Women Deliver 100 - International Confederation of Midwives

WOMEN DELIVER 100
the most inspiring individuals delivering
for girls and women
To celebrate the 100th anniversary of International Women’s Day on March 8, 2011, Women Deliver is
releasing the “Women Deliver 100,” our list of the hundred most inspiring people who have delivered
for girls and women. This list, organized alphabetically, recognizes women and men, both prominent
and lesser known, who have committed themselves to improving the lives of girls and women around
the world. Honorees derive from the fields of health, human rights, politics, economics, education,
journalism, and philanthropy, and represent a great diversity of geographic and cultural backgrounds. The 100
honorees were selected from among hundreds of potentials and feature some of the most intrepid, committed, and
results-driven people in the world.
Alphabetical Order, By Last Name
Eman AbdElRahman, Egypt
Hawa Abdi, Somalia
Queen Rania Al-Abdullah, Jordan
Fazle Hasan Abed, Bangladesh
Lynsey Addario, United States
Christiane Amanpour, UK
Zainah Anwar, Malaysia
Michelle Bachelet, Chile
Marge Berer, United Kingdom
Ela Bhatt, India
Mabel Bianco, Argentina
Betty Bigombe, Uganda
Justine Masika Bihamba, Democratic
Republic of Congo
Sarah Brown, UK
Christy Turlington Burns, United
States
Laura Bush, USA
Yvonne Chaka Chaka, South Africa
Hillary Clinton, USA
Rebecca Cook, Canada
Juliette Coulibaly, Côte d’Ivoire
Marietou Diarra, Senegal
Lydia Alpízar Durán, Costa Rica
Shirin Ebadi, Iran
Nabila Espanioly, Israel
Mahmoud Fathalla, Egypt
Bisi Adeleye-Fayemi, Nigeria
Mikkel Vestergaard Frandsen,
Denmark
Janette Loreto Garin, Philippines
Melinda Gates, United States
Bience Gawanas, Namibia
Helene Gayle, USA
Leymah Gbowee, Liberia
Adrienne Germain, USA
Rafia Ghubash, Bahrain
Rebecca Gomperts, Netherlands
Geeta Rao Gupta, USA
Catherine Hamlin, Australia
Sejal Hathi, USA
Emily Heroy, USA
Wajeha Al-Huwaider, Saudi Arabia
Edna Adan Ismail, Somalia
Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Nigeria
Kasha Jacqueline, Uganda
Guo Jianmei, China
Andrea Jung, United States
Imtiaz Kamal, Pakistan
Carolyne Kemunto, Kenya
Imane Khachani, Morocco
Ban Ki-moon, South Korea
Anuradha Koirala, Nepal
Nicholas Kristof, United States
Inkosi Kwataine, Malawi
Marta Lamas, Mexico
Xie Lihua, China
Wangari Maathai, Kenya
Graça Machel, Mozambique
Marina Mahathir, Malaysia
Somaly Mam, Cambodia
Mary John Mananzan, Philippines
María Consuelo Mejía, Mexico
HH Sheikha Mozah bint Nasser al
Missned, Qatar
Denis Mukwege, Democratic
Republic of Congo
Chouchou Namegabe, Democratic
Republic of the Congo
Shada Mohammed Nasser, Yemen
Woineshet Zebene Negash, Ethiopia
Martha Sanchez Nestor, Mexico
Dorothy Ngoma, Malawi
Sarah Nkhoma, Malawi
Kakenya Ntaiya, Kenya
Rolake Odetoyinbo, Nigeria
Olufunmilayo Olopade, Nigeria
Marina Pisklakova-Parker, Russia
Jacqueline Pitanguy, Brazil
Ai-jen Poo, USA
Zahra Rahnavard, Iran
Kavita Ramdas, India
Nadia Ribadeneira, Ecuador
Mary Robinson, Ireland
Casimira Rodríguez, Bolivia
Nawal El Saadawi, Egypt
Fred Sai, Ghana
Zainab Salbi, Iraq
Sadiqa Basiri Saleem, Afghanistan
Sima Samar, Afghanistan
Saudatu Sani, Nigeria
Amartya Sen, India
Jill W. Sheffield, USA
Mu Sochua, Cambodia
Gloria Steinem, USA
Shershah Syed, Pakistan
Tatiana Therosme, Haiti
Karma Lekshe Tsomo, USA
Cristina Villarreal, Colombia
Oprah Winfrey, USA
Muhammad Yunus, Bangladesh
UNFPA’s Iconic Leaders: Nafis Sadik,
Pakistan; Thoraya Obaid, Saudi
Arabia
IPPF’s Changemakers: Gill Greer,
New Zealand; Carmen Barroso,
Brazil; Steven Sinding, USA
Scientific Visionaries: Étienne-Émile
Baulieu, France; Ian Frazer,
Australia; Pak-Chung Ho, China;
Robert G. Edwards, UK
European Champions: Tore Godal,
Norway; Bert Koenders,
Netherlands; Andrew Mitchell, UK
Heads of State: Jens Stoltenberg,
Norway; José Luis Rodríguez
Zapatero, Spain; Tarja Halonen,
Finland Ellen Johnson Sirleaf,
Liberia
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Eman AbdElRahman, Egypt
Blogger, Co-Founder of the Kolena Laila (“We are all Laila”) Initiative
Issue: Women’s rights and social media
How she delivers for women: Cairo-based blogger AbdElRahman is amplifying women’s voices across the Arab world.
