At the highest levels of the U.S. government, women are increasingly occupying high-ranking, visible power positions in national security and foreign policy. There have been great strides in recent decades, but it is also clear that much more needs to be done to support women’s leadership.

The new Women in International Security (WIIS) Progress Report on Women in Peace and Security Careers: US Executive Branch is the first report to examine women’s representation and career experiences in international security in the U.S. Government sector. The report includes a series of key findings and recommendations from these extensive discussions with women about representation, leadership, mentoring, and work-life balance. A panel of USIP and WIIS experts will discuss the report’s implications and the next steps to fulfilling its recommendations. Please join us for a working lunch and world cafe discussion session.

To view the full report, please visit: http://wiis.georgetown.edu/

This event will feature the following speakers:

Inquiries
Please contact Ryan McClanahan at 202-429-3819 or rmcclanahan@usip.org with any general questions about this event.

Washington DC — Women In International Security (WIIS) announced the launch of its Global Leadership Council, a select group of women representing the highest levels of achievement in international security, who share a strong commitment to advancing women’s opportunities throughout the world. Nine high-level women leaders in the global security field – including a current and former head of state—have joined the Council, whose purpose is to highlight women role models and their contributions to peace and security, and to inspire the next generation of women leaders.
Global Leadership Council Members described why they joined the WIIS initiative. Angela Kane commented, “I strongly believe in giving women voice, visibility and decision-making power in all societies. Women in leadership positions will advance the peace agenda, since women have historically been key agents in transforming a culture of violence into a culture of peace.” Carolyn McAskie added, “Again and again it has been proven that women bring a very different perspective to peace and security work than men do, and not just because they are often not the ones waging war. Peace processes that leave out women will not be sustainable, and that is why I am honored to be part of a process that will foster not only women’s participation, but women’s leadership.”

The inaugural members of the newly established Global Leadership Council are as follows:

Members of the Women In International Security (WIIS) Global Leadership Council

Madeleine Albright
Chair, Albright Stonebridge Group and Albright Capital Management LLC.
Former U.S. Secretary of State

Christiane Amanpour
Chief International Correspondent, CNN

Betty Bigombe
Global ambassador, peace advocate, and mediator for reconciliation, ceasefire, and amnesty in Uganda

Angela Kane
Under Secretary-General for Management, United Nations

Yoriko Kawaguchi
Co-Chair of International Commission on Nuclear Non-Proliferation and Disarmament, and former Foreign Minister

Carolyn McAskie
Former Assistant Secretary-General for Peacebuilding Support at the United Nations, and former Special Representative of the Secretary-General for the United Nations Peacekeeping Operation in Burundi

Elisabeth Rehn
Former Minister of Defense and former Minister of Equality Affairs in Finland

Mary Robinson
Executive Director of the Ethical Globalization Initiative, and former President of Ireland

Ellen Johnson Sirleaf
President of Liberia

In 2010, WIIS will launch its Report on Women in International Security in the Executive Branch, documenting women’s representation, career paths, and challenges in the U.S. Government. The study is the second WIIS report on the status of women in the field. The first report, Women in United Nations Peace Operations: Increasing the Leadership Opportunities, was released in 2008. WIIS uses its research findings to develop needed leadership programs for women, and to work in partnership with individuals and organizations around the world to advocate for women’s involvement in peace and security.
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Women In International Security (WIIS) is the only global network actively advancing women’s leadership, at all stages of their careers, in the international peace and security field. WIIS has 1,500 members—women and men—in 47 countries from academia, think tanks, the diplomatic corps, the intelligence community, the military, government, non-governmental organizations, international organizations, the media, and the private sector. WIIS maintains active, collaborative relationships with a network of chapters throughout the United States and international affiliates around the world. For more information, visit our website at: http://wiis.georgetown.edu/

This I know. This I believe with all my heart. If we want a free and peaceful world, if we want to make the deserts bloom and man grow to greater dignity as a human being-we can do it!
- Eleanor Roosevelt , first President and Chair of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights (1946-1952)

Join our WIIS “Do It” Challenge!

