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GIWPS

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The Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace & Security (GIWPS) highlights women’s leadership in peace & security efforts.

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The Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security (GIWPS) hosted our annual Hillary Rodham Clinton Awards Ceremony this week @georgetownuniversity.

Our executive director, Ambassador Melanne Verveer, opened the ceremony reminding everyone that economies grow and nations prosper when women are given the opportunity to participate.

“It is an evidence-based case that our world cannot get ahead if it leaves half of its population behind,” Verveer said.

Secretary @hillaryclinton joined us to honor leaders who are advancing economic opportunities for women worldwide.

This year’s awardees include director of @sewa_sangathan Reema Nanavaty, founder of the @toryburchfoundation @toryburch, and Nobel laureate @professormuhammadyunus. @munamartinon, board chair of @microfundforwomen, Jordan’s largest non-profit microfinance institution, received our inaugural Georgetown Ambassadors Award.

“When doors of opportunity open to women, when educational pathways open to women, when societies and governments recognize the critical role women can play in lifting the economic base of an entire country, it makes a huge difference,” said Secretary Clinton.

Congratulations to our 2026 awardees. We were honored to celebrate your commitment to economic empowerment and dedication to creating a more peaceful world.

📹 Watch a recording of the event using the link in our bio.

#HRCAwards #economicempowerment by @georgetown_wps

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3 days ago

Some stories ask us not only to look, but to look closer.

At the ways conflict lingers. At the pressures a changing climate places on daily life. At the women whose experiences sit at the intersection of both.

Today, @georgetown_wps and @lensational begin a new collaboration, bringing together research and women-led visual storytelling to deepen how we understand gender, climate change, and conflict. At the heart of this partnership are photographs taken by women from the communities being documented, bringing their own perspectives and lived understanding to the stories they tell.

Lensational is a female-founded nonprofit organization that equips underrepresented women with photography training, equipment, and storytelling skills to document their experiences and represent their communities accurately and with dignity.

We begin with Clementine Murekeyesoni, whose life carries the history of a country marked by the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, alongside the realities of sustaining a livelihood amid environmental strain. Through the lens of Rwandan photographer Ange Umutoni, Clementine’s story brings into view how the legacies of conflict, gender inequality, and environmental pressures can converge in women’s everyday lives.

Clementine’s story is only the beginning. In the months ahead, GIWPS and Lensational will continue sharing women-led visual stories that bring lived experience into conversation with research, amplify women’s knowledge and leadership, and inform conversations about policy and development.

Swipe to see Clementine’s story →

Editorial & research: Tamara Bah and Tiyandza Mngomezulu @georgetown_wps

Photo curation: Lucile Stengel and Lydia Wanjiku @lensational

#WomenPeaceSecurity #GenderAndClimate #VisualStorytelling #WomenOnTheFrontlines #Rwanda by @georgetown_wps

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11 days ago

Save the date for our annual #HRCAwards Ceremony on Thursday, October 15 at 10:30am ET.

This year we will honor leaders who are increasing women’s economic opportunity and, in turn, the prosperity, stability, and security of their communities.

We are excited to present the #HRCAwards to Nobel Prize winner @professormuhammadyunus ; Director of the Self-Employed Women’s Association of India Reema Nanavaty; and Founder of the @toryburchfoundation @toryburch . We will also present the inaugural Georgetown Ambassadors Award to Muna Sukhtian, Managing Director and Board Chair of @microfundforwomen .

@georgetownuniversity students, faculty and staff are welcome to join us in person and others can tune into the livestream. Click the link in our bio for more details. by @georgetown_wps

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a month ago

A new report from the Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security (GIWPS) and @drops.afg has found that despite mounting dangers and dwindling resources, Afghan women are pushing forward with peace, healthcare, and education initiatives at even higher rates than women globally.

Want to learn more? Read the full report at the link in our bio.

#Afghanistan #Women #Peace #Security by @georgetown_wps

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a month ago

What an incredible start to the new semester! 🌟

We had a fantastic turnout for our semester kickoff mixer, which brought together a passionate community of students dedicated to exploring critical issues of Gender, Peace, and Security, many of whom are pursuing our graduate certificate.

Thank you to everyone who joined us and to @georgetown_gwia for co-hosting the event. We look forward to building on this momentum and continuing these important conversations throughout the term!

#Georgetown #WomenInInternationalAffairs #GenderPeaceSecurity #InternationalRelations #StudentLeadership by @georgetown_wps

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a month ago

Five years ago, the Taliban took back control of Afghanistan. Since then, they have worked to eliminate women and girls from public life. The country continues to be the worst country in the world for women, according to our latest Women, Peace and Security (WPS) Index, with a list of over 160 decrees targeting women. This state-led structural violence against women is so extreme, it amounts to gender apartheid.

Yet, Afghan women and girls continue to fight for freedom and resist oppression—as they have for decades. The women and girls of Afghanistan have not given up, and neither should the international community. The world cannot normalize the Taliban or this horrific treatment of half the country’s population.

Today, as we do every day, the Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security (GIWPS) is proud to stand with the women and girls of Afghanistan and support their vision for a free, peaceful, and equitable future.

🔗 Read more from GIWPS and Afghan women in our network using the link in our bio.

#StandWithAfghanWomen #EndGenderApartheid #LetAfghanGirlsLearn #WomenPeaceSecurity #HumanRights by @georgetown_wps

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2 months ago

Are you a @georgetownuniversity student interested in taking a course at the intersection of gender, international security, and diplomacy this fall?

These courses are designed to equip students with the practical policy tools, critical research methods, and real-world expertise needed to navigate gender issues, international relations, and diplomacy in an ever-changing global arena.

Be sure to secure your spot before courses fill up!