In 2006, she helped found the Kolena Laila (“We are all Laila”) Initiative, which rallies bloggers across the region to
speak out about issues facing women in Arab societies. On one day each year, bloggers publish posts under the title
"We are all Laila," describing their experiences, interviewing mothers and sisters, airing frustrations and exposing
injustice. The project has attracted over 250 blog posts each year, with contributors from fourteen countries including
Palestine, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, and Libya. At only 26, AbdElRahman has built a virtual community fostering Arab
women’s self-expression and reflection, both a launching pad and a source of support for the region’s young feminist
writers.
Learn more: http://kolenalaila.com/en/organizers
Hawa Abdi, Somalia
Ob/gyn, Hospital Director, 2010 Glamour Woman of the Year
Issue: Health, education and security in Somalia
How she delivers for women: Abdi and her two daughters, both also doctors, run one of Somalia’s very few
functioning hospitals, providing free health care to women who face a barrage of challenges in this war torn country.
Abdi’s hospital has become a rare safe haven, and she supports some 90,000 Somalis - mostly women and children on her land, despite intense pressure from the nation’s Islamic militias. Abdi is committed to the education and
empowerment of her patients. She has established a school and an adult education center, and, to feed the small city
which has grown around her hospital, she has bought fishing boats and even organized family farms. Her title may be
simply Doctor, but in Somalia, she is a miracle-worker.
Learn more: http://www.dhaf.org/index.html
Queen Rania Al-Abdullah, Jordan
Queen of Jordan, Founder of Madrasati, Co-Founder and Global Co-Chair for 1GOAL
Issue: Girls’ education and empowerment
How she delivers for women: Jordan’s influential, tech-savvy Queen has leveraged her role in the
international spotlight to make a passionate, no-nonsense case for girls’ education worldwide. Her
organization, Madrasati, has helped reinvigorate Jordan’s schools, and she co-chairs 1Goal, which
campaigns for educational opportunities for children worldwide. Above all, she has been a fierce
and articulate champion of girls’ potential, arguing that educating and empowering girls – and
preventing early marriage and premature motherhood – sends a positive cascade through societies in the form of
economic growth, political stability, and improved health for everyone.
Learn more: http://www.queenrania.jo/#/home
Fazle Hasan Abed, Bangladesh
Founder and Chairman of BRAC
Issue: Women’s economic empowerment
How he delivers for women: Abed founded BRAC in 1972 and it has since grown into the world’s
largest development agency, working to lift millions of people out of poverty throughout Africa and
Asia –particularly women. Abed recognized early on that empowering girls and women is central to
alleviating poverty, and women have always provided the backbone of BRAC’s organization – 98
percent of the borrowers in its microfinance programs and more than 95 percent of its volunteers
are women. BRAC has enabled over 6 million people to access microfinance through village organizations, usually
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women-led and women-run, that have disbursed more than $5 billion in micro-loans– helping women start their own
businesses, generate income, and invest in their families’ health, nutrition and education. Together, Abed and BRAC
have proven that with the right tools, local women can transform their families and communities.
Learn more: http://www.brac.net/content/leadership-fazle-hasan-abed-founder-chairperson
Lynsey Addario, United States
Pulitzer Prize-winning photojournalist
Issue: Bearing witness to women’s lives
How she delivers for women: Addario has photographed women across the globe for over a
decade, producing haunting and galvanizing images of women’s lives from conflict zones to family
homes. Her photography has covered issues ranging from maternal mortality in Sierra Leone to the
lives of female soldiers in the US military, from victims of sexual assault in the Congo to the selfimmolation of women in Afghanistan. Last year, her images became the face of Women Deliver
2010, reflecting her uncanny ability to capture the strength and diversity of women who are delivering all over the
world for their families, communities, and nations. By turns breathtaking and disturbing, her work puts a face to
women’s experiences, making it impossible to look away, ignore, or forget.
Learn more: http://www.lynseyaddario.com/
Christiane Amanpour, UK
Journalist, Anchor of ABC News's This Week
Issue: Women in the media
How she delivers for women: In her time at CNN, Amanpour rose from an entry-level
assistant to chief foreign correspondent, covering nearly every major international story of
the past two decades, from the first Gulf War to Hurricane Katrina. She has taken her camera into some of the world’s
most dangerous environments, bringing back smart, in-depth stories and exclusive interviews with world leaders, work
she has continued as the anchor of ABC’s This Week. Amanpour has used her prominent position in the media to shine
a spotlight on the many injustices facing women around the world, from her coverage of women during the Bosnian
war to her reports from Afghanistan now. Her fearless reporting has made her both a role model and a voice for
women worldwide.
Learn more: http://abcnews.go.com/ThisWeek/christiane-amanpour-biography-anchor-week-christianeamanpour/story?id=11208824
Zainah Anwar, Malaysia
Founding Member of Sisters in Islam, Director of Musawah
Issue: Gender equality and women’s rights within Islam
How she delivers for women: Anwar is setting the record straight on women’s rights in Islam. In
1987, she and seven friends founded Sisters in Islam (SIS) to create a public voice of Muslim
women demanding equality and justice and to stop the use of Islam to justify laws and practices
that discriminate against women. SIS today runs legal clinics for women, petitions for the reform
of discriminatory laws, and argues for equal rights within marriage. In 2009, SIS initiated the
launch of Musawah, a global movement for equality and justice in the Muslim family. Over 250 activists, scholars and
policy makers from 47 countries attended the launch. “For there to be justice in the 21st century, there must be
equality. These values must be at the core of what it means to be Muslim today,” Anwar says, and she has dedicated
her life to turning those principles into reality.