The Executive Board of WIIS summons you to participate with them in a watershed initiative! Join us as we seek to fund aggressive advances for women in peace and security in “deserts” worldwide. Now is the time to move into new territories, new venues, and new opportunities. We ask you to connect with us as we seek to promote a more dignified, more peaceful, and thus, more prosperous new world.

We have ourselves committed to bringing forward $400,000 through our combined “watering” efforts this coming year! We hope that you help us meet that leadership challenge with gifts to “grow greater” from your circles of influence for a total goal of $800K.

Let’s begin 2010 with a determination to work collectively – now 5,500 individuals strong – towards a goal we once thought impossible. We want to hear from you. Where do you think we should be looking for the resources to sustain and expand our shared efforts? Do you have a list of colleagues that you think would benefit from WIIS membership services or who have and are ready to make an inspired investment in WIIS’ enlarged future?

Join us today by sending your funding ideas and suggestions, as well as your gifts online following the instructions here or with a check payable to Women In International Security, located at 3600 N. Street, NW – Georgetown University – Washington, DC 20007.

Just like water makes the desert burst forth with life, we together, can make peace and security spring forward to all nations through our particular, special, and passionate vocation – advancing the role of women in peace and security.

Like Eleanor Roosevelt did in the post-war era, we can change the deserts of destruction into blossoming fields of human dignity. Together WIIS can “Do It.”

When you cease to make a contribution you begin to die.
- Eleanor Roosevelt

WIIS proudly welcomes six esteemed women leaders to the newly created Global Leadership Council:

• Ellen Sirleaf Johnson, President of Liberia
• Betty Bigombe, global ambassador, peace advocate and mediator for reconciliation, ceasefire, and amnesty in Uganda
• Carolyn McAskie, former Assistant Secretary-General for Peacebuilding Support at the United Nations and former Special Representative of the Secretary-General for the United Nations Peacekeeping Operation in Burundi
• Elisabeth Rehn, former Minister of Defense and former Minister of Equality Affairs in Finland
• Mary Robinson, first woman President of Ireland and former United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
• Angela Kane, Under Secretary-General for Management, United Nations

In every job-seeking pursuit, there comes a point—usually after spending countless hours sifting through job postings, perfecting resumes, writing cover letters, sending follow-up emails, and painfully long periods of waiting, frequently reciprocated by no reply–that one realizes open-job postings often prove to be fruitless ventures. It is perhaps something we all must experience for ourselves before we can fully appreciate the real opportunities of already being “in” the so-called network. Only after experiencing the advantage of having inside connections, something that may enable us to forge a direct route to landing a job, do we begin to see the true value of developing and maintaining a strong network. Cultivating a set of professional relationships, however, is no easy task—and yet by far one of the most important ingredients of success in the professional realm.

In preparing to take my first step into the working world of Washington, D.C., I was aware of the importance of turning to my professional and personal networks. Yet I knew that breaking into the field of international relations at the center of the nation’s capital would present new, diverse challenges. More importantly, I was from Toronto, and recognized that I could no longer rely on my paper rolodex replete with Canadian colleagues and acquaintances; I would need to invest in a Washington, D.C. rolodex, otherwise known as the Blackberry, to which I would need to add a vast array of political and policy contacts. Recognizing that creating such relationships could take years, and having sent my resume to dozens of individuals, organizations and corporations without receiving a positive reply, I knew I had to find a new way to forge connections with people quickly and in a productive manner. The end goal was simple: to schedule a handful of informational meetings with people who might hold the key to certain job opportunities. The means to that end, of course, began with how to find those people who held such keys.

