Is the Arab Spring Bad for Women?
Isobel Coleman argues that in Libya, Egypt, and elsewhere, overthrowing male dominance could be harder than overthrowing a dictator.
See more in Libya, Egypt, Democracy and Human Rights, Political Movements, Women
The Women and Foreign Policy program is a major component of CFR's Civil Society, Markets, and Democracy initiative. The objective of the Women and Foreign Policy program is to bring the status of women firmly into the mainstream foreign policy debate. Thanks in part to its efforts, there is now broad understanding of the importance of women's empowerment to a host of development, health, security, and other global priorities.
The program's current areas of focus include:
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Isobel Coleman argues that in Libya, Egypt, and elsewhere, overthrowing male dominance could be harder than overthrowing a dictator.
See more in Libya, Egypt, Democracy and Human Rights, Political Movements, Women
Gayle Tzemach Lemmon discusses an innovative program in northern India, where one in two girls is wed before the age of 18, that is paying girls to stay unmarried and helping to lower the rate of child marriage.
Gayle Tzemach Lemmon examines what Hamid Karzai's request for international aid until 2030—well past the 2014 date on which U.S. troops are scheduled to exit—means for Afghan women.
See more in Afghanistan, Wars and Warfare, Women, Foreign Aid
Gayle Tzemach Lemmon says Afghan women share Americans' desire to end the longest U.S. war, but a peace that leaves women out will not last.
See more in United States, Afghanistan, Wars and Warfare, Women
This meeting was presented by the International Institutions and Global Governance Program and the Women and Foreign Policy Program.
See more in Liberia, Colombia, Bosnia/Herzegovina, Afghanistan, Wars and Warfare, International Peace and Security, Women
This meeting was presented by the International Institutions and Global Governance Program and the Women and Foreign Policy Program.
See more in Liberia, Colombia, Bosnia/Herzegovina, Afghanistan, Wars and Warfare, International Peace and Security, Women
Gayle Tzemach Lemmon interviews Ameerah Al-Taweel on why Saudi Arabia's women won't accept a reversal on equal rights.
See more in Saudi Arabia, Democracy and Human Rights, Women
Isobel Coleman argues that a stable, prosperous Libya undergoing a process of democratization will enhance the chance of successful transitions in neighboring countries such as Tunisia and Egypt.
See more in Libya, Civil Society, Economic Development, Political Movements
This meeting was part of the Women and Foreign Policy Roundtable Series, which was organized by CFR's Civil Society, Markets, and Democracy Program.
See more in Afghanistan, Wars and Warfare, Civil Society, Political Movements, Women
Gayle Tzemach Lemmon says that the Nobel Peace Prize committee's acknowledgment of the role of women in peacemaking should bolster the cause of women in Afghanistan who are struggling for democracy.
See more in Afghanistan, Democracy and Human Rights, Peacekeeping, Women
In awarding the prize to three women activists, the Nobel committee is honoring the fact that women's full participation in society is essential to peace, says CFR's Isobel Coleman.
See more in Liberia, Yemen, Democracy and Human Rights, Women
With the United States eager to withdraw from Afghanistan and reconciliation with the Taliban considered key to any peace process, Afghan women's rights are once again in question, writes CFR's Gayle Tzemach Lemmon.
See more in Afghanistan, Women
Gayle Tzemach Lemmon says that King Abdullah's granting the right to vote to Saudi Arabian women is another sign that the spirit of reform blowing through the region is making it increasingly hard to defend women's lack of basic rights.
See more in Saudi Arabia, Democracy and Human Rights, Women
Investment in maternal health in Afghanistan provides a cost-effective way to promote strategic U.S. foreign policy objectives. As part of a responsible drawdown, the United States should continue its commitments to improving maternal health programs.
See more in Afghanistan, Health, Women
Gayle Tzemach Lemmon discusses Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's address to APEC's Women and the Economy Summit.
See more in Asia, Economic Development, Women
Gayle Tzemach Lemmon asks, "... will women's rights be negotiated away in the quest to reach a graceful exit - or, in fact, any kind of exit, in Afghanistan?"
See more in Afghanistan, 9/11, Wars and Warfare, Women
Gayle Tzemach Lemmon argues that the United States needs to wind down the war in Afghanistan in a way that includes Afghan men and women fighting quietly for progress.
See more in Afghanistan, Nation Building, Society and Culture
Isobel Coleman and Gayle Tzemach Lemmon say the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan places maternal health programs for Afghan women in jeopardy.
See more in Afghanistan, Wars and Warfare, Health, Women
Gayle Tzemach Lemmon says that while Secretary Clinton's commitment to keeping women front and center in Afghanistan is clear, the White House's interest in deploying political capital on Afghan women's behalf is far less certain.
See more in Afghanistan, Wars and Warfare, Women, U.S. Strategy and Politics
Scaling back the U.S. commitment in Afghanistan will yield a peace dividend, but only when Social Security and Medicare spending are controlled will the U.S. be able to refocus on domestic priorities, says CFR'S Gayle Tzemach Lemmon.
See more in Afghanistan, U.S. Strategy and Politics
For more on what the United States and others can do to foster open, prosperous, and stable societies, visit CSM&D.