Learn more: http://www.sistersinislam.org.my/BM/zainahcolumns.htm
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Michelle Bachelet, Chile
Executive Director of UN Women, Doctor, Former President of Chile
Issue: Gender equality and women’s empowerment
How she delivers for women: A lifelong activist who faced political persecution in her youth,
Bachelet was the first woman in Latin America to be appointed as Minister of Defense, and
eventually rose to become Chile’s first female President in 2006. Bachelet made gender equity a
centerpiece of her tenure and she has been an ardent advocate of women’s political, economic and reproductive
rights worldwide. In 2010, she became the first head of UN Women, tasked with ratcheting up the UN’s efforts on
gender equality and female empowerment worldwide. Given her history, she’s the right woman for the job.
Learn more: http://www.unwomen.org/about-us/executive-director/
Marge Berer, United Kingdom
Founder and Editor of Reproductive Health Matters, Chair of the International Consortium for Medical Abortion
Issue: Reproductive health and rights
How she delivers for women: As founder and editor of the journal Reproductive Health Matters, Berer has provided a
crucial forum for researchers and activists working to extend reproductive rights to all. At the landmark 1994
International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD), she helped shift the focus of population and
development work away from population control and toward the reproductive rights and needs of individuals –
helping launch a global movement promoting women’s reproductive health and rights. Whether she’s assessing new
research, blogging about reproductive health, or working to promote safe medical abortion as the Chair of the
International Consortium for Medical Abortion, Berer has never been afraid to speak up for the rights and health of
the world’s girls and women.
Learn more: http://www.rhmjournal.org.uk/about/editor.php
Ela Bhatt, India
Founder of the Self-Employed Women’s Association (SEWA), Co-Founder of Women's World Banking
Issue: Women’s empowerment and labor rights
How she delivers for women: When it comes to women’s labor, Bhatt is a visionary and a pioneer.
Over and over again, she has launched new ways for the poorest and most oppressed women
workers to organize and advocate for themselves. In 1972, she founded the Self-Employed
Women’s Association (SEWA) to fight the exploitation of self-employed women – the vegetable
vendors, weavers, and seamstresses who make up one of the world’s most unprotected labor forces. SEWA has since
organized over one million women to fight for labor rights and recognition. Bhatt also helped found Women's World
Banking, the world’s largest network of microfinance institutions, which serves more than 23 million clients and offers
women necessary financial services including savings, insurance and pension funds. She has empowered millions of
women to advocate for themselves, working to ensure that no woman’s work goes unrecognized or unpaid.
Learn more: http://www.sewa.org
Mabel Bianco, Argentina
Founder and Director of the Foundation for Studies and Research on Women (FEIM)
Issue: Sexual and reproductive rights
How she delivers for women: Bianco is a doctor, researcher, and reproductive health advocate who
revolutionized the Argentinean health system. During Argentina’s years of political instability,
women faced tremendous obstacles in accessing quality health care and services. In 1984, Bianco
joined the Health Ministry of the newly elected democratic government, where she successfully
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pushed to lift the national health system’s ban on family planning. She went on to direct the National AIDS Program,
where she highlighted women’s vulnerability to HIV infection. Since then, her influence has reached far beyond Latin
America. As Director of the Foundation for Studies and Research on Women she became a leading global authority on
the study of girls’ and women’s reproductive rights. A true trailblazer, Bianco is making sure that nothing stands
between a woman and the care she needs.
Learn more: http://nationalpress.org/programs-and-resources/bios/mabel-bianco/
Betty Bigombe, Uganda
Chief Mediator and Peace Negotiator, Former Member of Parliament
Issue: Conflict resolution
How she delivers for women: Over the past 18 years, the fearless Bigombe has faced down some of the most ruthless
militants in the world to help secure peace and stability for her people. The conflict in Uganda has lasted nearly 25
years, forced more than 1.8 million people into displacement camps, led to the abduction of an estimated 30,000 to
60,000 children, and caused an explosion of sexual violence. Bigombe, a former Ugandan parliamentarian, brokered
the first peace negotiations in 1993, and continues to mediate between the parties. Negotiators have called upon her
courage and expertise to assist with peace negotiations elsewhere, including in Sudan. Now a senior fellow at the
United States Institute of Peace, Bigombe is researching the impact of armed conflict on women and children. Her
strength and courage has brought hope to Ugandans, and proven the unimaginable power of women’s leadership
worldwide.
Learn more: http://www.aaionline.org/Alumni/AlumProfiles.aspx?alum=BettyBigombe
Justine Masika Bihamba, Democratic Republic of Congo
Founder of Synergie des Femmes pour les Victimes de Violences Sexuelles (SFVS)
Issue: Women’s rights and violence against women
How she delivers for women: Bihamba is the founder and coordinator of Synergie des Femmes pour
les Victimes de Violences Sexuelles (Women’s Synergy for Sexual Violence Victims), a coalition
mobilizing women to fight gender-based violence in the Democratic Republic of Congo. SFVS
provides medical care, counseling, legal services and job-skills training to rape survivors, supporting more than 2,200
women in 2009. The organization runs workshops to raise community awareness of the horrific consequences of
sexual violence, and “listening houses” where survivors can tell their stories. In 2006, Bihamba and SFVS helped pass a
bill increasing penalties for those who commit sexual violence. Though Bihamba and her family have been threatened
and brutally attacked in retribution for her work, she has persevered, fighting for the day when sexual violence in the
Congo will end, and all perpetrators will be held accountable for their crimes.
Learn more: http://www.maryknollogc.org/regional/africa/Together-with-Africa/womens-synergy-victims-sexualviolence.html
Sarah Brown, UK
Global Patron of the White Ribbon Alliance, Former First Lady of the UK, Founder and President of
PiggyBankKids
Issue: Maternal and child health
How she delivers for women: Around the world, a woman dies in childbirth every ninety seconds -and Brown has been a leading force in the global effort to end that tragedy. In 2002, Brown’s 10day-old daughter died, a personal calamity which drove her into advocacy. As the global patron of the White Ribbon
Alliance, she has fought to increase awareness of maternal mortality and funding for maternal and child health. During
her husband’s tenure as Prime Minister, she used her public role to speak out on behalf of the millions of women
around the world threatened with limited access to maternal health care, bringing their voices to the halls of power.