I started where most people looking for a job begin: online. I browsed the internet in search of organizations related to my pursuit, and quickly came across Women In International Security (WIIS). Having two common links to this group, firstly being a woman, and secondly being interested in international security, I decided it would be worth the membership fee to join for the year. While I was excited to have become a WIIS member, I soon realized that many of the networking perks of the organization revolved around free events, meetings, and happy hours all set in D.C. As I was still based in Toronto, I had to find another way to utilize the network from abroad. So: I decided to simply write to every person in the database who seemed to share similar interests or goals that were related to my academic and career pursuits. Although strapped for money, I knew it would be in my best interest to head to D.C. for as long as I could afford to meet with anyone who responded to my emails.

I decided that my approach should be nothing short of ambitious, so I targeted roughly 100 women within the WIIS database, and wrote individual emails inquiring about informational meetings upon my arrival to D.C. With no expectations other than to perhaps receive a few responses, I was utterly surprised when my inbox started flooding with emails. Several WIIS Women started responding, letting me know that they were more than happy to take the time to meet with me and be of help in anyway they could. Indeed, over 55 women not only responded to me, but also made generous offers – from offering career advice, to sharing the lessons they have learned along the way, putting me in touch with others, offering to forward my resume, setting up phone interviews, and agreeing to meet with me in D.C. to convey pieces of wisdom that might relate to my own future aspirations

I arrived in Washington, D.C., and checked into the first of many hostels. I was anxious and nervous to get going, and would soon realize how overwhelming it was to coordinate so many meetings in such a short period of time. Some days I met with more than six or seven women, and hence tried my best to navigate the city and arrive on time, as I was well aware of how lucky I was to have even a few minutes of these women’s time. Within a six-day span I met with more than twenty women for quick coffee chats or much appreciated dinners and drinks.

At the Project on National Security Reform, I had the pleasure of meeting Frances Hardin, who not only introduced me to nearly everyone at the organization but insisted I sit in on one of the regular meetings on the Pentagon’s security issues. On Capitol Hill, I sat in on a lunch meeting on healthcare with Allison Adams-Alwine and her colleagues. Being my first experience on the Hill, I am most certain they could not have imagined how excited I was to be included. Other highlights of my trip included a full round table meeting at the U.S. Civilian Research & Development Foundation (CRDF) with Chrissy Hoffman, Laurel Kemper, Sarah Polaski, and Brandy Brooks, all of whom took the time to listen to my mission and lend me their advice. I was fortunate enough to have dinner with Erin Marks the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA). I met with Junko Kobayashi from the Stimpson Center and Kezia McKeague from the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. I had meetings with Chris Lindborg at the British American Security Information Council, as well as Marie Laure Poire at WIIS who spent over an hour giving me more connections and advice than I can thank her for. These experiences served to reinforce my excitement and strengthen my resolve to be in D.C.

I also appreciated all the other WIIS members, many who are not named here, who took the time to respond to my emails and offer whatever help they could. While timing did not allow meetings with everyone, I am thankful to members, including Pauline Baker, Denise Bertholin, Alice Bernardi, Brooke Darby, Alix Boucher, Kathleen Durkin, Deepti Choubey, Jodi Liss, Kalsoom Lakhani, Ariana Monti, Sarah Platts, Kristina Kempkey, Melanie Greenberg, Anne Harrington, Caitlin Potratz, Peggy Knudson, Marina Ottaway, Kristina Jeffers, Jennifer Park, Erica Marat, Emily Goldberg, and Chantal Oudraat, who took the time to correspond with me and assist me in countless ways.

In the wake of my whirlwind tour of D.C., I spent about a month composing follow-up emails, investigating the plethora of suggestions I received, and sending my resume around as much as possible. At the end of the month, I received an email from the Truman National Security Project (TNSP) requesting a phone interview after having received my resume from a Truman contact. I was excited beyond words that something tangible had come of my long quest. It was at that moment that it became quite clear to me the power of the network: WIIS gave me the opportunity to make associations with professionals in my field of interest, and allowed me to forge a network in a city, which I neither physically located in nor had even visited. I would recommend to anyone who is looking to get started in the field of international security, who desires a change in their career path, or who is simply interested in making new friends with shared interests, to utilize this expansive network of exceptional women and men. I cannot thank WIIS enough for leading me to a summer internship in D.C. with the Truman National Security Project, an outstanding organization, and for the opportunity to have met with so many impressive, influential, generous WIIS leaders.

