Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security

A delegation from GIWPS participated in COP29 Azerbaijan last week to advocate for gender-inclusive and conflict-sensitive climate action. While there, we convened two expert panels in partnership with the Nizami Ganjavi International Center and with support from the Embassy of Germany in Washington, D.C. Our first panel, “Promoting and Supporting Women’s Leadership for Effective Climate Action and an Inclusive Just Transition,” focused on the importance of women’s leadership in environmental protection, supporting entrepreneurship, and climate-smart solutions. Panelists included H.E. Sheikha Shamma bint Sultan bin Khalifa Al Nahyan, H.E. María Fernanda Espinosa Garcés, Founder and CEO of Energy Act Ukraine Yuliana Onishchuk, CEO of Carbfix Dr. Edda Aradottir, Policy Director of the Women's Environment & Development Organization Mwanahamisi Singano, and Management Consultant of the Self Employed Women's Association Shivna Majmudar. Our panel on “The Gender, Climate, and Security Nexus” highlighted the intersection of climate change and conflict, with urgent examples from Ukraine, the Sahel, and Colombia. Panelists included Former Deputy Prime Minister of Georgia H.E. eka tkeshelashvili; Former Executive Secretary of the UNFCCC Amb. Patricia Espinosa Cantellano; Former Chairperson of the State Committee for Family, Women and Children Affairs of Azerbaijan Hijran Huseynova; Co-Chair of International Indigenous Peoples Forum on Climate Change Hindou Oumarou Ibrahim; Climate Justice Coordinator at Climalab Ángela Ocampo; Climate Change Expert at EcoAction Ukraine Sofia Sadogurska; and Advocacy Coordinator at the Conflict and Environment Observatory Ellie Kinney.   We must ensure women are active participants in shaping solutions and advancing inclusive climate action. Read more about our three top takeaways from COP for the gender and climate agenda: https://lnkd.in/exs_Y3pD

In this powerful article, Hala Al-Karib, Regional Director of the Strategic Initiative for Women in the Horn of Africa (SIHA) Network, recounts harrowing details of the ongoing genocide in Sudan. With over 4 million Sudanese women at risk of sexual violence and 12 million people displaced, the scale of suffering is immense. Al-Karib highlights the strategic use of sexual violence as a weapon of war, and the dire lack of funding and support from the international community. “Sudan is a country where women’s bodies have become the battlefield,” she writes. “This crisis exposes the impunity with which sexual violence is committed—and the deafening silence that surrounds the suffering of millions of women.” The situation in Sudan demands urgent, tangible action from the global community. Read the full article: https://lnkd.in/e_z6NMgg 

It’s Gender Day at COP29 Azerbaijan! While some progress has been made in advancing climate change and gender equality separately, we continue to overlook the intersection of gender, climate, and security. Integrating gender and climate security into policies and practices at all levels, including at COP29 and leading up to COP30 in Brazil, is one of our top priorities. With support from the Embassy of Germany in Washington, D.C., we convened thought leaders, practitioners, and policymakers to identify strategies to address knowledge gaps, propose transformative solutions, and ensure inclusive, effective action on gender, climate, and security. Read the top six expert recommendations on how leaders can close the gaps and effectively address the gender, climate, and security nexus. https://lnkd.in/eCEHMVDm

We’re hiring a Director of Policy and Programs to supervise our Policy Team and lead the development and execution of the Institute’s policy advocacy strategy. Working closely with our Executive Director Ambassador Melanne Verveer, the Director will aim to shape the policy of governments and multilateral institutions, collaborate with frontline peacebuilders and connect them with global decision-makers, and help design high-level convenings to shift the conversation. Learn more and apply: https://lnkd.in/eZ8EBZzW