Explore a full list of our courses and more student opportunities using the link in our bio. by @georgetown_wps

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3 months ago

It was an honor to host this year’s Global Women Leaders Summit, which was chaired by Secretary Hillary Rodham Clinton.

The event brought together a distinguished cohort of women leaders from the highest levels of public service alongside a new generation of political and civic leaders from around the world to provide a unique space for peer-to-peer mentorship, cross-generational collaboration, and the exchange of ideas, experiences, and lessons learned.

We worked together to develop recommendations and collective action that center women leaders as architects of a safe and secure digital future, inclusive climate action, and a world order that delivers for all.

#GlobalWomenLeaders #CollectiveAction #DigitalFuture #ClimateAction by @georgetown_wps

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4 months ago

🎓 Celebrating Our Gender, Peace and Security Certificate Graduates 🎓

The Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security (GIWPS) congratulates Georgetown University’s graduating class, especially the 12 alumni who earned our graduate certificate in Gender, Peace and Security (GPS) this academic year.

We are also pleased to announce the winners of our annual student writing awards, which bring together emerging voices from universities across the Washington, DC consortium to explore today’s most pressing global challenges through a gender lens.

👉 Use the link in our bio to meet this year’s GPS graduates and writing award winners, and learn how they are advancing the future of Women, Peace and Security through research, advocacy, and policy leadership.

#Georgetown #WomenPeaceSecurity #Graduates #PolicyLeadership #ClassOf2026 by @georgetown_wps

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5 months ago

The Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security (GIWPS) recently traveled to #Jakarta with a delegation of our Georgetown Ambassadors for Women, Peace and Security led by Ambassador Melanne Verveer to learn how Indonesian leaders are advancing the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda and women’s progress, and to deepen our collaboration with Georgetown University’s SFS Asia Pacific.

An inspiring lesson learned was how Indonesian women have banded together to advance their rights within an Islamic framework in this predominantly Muslim nation. We heard from human rights advocate Kamala Chandrakirana and ruby kholifah about how women ulama (Islamic scholars) are issuing fatwas (formal legal interpretations of Islamic law) against domestic violence and child marriage, and how organizations like the Indonesian Women’s Ulema Congress (KUPI) and The Asian Muslim Action Network (AMAN) Indonesia are strategically countering far-right religious extremism.

Climate change was another significant theme of the trip. We began our trip by visiting Muara Angke with Ashoka to hear how a coastal fishing village is grappling with climate change. UN Special Envoy on Water and Former Minister for Foreign Affairs of Indonesia, Retno Marsudi, described the water crisis globally and what needs to be done to address the challenge.

Deputy Minister for Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection, Veronica Tan, discussed government pilot projects addressing women’s food security and land ownership. Climate and entrepreneurship leaders, convened by Ratna Kartadjoemena, also discussed models to advance women’s entrepreneurship.

We were especially proud to visit Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service Asia Pacific. We had illuminating conversations with Director of Asian Studies Yuhki Tajima and Policy Lab Director Scott Guggenheim.

Read more using the link in our bio. by @georgetown_wps

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5 months ago

We are honored to announce that the Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security has been awarded the Francesca Tardioli International Award from @sapienzaroma @corsoaltaformazione.sapienza and @italymfa

GIWPS was recognized for our “significant and special contribution to the implementation of the Women, Peace and Security Agenda.”

This award holds special meaning. It is named in memory of the late H.E. Francesca Tardioli, a trailblazing Italian diplomat and a steadfast champion of UN Security Council Resolution 1325. Ambassador Tardioli’s career was defined by her commitment to multilateralism and her belief that sustainable peace is only possible when women are at the center of mediation and conflict resolution.

At GIWPS, our mission has always been to bridge the gap between evidence-based research and global policy. From our work on the #WPSindex to our advocacy for women in peace processes from Afghanistan to Ukraine, we remain dedicated to the vision that Ambassador Tardioli championed.

As GIWPS Associate Professor and Gender Certificate Coordinator S Ayse Kadayifci- Orellana said when she accepted the award on behalf of GIWPS: “This award is not only about what has been achieved; it is about what must still be done. We dedicate this award to the women across the world who—often without recognition and under extraordinarily difficult circumstances—continue to hold communities together.”

We are grateful to our incredible staff who make this work possible: Melanne Verveer Carla Koppell Jessica Smith Allida Black Haleema Hasan Rachel George Vicka Heidt S Ayse Kadayifci- Orellana Anna Tuohey Kelly J. Shannon Emma Guyette Kimberly Brody Hart Gihan Elhadidy Ana Lejava Tamara Bah Sarah Rutherford Michelle Snyder Brady Alexandra Gopin Colleen McMahon Rebecca Radle Helen Rocker Melissa Pasos Shields Riya Ou and our many talented fellows and student assistants.

#WomenPeaceSecurity #WPS #UNSCR1325 #GIWPS Diplomacy FrancescaTardioli GenderEquality by @georgetown_wps

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5 months ago

We are thrilled to announce that GIWPS Executive Director Melanne Verveer has once again been recognized in @washingtonianmag’s list of the 500 Most Influential People of 2026.

This annual list honors the experts and advocates driving critical policy debates in the nation’s capital. Amb. Verveer was recognized for her unparalleled leadership in international affairs, specifically for her career-long dedication to placing women at the center of peace and security.

In a year of shifting global priorities, Amb. Verveer has remained a steadfast advocate for women on the frontlines of conflict. Her work ensures that gender equality isn’t just a talking point, but a strategic imperative for global stability.

Congratulations to everyone recognized this year, and to the thousands of advocates in Washington and beyond whose vital work happens behind the scenes.

Read the full list using the link in our bio.

#Washingtonian500 #WomenPeaceSecurity #Georgetown #PolicyInfluencers #InclusiveLeadership by @georgetown_wps

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5 months ago