Women and Foreign Policy Program

About the Women and Foreign Policy Program

About the Program

The Women and Foreign Policy program analyzes how addressing gender equality advances U.S. foreign policy objectives, including prosperity, stability, and security. Major financial institutions, such as the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, have concluded that women’s participation in the economy reduces poverty and stimulates economic growth. Research demonstrates that women’s political participation strengthens democracy and leads to greater policy focus on education, social welfare, and gender equality. Higher levels of gender equality are also associated with lower risk of conflict and higher incidence of sustainable peace. Furthermore, investment in women’s health and education leads to a vast range of improved outcomes on issues such as child survival, maternal mortality, child marriage, and HIV/AIDS. Yet leaders often fail to take proactive steps to ensure the full participation of women in the economy, government, and social well being.

In the twenty-first century, no country can get ahead without harnessing the full potential of all its citizens. Eliminating gender inequality is not only a human rights issue—it is a strategic imperative that advances U.S. interests in global prosperity and stability. The Women and Foreign Policy program informs policymakers, opinion leaders, and the public about the relationship between gender equality and U.S. foreign policy objectives, through scholarship, briefings, congressional testimony, meetings, and the Women Around the World blog.

Women and Foreign Policy Program Advisory Council

Founded in 2002 by Jewelle Bickford, the Women and Foreign Policy Advisory Council consists of prominent business, philanthropy, media, and academic leaders from across the United States who have been instrumental in raising funds for the program, and who are an important means of dissemination for the project’s findings. Supporters include:

Linda Addison
Jewelle Bickford
Lucy C. Billingsley
Wendy Breck
Laura Breyer
Mayree C. Clark
Linda C. Coughlin
Kathleen Doyle
Connie K. Duckworth
Katie Ford
Barbara Friedman
Linda Gottlieb
Agnes Gund
Marlene Hess
Elizabeth Hochman
Diane D. Jacobsen
Lou Anne K. Jensen
Susan Jonas
Ann F. Kaplan
Jane Katcher
Maria E. Lagomasino
Edith Langner
Rose P. Lynch
Jean M. Martin
Bonnie McElveen-Hunter
Janet C. McKinley
Agnes Metzger
Sandy Meyer
Sally Minard
Joyce L. Moss
Susan Nitze
Sarah B. O'Hagan
Barbara S. Perlmutter
Sarah Perot
Holly Peterson
Marnie S. Pillsbury
Bonnie Potter
Amy Regan
Rosemary L. Ripley
Diana R. Rockefeller
Lynn Shanahan
Anne Stetson
Masuda Sultan
Nicki Tanner
Barbara A. Taylor
Diana L. Taylor
Hutham Olayan
Patricia Weinbach
Marissa C. Wesely
Anita V. Wien 

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