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Through her organization PiggyBankKids, she is shining a light on child and youth issues, and she remains a relentless
global voice on the injustice of maternal mortality.
Learn more: http://www.whiteribbonalliance.org/globalPatron.cfm
Christy Turlington Burns, United States
Founder of Every Mother Counts, Model, Maternal Health Advocate, Documentary Filmmaker
Issue: Maternal and reproductive health
How she delivers for women: Inspired by her own postpartum complication after the birth of
her daughter, Turlington Burns has emerged as a courageous advocate for maternal and
reproductive health. In 2010, she financed and directed No Woman No Cry, a documentary
which features the powerful stories of four at-risk pregnant women around the world. She is
bringing new attention to an old issue, and helping raise women’s voices where they’ve been silent too long.
Learn more: http://www.everymothercounts.org/
Laura Bush, USA
Former First Lady of the United States, Founder of the Laura W. Bush Institute for Women’s
Health
Issue: Women’s health and empowerment
How she delivers for women: Bush has used her place on the international stage to
advocate for the rights, health, and education of girls and women, both in the US and around the world. She has raised
awareness of and funding for heart disease and breast cancer – two of the top killers of women worldwide – and in
2007, she founded the Laura W. Bush Institute for Women’s Health. She has publicly supported women’s reproductive
rights despite opposition from many members of her own party. And as First Lady, she spoke out passionately for
women’s human rights in Afghanistan, and became a leading voice for global literacy programs, visiting schools around
the world to speak on the importance of girls’ education. Through her work, Bush has demonstrated that champions
for women’s health and rights transcend borders and party lines, and she has become a powerful voice for women
worldwide.
Learn more: http://www.whitehouse.gov/about/first-ladies/laurabush
Yvonne Chaka Chaka, South Africa
Singer and advocate
Issue: Women’s health
How she delivers for women: Chaka Chaka, Africa’s preeminent songstress, has lent her iconic voice
to the fight for women’s health and rights, speaking out about issues from maternal health to
HIV/AIDS to girls’ education. Through her charity, the Princess of Africa Foundation, she has raised
awareness of women’s role in the fight against malaria, which kills over 2,000 people in Africa every
day, the majority of them young children and pregnant mothers. She has reached out to the women who make up a
large percentage of frontline health workers, and to mothers, who as primary caretakers can enforce the use of bed
nets at home. She has used her pop star status to call on governments to commit to the UN’s Millennium
Development Goals, and she has been a persuasive, effective voice for Africa’s women and children.
Learn more: http://princessofafrica.com/yvonne-chaka-chaka
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Hillary Clinton, USA
Secretary of State, Democratic Presidential Candidate in 2008, Former Senator, Former
First Lady of the United States
Issue: Women’s rights and reproductive health
How she delivers for women: How to summarize what Clinton’s career has meant for
women around the world? A prescient advocate for children’s rights and welfare, she became an indispensable
champion of gender equality both at work and at home, and a staunch defender of reproductive rights. It is no
coincidence that her tenure as First Lady coincided with the passage of seminal policies for American women and
children. In 1995 her declaration that “it is no longer acceptable to discuss women's rights as separate from human
rights,” at the Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing, electrified the world. Her run for the US Presidency
made the prospect of a woman Commander-in-Chief seem not only possible, but inevitable. And in her tenure as
Secretary of State she has proven that she doesn’t mind ruffling a few feathers, speaking out forcefully on women’s
rights. In her long and truly remarkable career, Clinton has been a role model to millions, an indispensable voice, and
one of the most relentless advocates for women worldwide.
Learn more: http://www.state.gov/secretary/
Rebecca Cook, Canada
Chair in International Human Rights Law, University of Toronto
Issue: Women’s human rights and reproductive health
How she delivers for women: A legal scholar and leading voice on women’s human rights and
reproductive health, Cook has forcefully asserted the right of women to control their own bodies.
She is credited with laying the foundation for treating access to maternal healthcare as a human
right. And her most recent work investigates the ways in which gender stereotypes warp women’s treatment under
the law, arguing that such stereotypes violate women’s human rights and proposing ambitious strategies for
recognizing and eradicating them worldwide. Cook draws upon her knowledge of the law not only to spotlight gender
discrimination, but also to provide practical solutions to overcome it.
Learn more: http://www.law.utoronto.ca/faculty_content.asp?profile=14&cType=facMembers&itemPath=1/3/4/0/0
Juliette Coulibaly, Côte d'Ivoire
Midwife, Maternal Health Advocate
Issue: Maternal health
How she delivers for women: When translated literally, sage-femme, the French term for midwife,
means wise woman, which may just be the best way to describe Coulibaly, a licensed midwife who
specializes in public health and has pioneered family planning in Côte d'Ivoire. One in 44 women in
Côte d'Ivoire will die from pregnancy-related causes, and Coulibaly has committed to ending this tragedy, pushing to
increase the number of trained midwives and the availability of contraceptives countrywide. She helped found the
Association Ivoirienne pour le Bien-Etre Familial, which has led the fight to provide universal, comprehensive sexual
and reproductive health services in Côte d'Ivoire, and led TCA91, a program promoting the use of contraception. As
both an advocate and an instructor of other midwives, Coulibaly has proven herself an indispensable force for
women’s reproductive rights in the Côte d'Ivoire.
