International Colloquium on Women’s Empowerment, Leadership Development, International Peace and Security. The Colloquium was co-convened by President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf of Liberia and President Tarja Halonen of Finland. Realizing Rights played a key role in supporting the organization of this unique event.

January 13th 2009
A Crisis of Dignity in Gaza
As things stand at present, only the extremists are winning. War is destroying the Middle East. A new way forward must be found, one which ensures both that Israelis can live in peace and security and that the Palestinian people, who have suffered far too much for far too long, are finally able to live in dignity.

January 9th 2009
Second Meeting of the Sudanese Women's Forum on Darfur
The second meeting of the Sudanese Women’s Forum on Darfur was held from January 6th-8th, 2009 in Darfur, Sudan. The forum was an initiative of Femmes Africa Soldarite (FAS) in partnership with Realizing Rights and the Gender is My Agenda Campaign (GIMAC), supported by the UK Department for International Development (DFID) and Norwegian Government.

November 7th 2008
Mary Robinson visits Middle East
Mary Robinson and other women leaders traveled to Jordan, the occupied Palestinian territory, and Israel recently for a visit organized by the Women Leaders Intercultural Forum, a project of Realizing Rights. The visit was made in honor of the eighth anniversary of the first UN Security Council resolution ever passed that specifically addresses the impact of conflict on women, and women's contributions to conflict resolution and sustainable peace.

September 23rd 2008
Women, Power and Politics
Are women changing the face of power around the world? Is a new generation of women on the rise? Will they lead differently than men? And will women leaders be a force that changes the world? These are the questions asked by a new one-hour special of the PBS show 'Now' entitled: "Women, Power and Politics: A Rising Tide?"

April 13th 2008
Women, Faith and Development Alliance
A unique partnership of internationally focused faith, development, and women's organizations aims to be a powerful new force dedicated to engendering global efforts to reduce poverty by increasing political will and action to increase investments in women's and girls' empowerment around the world.

March 8th 2008
Women: The best hope for sustainable peace
On International Women’s Day 2008, The Elders call on the global community to acknowledge the vital role which women leaders around the world play in helping to resolve conflict and foster peaceful and prosperous societies.

February 13th 2008
Mary Robinson has a message for the world's women leaders
Mary Robinson spoke to patrict Barkham of The Guardian prior to the inaugural Women of the Year Lecture in London on February 11th and had an uncompromising message for the hundreds of women gathered at the event: women in positions of power should be making more of an impact.

December 7th 2007
WLIF launches Arab chapter in Jordan
The Women Leaders Intercultural Forum (WLIF) have launched a chapter in the Middle East through their partnership with Her Majesty Queen Rania of Jordan. 25 women leaders, including Mary Robinson, President of Realizing Rights, gathered to discuss the issue of security and the role WLIF can play to provide a collective voice to prioritize action for a more secure world.

August 1st 2007
African Regional Meeting of Women Leaders on Security Priorities
What are the biggest threats to the security of people and states in Africa? What can women leaders in Africa and women around the world do together to address these concerns? In July, the Women Leaders Intercultural Forum (WLIF) team from Realizing Rights traveled to Nairobi to discuss security issues with 70 African women leaders...

March 8th 2007
International Women's Day 2007
Violence against women remains a devastating reality in many parts of the world; a morally and legally unacceptable reality, whether in the public or private sphere, perpetrated by individuals, states, or organizations. It is a painful manifestation of the wider inequities which persist, and which make women more vulnerable to poverty and disease.

March 6th 2007
UN General Assembly Debate on Gender Equality
An informal thematic debate of the United Nations General Assembly on the promotion of gender equality and the empowerment of women took place today, March 6th 2007.
Watch video coverage of panel discussions on women in decision-making, featuring Mary Robinson, President of Realizing Rights.

January 18th 2007
Leadership Summit in Cape Town for Women and Girls
A Pan-African leadership summit was held in Cape Town from January 15th to 19th. During the conference, organised by the Vital Voices Global Partnership, based in Washington DC, participants developed an action plan to address pressing issues facing the continent, including trade, economic development, good governance and violence against women.

October 27th 2006
New Women Leaders Forum Addresses Global Security
The newly launched Women Leaders Intercultural Forum (WLIF) seeks to move the role of women in security matters to the next level. The Forum will foster a global network of women leaders committed to transforming the global conversation on security into one that integrates human security and state security as reinforcing components.