As part of the Academy Speaker Series on Gender and Human Rights, the International Programs office at American University Washington College of Law hosted a Panel on “Afghanistan: ICJ Case & Status of Women’s Rights,”. Moderated by Lina T. of Georgetown’s Institute for Women, Peace, and Security, the event opened with a compelling account from Afghan Human Rights activist Fariha Easar on the erasure of women from Afghan society, she described as “gender apartheid.” Panelists included Dean Emeritus Claudio Grossman, UN Special Rapporteur Richard Bennett, Senior Lawyer Manuela Londoño, and AUWCL Humphrey alumna Fatema D. Ahmadi. The discussion centered on the challenges and possibilities of holding human rights violators accountable through channels like the International Court of Justice (ICJ). They also highlighted the critical role of civil society documentation in this fight and emphasized the importance of empowering Afghan, particularly female, lawyers to represent their country in international courts despite the complexities posed by Taliban influence. The panel concluded by stressing the need for state engagement to ensure accountability in addressing this urgent human rights issue. Closing remarks were delivered by Professor Rebecca Hamilton.   #AUWCL #GenderRights #ICJ #HumanRights #Afghanistan #HumphreyFellowship

We're hiring a Survey Consultant to support the design and analysis of a global study on Women, Peace and Security! Candidates should have excellent research skills with specific expertise in survey methods and quantitative data analysis and a demonstrated understanding of women’s experiences in conflict-affected and fragile contexts. The study is in light of the 25th anniversary of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325, and the aim of this project is to leverage insights from women on the frontlines of conflict to assess, reflect on, and provide direction for the next era of WPS. Click here to learn more and apply: https://lnkd.in/eZ8EBZzW

We convened a group of distinguished women leaders from the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) with the Minister of State for International Cooperation, H.E. Lolwah Al-Khater, and the Dean of Georgetown University in Qatar, Dr. Safwan Masri. There, we discussed the cross-regional implications of conflict and the instrumental role women play in peacebuilding and conflict resolution across the MENA region. This convening also launched our MENA initiative, which will act as a platform to empower women in the region to greater engagement, particularly in conflict resolution and peacebuilding.

I was honored to participate in the “New Voices for Peace” program organized by the Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security and The Rockefeller Foundation on the sidelines of the 2024 UN Security Council Open Debate on Women, Peace and Security. I moderated a panel of courageous grassroots women peacebuilders from Sudan, Ukraine, Yemen, and Afghanistan: Hala Al-Karib, Regional Director of the Strategic Initiative for Women in the Horn of Africa (SIHA) Network; Kateryna Levchenko, Commissioner for Gender Equality in Ukraine; Muna Luqman, Founder of Food4Humanity and co-founder of the Women in Solidarity Network; and Mariam Safi, the Founding Director of the Organization for Policy Research and Development Studies (DROPS). They reminded us of the importance of working with and elevating the voices of local actors, that women’s inclusion in public, political, and economic life is crucial to sustainable peace, and that perpetrators of conflict-related sexual violence and gender apartheid must be held accountable. We were also privileged to be joined by Ambassador Christina Markus Lassen, Denmark's Permanent Representative to the UN and a leader on Women, Peace and Security. Denmark is committed to bringing these issues to the forefront of the UN Security Council as Denmark assumes on the Security Council in January. We are also grateful to the Rockefeller Foundation's commitment to women peacebuilders and to Elizabeth Yee, the Executive Vice President of Programs for the foundation, for her compelling remarks at the outset of the discussion.

“Accountability is crucial, and it begins with those at the top. Those who order attacks on civilian populations and those who carry out attacks using systematic rape are guilty of crimes against humanity and must face consequences," said former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton at a United Nations convening marking the 15th anniversary of UNSCR 1888—a landmark resolution that aims to combat conflict-related sexual violence (CRSV). Read more about our policy actions to advance justice and accountability for CRSV here: https://lnkd.in/g8zXkCcc 

📚 Come join us on Friday, Oct 18 at Politics and Prose Bookstore at the Wharf for a conversation with authors Carol Cleaveland and Michele Waslin 📚 This is an important book on #LatinAmerican #women and their fight for #asylum, published by New York University Press. With all the unknowns ahead of us in the US, Carol and Michele are keeping attention on these vulnerable but brave asylum-seekers and give context to an issue that is too often brushed aside as private, rather than systemic. From the Kirkus review: "'Private violence,' the authors argue, is a misnomer for violence rooted in public factors: Political violence and the drug war exacerbate conditions for gender-based violence in countries where machismo culture normalizes women’s subjugation." 🔊 Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security The Fuller Project PhilanthPro Solutions