Marietou Diarra, Senegal
Community Activist
Issue: Women’s empowerment and female genital cutting
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How she delivers for women: Diarra lost two daughters to “the tradition,” as female genital cutting is called in her
native Senegal, and the tragedy drove her to become an anti-cutting activist. Diarra’s first daughter was only three
when she died; her second daughter was seven. But a girl who did not undergo “the tradition” faced intolerable social
stigma, and it wasn’t until the elder of a neighboring village proposed ending the practice that Diarra and other
women could conceive of change – and speak out. In 1998, the 13 intermarrying villages in Diarra’s region decided,
together, to end female genital cutting. Then, with help from the nonprofit Tostan, Diarra approached 48 other
villages – all of whom abandoned the practice. Her determined grassroots activism and passionate approach to peereducation has proven the power of communities to decide for themselves to put girls first.
Learn more: http://www.thedailybeast.com/video/item/marietou-diarra-discusses-genital-mutilation
Lydia Alpízar Durán, Costa Rica
Executive Director of the Association for Women’s Rights in Development (AWID)
Issue: Women’s rights
How she delivers for women: “Where is the money for women’s rights?” Durán asked – and then she
set out to find an answer. Women’s rights groups have historically been underfunded if they are
funded at all, but Durán is committed to finding the resources to sustain the fight for women’s health and rights
worldwide. In 2006, Durán managed the AWID initiative that published a ground-breaking study of international
funding for women’s rights, and founded programs to help grassroots women’s groups ramp up fundraising. Durán
began her work for women’s human rights two decades ago, as a 17-year-old in Costa Rica advocating for women’s
rights and the environment, and she co-founded Elige, a major youth network for sexual and reproductive health and
rights based in Mexico. Now, Durán is on a mission to put women’s groups in hearts, minds and budgets throughout
the world.
Learn more: http://www.awid.org/About-AWID/Staff
Shirin Ebadi, Iran
Human rights lawyer and activist, Recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize
Issue: Women’s rights and gender equality
How she delivers for women: An internationally recognized human rights advocate, Ebadi has spent
decades fighting for the rights of women, children, and political prisoners in Iran. She was one of the
first female judges in Iran, until she was stripped of her position after the Islamic Revolution. She then
went into private practice, taking up the cases of jailed and persecuted dissidents and often facing persecution and
arrest herself. She is one of the founders of the Million Signatures Campaign, which demands an end to discrimination
against women in Iranian law. In 2003, she became the first Muslim woman to receive the Nobel Peace Prize. Her
unimaginable courage in the face of government repression has made her a leading light in the struggle for women’s
equality.
Learn more: http://www.nobelwomensinitiative.org/about-us/laureates/shirin-ebadi
Nabila Espanioly, Israel
Peace advocate, Founder and Director of the Pedagogical Center and Multipurpose Women’s Center in Nazareth
Issue: Gender equality and conflict resolution
How she delivers for women: Espanioly has spent three decades waging peace in Israel and Palestine, fighting for
gender equality, civil rights for Israel’s Palestinian minority, and a peaceful, two-state solution to the Middle East
conflict. She has brought together Jewish and Palestinian women, founding Jewish-Arabic Women for Peace and cofounding Haifa’s “Women in Black” peace campaign. She founded the Mossawa Center, a joint Israeli-Palestinian
organization fighting for equal rights for all of Israel’s citizens. She has broken ground on a wide range of women’s
issues, fighting for early childhood education and for women’s empowerment and political participation within
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Palestinian communities, and has written on everything from women in the media to gender-based violence and sex
education. Espanioly has organized against oppression wherever she has found it, and she is delivering for Israel’s
Jewish and Palestinian women alike.
Learn more: http://www.nif.org/about/board-of-directors/
Mahmoud Fathalla, Egypt
Ob/gyn, Former Dean of the Medical School at Assiut University in Egypt, Former President of the
International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO)
Issue: Reproductive and maternal health
How he delivers for women: For too long, the question has stood: if we know how to save women’s
lives during pregnancy and childbirth – and we do – then why are women still dying? Fathalla’s answer is the one most
often quoted: governments do not invest enough in maternal health because “women don’t count.” But for Fathalla,
women do count. Over 40 years ago, he went to work in poor, underserved regions of his native Egypt, improving
access to reproductive healthcare. In 1987, he helped found the Safe Motherhood Initiative, and electrified
professionals worldwide with his video presentation Why Did Mrs. X Die?, which made the case that social barriers like
poverty and lack of education are often responsible for maternal deaths. As a leader at both the WHO and the
International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO), he worked tirelessly to advance reproductive rights, and
to improve doctors’ insight into women’s daily lives. Throughout his long career, Fathalla has never lost sight of the
needs of women who risk their own life and health to give birth.
Learn more: http://www.who.int/intellectualproperty/background/members/fathalla/en/
Bisi Adeleye-Fayemi, Nigeria
Co-founder and former Executive Director of the African Women’s Development Fund, Founder of the
African Women’s Leadership Institute
Issue: Philanthropy
How she delivers for women: Adeleye-Fayemi believes in the potential of women-led NGOs in Africa,
and is proving to the world that women can transform their communities when offered the resources
they need. She is the founder of the African Women’s Leadership Institute, which has trained over
5,000 women from across the continent to lead community-based organizations. In 1995, she co-founded the African
Women’s Development Fund, which currently supports over 800 women-led NGOs. In 2005, she set up a specific fund
for women taking the lead in addressing HIV/AIDS, which has infected over 12 million women in sub-Saharan Africa.
Adeleye-Fayemi is a true leader: one who sees potential in other women, and will not rest until she sees that potential
fulfilled.