I am sincerely grateful to the whole WIIS community and am eager to build and expand upon this incredible network of wonderful people who make up this unique organization.

Caroline Jenkins is pursuing a master’s degree in international relations with a concentration in conflict security from the Graduate School in International Relations at The New School in New York. She recently completed a summer internship at the Truman National Security Project where she worked as an associate to the Director of Membership and Director of Development, helping to plan, organize and manage their largest national security leaders Annual Conference. Prior to her Truman experience, Caroline served as Research Coordinator for McWhirter & Associates, Media and Public Relations Associate at Vanessa NK Media and PR Inc., and Development Associate at the Guggenheim Museum in New York.

WIIS is delighted that Melanie Greenberg, President of the Cypress Fund for Peace and Security, and Linda Staheli, Senior Associate at the U.S. Civilian Research and Development Foundation, will serve as temporary Co-Presidents of WIIS.

WIIS is also very grateful for the support and dedication of the Executive Board members whose term ended in 2009:

• Sheba Crocker, Chief of Staff for Deputy Secretary of State James Steinberg, U.S. Department of State
• Sue Ramanathan, Deputy Assistant Secretary, Legislative Affairs, U.S. Department of Homeland Security
• Tara Sonenshine, Vice President for Planning and Outreach, U.S. Institute of Peace
• Ruth Wedgwood, Director, International Law and Organization Program, SAIS Johns Hopkins University

During the last six months, WIIS welcomed six new Executive Board members:

• Janine Davidson, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Plans, U.S. Department of Defense
• Lenora Peters Gant, Director of ODNI Office of the Intelligence Community Centers of Academic Excellence, Office of the Director of National Intelligence
• Mary Alice Hayward, Director, North American Strategy, AREVA, Inc.
• Dalia Mogahed, Senior Analyst and Executive Director at the Gallup Center for Muslim Studies
• Tammy Schultz, Director of National Security and Joint Warfare and Associate Professor of Strategic Studies at the United States Marine Corps War College
• Meredith Woodruff, Vice-President for Special Programs at ABRAXAS Corporation

WIIS Women Honor Roll
In 2009, WIIS established a WIIS Women Honor Roll to include former members of the Executive Board and the previous Advisory Council, former Executive Directors, and other key supporters of WIIS to recognize and highlight service to the organization. The WIIS Board and staff deeply appreciates the long history of support and involvement of the Women Honor Roll Members.

WIIS members will be able to participate in the following ways:

* Add personal or professional information on “My Page”
* Post & contribute to discussion topics in the “Forum”
* Create and join “Groups”
* Respond to “Blog” entries
* Chapters & International Affiliate leaders can set up their own group page, providing a space for group members to interactvia forum and wall comments
* Post events of interest in the “Events” section
* Post pictures, videos, or audio files
* Chat online with other users who are currently logged into the site

The Ning network operates in conjunction with the current WIIS website and existing database, and adds an interactive component to the WIIS community. Your Ning account will be set up as a separate platform from our existing membership database.

To access the WIIS-Ning network, members need to set up an account which consists of creating a username and password and filling out personal details (e.g. geographic location, primary area of expertise, current job position, and employment affiliation). Members are still required to join WIIS, pay the membership fees, and fill out the expertise form.

To create your Ning profile and access the WIIS-Ning network, go to: http://wiisnetwork.ning.com/.

Should you have any questions, do not hesitate to contact us.

The first ever woman appointed Deputy Commanding Officer in the Irish army will help lead the latest peace-keeping mission to Chad, it has been revealed.

Commandant Maureen O’Brien, from Galway, takes up the senior role in the 100th Infantry Battalion as it prepares to depart for overseas duty.

The 48-year-old University College Galway graduate, who now lives in Dublin, joined the Defence Forces in 1981.