Find out where women around the world wield political power - and why it matters.
Find out where women around the world wield political power - and why it matters.
Women at the Table
Discover the stories of women who have contributed to peace and security processes around the world.
Alaa Murabit
Libya
Alaa Murabit founded the Voice of Libyan Women, a nonprofit to empower those caught in the Libyan conflict. She is a Sustainable Development Goal advocate.
Alise Mofrej
Syria
Alise Mofrej is a Syrian politician and member of the Geneva negotiations team of the Syrian opposition’s High Negotiations Committee. She leads the opposition’s efforts to seek the release of all detainees unlawfully held in Syria
Anne-Marie Slaughter
U.S. Diplomat
Anne-Marie Slaughter is the president and CEO of New America. She previously served as director of policy planning at the U.S. State Department, the first woman to serve in that position.
Avril Haines
U.S. Diplomat
Avril Haines was the first woman to serve as White House deputy national security advisor and as deputy director of the CIA.
Bonnie Jenkins
U.S. Diplomat
Bonnie Jenkins is a former Department of State special envoy and coordinator for threat reduction programs in the Bureau of International Security and Nonproliferation and served as the State Department’s lead for the 2010-2016 Nuclear Security Summits.
Caroline Atkinson
U.S. Diplomat
Caroline Atkinson served as White House deputy national security advisor for international economics in the Barack Obama administration.
Dima Moussa
Syria
Dima Moussa is vice president of the Syrian National Coalition and a founding member of the Syrian Women’s Political Movement and the Syrian National Council. She previously served as a spokesperson for the Revolutionary Council of Homs.
Elizabeth Sherwood-Randall
U.S. Diplomat
Elizabeth Sherwood-Randall previously served as deputy secretary of the U.S. Department of Energy and as White House coordinator for defense policy, countering weapons of mass destruction, and arms control.
Ellen Johnson Sirleaf
Liberia
Ellen Johnson Sirleaf served as president of Liberia from 2006 to 2017 and was the first elected female head of state in Africa. She was awarded the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize in recognition of her work to ensure women’s participation in peace-building.
Frances Townsend
U.S. Diplomat
Frances Townsend is a former White House homeland security and terrorism advisor to President George W. Bush, chair of the Homeland Security Council, and federal prosecutor in the U.S. Department of Justice.
Heather Higginbottom
U.S. Diplomat
Heather Higginbottom previously served as the first female U.S. deputy secretary of state for management and resources.
Jendayi E. Frazer
U.S. Diplomat
Jendayi E. Frazer is a former U.S. assistant secretary of state for African affairs and senior director for African affairs on the National Security Council staff. She served as the first female U.S. ambassador to South Africa.
Kay Bailey Hutchison
U.S. Diplomat
Kay Bailey Hutchison is the U.S. permanent representative to NATO. She previously served as the first-ever female U.S. senator from Texas and on the Senate Armed Services Committee.
Kori Schake
U.S. Diplomat
Kori Schake previously served as senior policy advisor for the 2008 John McCain presidential campaign, on the White House National Security Council staff, and as deputy director for policy planning at the U.S. Department of State.
Leymah Gbowee
Liberia
Leymah Gbowee founded the Women of Liberia Mass Action for Peace, which was critical in bringing an end to the Second Liberian Civil War in 2003. She was awarded the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize for her efforts to end the war.
Lisa Monaco
U.S. Diplomat
Lisa Monaco is a distinguished senior fellow at the NYU School of Law's Reiss Center on Law and Security and former White House homeland security and counterterrorism advisor.
Miriam Coronel-Ferrer
the Philippines
Miriam Coronel Ferrer became the first-ever female chief negotiator to sign a final peace accord in 2014 when the government of the Philippines reached an agreement with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front.
Monica McWilliams
Northern Ireland
Monica McWilliams organized women across Catholic-Protestant lines in peace negotiations in Northern Ireland and formed the Northern Ireland Women’s Coalition, which introduced critical provisions into the Good Friday Agreement.
Rigoberta Menchú Tum
Guatemala
Rigoberta Menchú Tum is a K’iche’ peace activist from Guatemala. She pursued justice for indigenous groups who suffered human rights violations during the Guatemalan Civil War and was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1992 for her efforts.
Rose Gottemoeller
U.S. Diplomat
Rose Gottemoeller is a former deputy secretary-general of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). She previously served as undersecretary for arms control and international security at the U.S. Department of State.
Rosemary DiCarlo
U.S. Diplomat
Rosemary DiCarlo is the undersecretary-general for political and peace-building affairs at the United Nations and a former U.S. deputy permanent representative to the United Nations.
Tawakkol Karman
Yemen
Tawakkol Karman is the founder of Women Journalists Without Chains, an organization promoting civil rights. In 2011, she was the first Arab woman to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for her work to advance peaceful protests and women’s rights.
Tzipi Livni
Israel
Tzipi Livni is a former Israeli foreign minister, the second woman to hold that post, and the first woman to have held eight cabinet posts. She was Israel’s chief negotiator during the 2014 negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian territories.
Wendy Sherman
U.S. Diplomat
Wendy Sherman previously served as the first female U.S. undersecretary of state for political affairs and led the U.S. team in nuclear negotiations with Iran.
Zahira Kamal
Palestinian territories
Zahira Kamal is the first woman to lead a Palestinian political party. She previously served as minister of women’s affairs and was one of three women to participate in the 1990 Israel-Palestinian territories negotiations.
Closing the gender gap in the workforce could add a $28 trillion to the global GDP.
Closing the gender gap in the workforce could add a $28 trillion to the global GDP.
Most countries still have laws that make it harder for women to work than men.
Most countries still have laws that make it harder for women to work than men.