Learn more: http://www.awdf.org/our-work/board
Mikkel Vestergaard Frandsen, Denmark
CEO of Vestergaard Frandsen
Issue: Women’s health and corporate social responsibility
How he delivers for women: While traveling in Africa and India as a teenager, Frandsen witnessed
first-hand the suffering caused by malaria and by the lack of access to clean drinking water –
suffering borne predominantly by children and women. Malaria causes up to 10,000 maternal
deaths annually, and unclean drinking water claims more lives each year than war. Girls and women devote countless
hours to fetching clean drinking water – hours that could be spent at school and work. As CEO of his family-owned
company, Frandsen is committed to addressing this. Guided by the principle, “profit for a purpose,” Vestegaard
Frandsen aims to make a difference while making a profit, and has developed life-saving products including the anti9
malarial mosquito net PermaNet, and the Lifestraw water filter. Frandsen and his company are committed to the
belief that doing business means, most importantly, doing good.
Learn more: http://www.vestergaard-frandsen.com/our-passion/about-our-ceo
Janette Loreto Garin, Philippines
Deputy Majority Leader in the Philippine House of Representatives
Issue: Reproductive rights
How she delivers for women: Garin is the co-author of the Reproductive Health Care and Population Development
(RH) bill, which is poised to transform the lives of every woman in the Philippines. In this deeply Catholic country,
where opposition to family planning and sex education runs strong, and 11 women die each day of preventable causes
related to pregnancy or childbirth, Garin’s RH bill would, for the first time, provide universal access to family planning
methods as well as comprehensive sex education in schools. A champion of women’s human rights, Garin is fighting to
bring both women and men the information and services they need to live long, healthy lives.
Learn more: http://www.congress.gov.ph/members/search.php?id=garin-j&congress=14
Melinda Gates, United States
Co-chair, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
Issue: Women’s and children’s health
How she delivers for women: Melinda Gates is a rare combination – a passionate advocate for
girls and women, and a powerful donor who puts her money where her mouth is. Women’s
health is her personal priority, and when one of the world’s richest women signals that the lives of women matter,
people pay attention. Her own foundation is committing more than one billion dollars to these issues over the next
five years, and pushing for other donors to follow suit. Whether sitting with a head of state or a village leader, Gates is
a tireless advocate for the importance of investing in girls and women, delivering practical solutions that will save
millions of lives.
Learn more: http://www.gatesfoundation.org/leadership/Pages/melinda-gates.aspx
Bience Gawanas, Namibia
African Union Commissioner for Social Affairs
Issue: Reproductive health and development
How she delivers for women: Gawanas is tasked with uniting the 53 African Union nations
behind an agenda advancing women’s rights and access to healthcare – not an easy job, but one she has embraced. A
veteran human-rights activist and lawyer who prevailed over gender and racial discrimination to pursue her law
degree, Gawanas is now the African Union Commissioner for Social Affairs, coordinating regional policies on issues
including health, nutrition, employment, and crime. She has been a force for women’s reproductive rights, pushing the
AU to reinvigorate family planning, develop youth-friendly services, and boost reproductive healthcare. And in 2009
she launched CARMMA: the Campaign on Accelerated Reduction of Maternal Mortality in Africa, which pushes nations
to report each and every maternal death. A tireless advocate for Africa’s women, Gawanas has traveled the continent
repeating the mantra: “No woman should die giving life.”
Learn more: http://www.africa-union.org/root/au/AUC/AUCleaders/sa.doc
Helene Gayle, USA
President and CEO of CARE
Issue: Women’s empowerment and poverty eradication
How she delivers for women: In 2006, Gayle became the first woman, the first person of color, and the
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first doctor to head CARE, the international anti-poverty organization which is one of the most powerful allies of poor
women worldwide. CARE has placed women at the heart of its work, which includes over 800 anti-poverty projects
reaching 59 million people in 72 countries; the organization has insisted that empowering girls and women is the key
to fighting global poverty. A public health expert and epidemiologist, Gayle spent three decades at the CDC and the
Gates Foundation working on health issues like HIV/AIDS, and she brought to CARE a keen awareness of the impact of
social inequity, especially unequal access to healthcare. Under her leadership, CARE is empowering women worldwide
to lift themselves from poverty and push for lasting social change.
Learn more: http://www.care.org/about/bio_gayle.asp
Leymah Gbowee, Liberia
Peace Activist, Founder and Executive Director of the Women Peace and Security Network –
Africa
Issue: Conflict resolution and gender equality
How she delivers for women: When Gbowee speaks, everybody listens. This fierce mother of six rallied Liberia’s
women to bring down a dictator and end a civil war, and she hasn’t stopped there. In 2003, Gbowee organized women
in her church to demonstrate for an end to Liberia’s 14-year civil war. That small demonstration grew into a
nationwide, nonviolent women’s movement, as Gbowee led an unprecedented alliance of Christian and Muslim
women to hold sit-ins, pray, sing, dance, confront armed rebels and eventually hold a sex strike, demanding an end to
the war. Their two-year campaign forced President Charles Taylor from power, and helped elect Ellen Johnson Sirleaf
the first female president of Liberia. Gbowee now runs the Women Peace and Security Network - Africa, organizing
women in places like the Congo to follow the Liberian example. She has erased any doubt that women have the power
to take control of their own destinies and determine the fate of nations.
Learn more: http://www.wipsen-africa.org/wipsen/who/founders/
Adrienne Germain, USA
President of the International Women’s Health Coalition
Issue: Reproductive health and women’s rights
How she delivers for women: Over the course of her career, Germain’s work has prompted a sea-change in global
health priorities, bringing the health and rights of women front and center. In her work at the Population Council and
as the Ford Foundation’s youngest – and first female – country director (in Bangladesh), she designed programs to
advance the health and education of girls and women in Africa, Asia and Latin America. She went on to work with the
Bangladeshi government, redesigning national development strategies to address gender inequality. As President of
the International Women’s Health Coalition, she has turned the organization into a leading global advocate for
women’s sexual health and rights. She remains one of the most prominent leaders in international women’s health
advocacy, ensuring that the needs of women are never forgotten.
Learn more: http://www.iwhc.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=2734&Itemid=61
Rafia Ghubash, Bahrain
Former President of the Arabian Gulf University, President of the Arab Network for Women in Science and Technology
Issue: Education
How she delivers for women: Ghubash is transforming science and technology research in the Arab world—one
woman at a time. As the former president of the Arabian Gulf University in Bahrain and president of the Arab Network
for Women in Science and Technology (ANWST), Ghubash is committed to advancing women’s education and
correcting the gender imbalance in the fields of science and technology. She has launched a professional network and
database to highlight the research of Arab women scientists and promote female leadership in a field where women
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often progress more slowly than men. As a woman with her Ph.D. in community and epidemiological psychiatry,
Ghubash belongs to an exclusive club – but she’s striving to throw open the doors and welcome more women inside.
Learn more: http://astf.net/womenrdi/rafiaghubash.html
Rebecca Gomperts, Netherlands
Doctor and Founder of Women on Waves and Women on Web
Issue: Safe abortion access and reproductive rights
How she delivers for women: In 2001, Gomperts hatched an extraordinary plan to save lives and
demonstrate that access to safe abortion should know no boundaries: the Dutch doctor and her team sail their ship to
countries where abortion is restricted, anchoring in international waters to provide reproductive health counseling
and safe medical abortions. Their website offers medical advice to women without access, and will even mail
medication for a safe abortion. In countries where abortion is restricted, Women on Waves is quite literally a life
saver, and their innovative tactics have yielded results: the boat’s 2004 visit to Portugal is credited with making
abortion an election-year issue, and the country has since legalized first trimester abortions. While some 20 million
unsafe abortions still happen each year, making it a leading cause of maternal deaths worldwide, Gomperts’ fierce
commitment to the right to choose is making waves.
Learn more: http://www.womenonwaves.org/
Geeta Rao Gupta, USA
Former President of the International Center for Research on Women, Senior Fellow at the Bill &
Melinda Gates Foundation
Issue: Women’s rights
How she delivers for women: Gupta is the policy-maker and activist’s crucial ally in advancing women’s rights,
delivering the research which undergirds the advocacy. In the 1990s, she led a ground-breaking, 15-country study that
identified the social and economic factors fueling the spread of HIV/AIDS among women. That research has
transformed international policy on women and AIDS well into the 21st Century, and she remains a vital adviser to
policy makers and advocates worldwide. Her rigorous research, unfailing generosity and commitment to improving
women’s lives have delivered results around the world.
Learn more: http://www.gatesfoundation.org/leadership/Pages/geeta-rao-gupta.aspx
Catherine Hamlin, Australia
Doctor, Founder of the Addis Ababa Fistula Hospital
Issue: Obstetric fistula
How she delivers for women: For more than 50 years, Hamlin has provided free fistula repair to poor women in
desperate need. The Addis Ababa Fistula Hospital, which she founded with her husband in 1974, has treated more
than 35,000 women suffering from obstetric fistula, a horrific childbirth injury that leaves women incontinent and
stigmatized, and affects two to three million worldwide. Hamlin pioneered many of the techniques used to treat
fistulas today, and founded a midwifery college to improve fistula prevention. It is no exaggeration to say that her care
gives women back their lives. At age 87, she still performs operations herself, and remains an abiding force caring for
women who have been disabled in childbirth and cast aside as a result.
Learn more: http://www.hamlinfistula.org.au
Sejal Hathi, USA
Founder, President and Executive Director of Girls Helping Girls
Issue: Girls’ empowerment
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How she delivers for women: At just 15, Hathi founded Girls Helping Girls, an international organization which taps
the power of girls worldwide to collaborate, support each other and become engines of social change. The
organization connects girls in the US with girls in the developing world to identify problems in their local communities
– and then develop projects, funded by small loans, to address them. Hathi’s goal is to help all girls realize how
powerful they are – and on that front, she has delivered. Now 19 and a sophomore at Yale, Hathi still runs the
organization, and thousands of girls have joined her. We expect great things from this young powerhouse!
Learn more: http://www.empoweragirl.org
Emily Heroy, USA
Founder and Executive Editor of Gender Across Borders
Issue: Global feminism and social media
How she delivers for women: At 26, Heroy is a blogger with a vision and a mission. In 2009,
she realized that there was something missing in the burgeoning feminist blogosphere:
there was no feminist blog focused on gender issues outside the US. Heroy founded Gender Across Borders (GAB) to
fill that gap. She and a team of feminist bloggers built GAB from the ground up, creating a blog dedicated to examining
gender, race, sexuality, and class worldwide. Heroy and her team are amplifying the voices of feminists around the
globe, driven by the conviction that “global feminism” is not only the wave of the future, but the next wave of
feminism.
Learn more: www.genderacrossborders.com
Wajeha Al-Huwaider, Saudi Arabia
Journalist, Poet, Co-founder of the Association for the Protection and Defense of Women's Rights
Issues: Women’s rights and gender equality
How she delivers for women: In Saudi Arabia, where women cannot legally drive or even enter
most public spaces without a male guardian, Al-Huwaider is an outspoken journalist, poet, and
activist for women’s rights. In 2003, she was banned from publishing her work in most Saudi papers, but has continued
to write online. She launched a series of “video campaigns,” circulated online, to decry practices like child marriage,
polygamy, and the nation’s guardianship laws, which prevent women from traveling, studying, marrying or seeking
healthcare without male permission. In 2008, she filmed herself driving, and the video attracted over 200,000 views
on Youtube and sparked international calls for Saudi Arabia to lift its ban on women driving; the ban remains in place.
Despite intense pressure from the Saudi government including arrests and interrogations, Al-Huwaider remains a
vehement voice for women’s rights in Saudi Arabia.
Learn more: http://www.englishpen.org/writersinprison/writersinexile/wajehaalhuwaider/
Edna Adan Ismail, Somaliland
Director of the Edna Adan University Hospital, President of Victims of Torture, Former Minister of
Foreign Affairs and of Social Affairs
Issue: Maternal and child health, female genital cutting and violence against women
How she delivers for women: A true pioneer, Ismail was the first woman in Somaliland to drive, the
first to receive official nurse-midwifery training, and she established the country’s first non-profit
maternity hospital. When she built her hospital, civil war had left the country’s health system in ruins, and Somaliland
had one of the highest maternal death rates in the world. Ismail has made it her mission to turn the health system
around. She is an outspoken advocate against female genital cutting and one of the nation’s only doctors providing
treatment for women with obstetric fistulas, a devastating and isolating injury. She is a hero in Somaliland, and her
work saves the lives of hundreds of women each year.
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Learn more: http://www.ednahospital.org/
Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Nigeria
Managing Director of the World Bank
Issue: Gender equality and development
How she delivers for women: Okonjo-Iweala has shattered glass ceilings across continents
and sectors, and fought to put women and gender at the center of the international
development agenda. Currently a director of the World Bank, she was the first woman to serve as Nigeria's Minister of
Foreign Affairs and as Finance Minister, and she was instrumental in increasing government transparency and
combating corruption in the country, which was once ranked the most corrupt place on Earth. She then went on to cofound the Makeda Fund, which invests in women-owned businesses across Africa with the goal of spurring
investment, employment, and economic power among Africa’s women. Okonjo-Iweala has been an outspoken
advocate for gender equality, calling it a central component of the Bank’s fight against global poverty. She is both a
powerful example and a fierce advocate for women on the world stage.
Learn more:
http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/NEWS/0,,contentMDK:21687298~pagePK:64257043~piPK:437376~theS
itePK:4607,00.html
Kasha Jacqueline, Uganda
Director and founder of Freedom and Roam Uganda (FARUG)
Issue: LGBT rights
How she delivers for women: In a country where coming out can mean putting one’s life
on the line, Jacqueline has stood up as both a proud lesbian and an advocate for LGBT
rights. She founded Freedom and Roam Uganda to speak out against homophobia, train LGBT individuals as
community leaders, and raise awareness of human rights abuses. In 2010, when the Ugandan newspaper Rolling Stone
published pictures and addresses of 100 LGBT individuals next to the headline “Hang Them,” Jacqueline and two other
advocates won a landmark case against the paper – the first legislative decision in Uganda protecting the rights of
LGBT individuals. She has endured repeated threats, but remains undeterred, lobbying against the country’s proposed
Anti-Homosexuality Bill, which would punish homosexuality with death. For her unimaginable courage in the face of
slander, death threats and stifling oppression, we honor Jacqueline as a true hero.
Learn more: http://www.oslofreedomforum.com/speakers/kasha-jacqueline.html
Guo Jianmei, China
Founder of the Women’s Legal Research and Services Center and Qian Qian Law Firm
Issue: Women’s rights
How she delivers for women: Inspired by the events surrounding the Fourth World Conference on Women, held in
Beijing in 1995, Guo founded one of the first organizations in China committed to women’s legal aid. Her center’s free
legal services and support hotline have reached more than 100,000 women, and Guo and her team have brought
pioneering lawsuits against workplace discrimination and domestic violence, and argued cases on rape, forced
abortion, and women’s land rights. Working in the face of threats and under enormous pressure, Guo’s organization
has not only represented China’s most vulnerable women, but principles of equality and justice for women
countrywide. In 2010, its official association with Peking University was terminated, leaving its future unclear. Guo,
however, has promised that the work will continue.
Learn more: http://www.hurights.or.jp/archives/focus/section2/2010/06/farewell-beida-statement-by-guo-jianmeiand-her-team.html
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Andrea Jung, United States
Chairman and CEO of Avon Products, Inc.
Issue: Women’s economic empowerment, women’s health, and violence against women
How she delivers for women: Avon calls itself "the company for women," and Jung has made sure
it lives up to its billing. As the company’s first female chief executive, Jung has recruited more women to Avon’s board
than any other large public company, and ensured that the percentage of women in Avon’s top management exceeds
any company on the Fortune 500. Avon also employs more women than any company in the world, offering its 6.2
million sales representatives, in more than 100 countries, a route to self-employment, empowerment, and economic
independence. Jung has been the driving force behind the company’s philanthropic arm, the Avon Foundation for
Women, which has dedicated more than $725 million to campaigns to eradicate breast cancer and end violence
against women. She has made sure that Avon remains an invaluable partner for women worldwide.
Learn more: http://avoncompany.com
Imtiaz Kamal, Pakistan
Midwife, Secretary General of the National Committee for Maternal Health, Vice President of the
Maternity and Child Welfare Association of Pakistan (MCWAP)
Issue: Midwifery
How she delivers for women: Kamal is a woman who delivers, in every sense of the word. Known as
the grandmother of midwifery in her native Pakistan, she’s helped hundreds of women in more than
fifty countries deliver babies safely, and for five decades she has led a one-woman crusade for the respect and
recognition of midwives worldwide. Kamal was instrumental in developing training curriculum and campaigning for
legislation to support and protect those caring for mothers and babies in some of the farthest reaches of the world.
She is currently developing Pakistan’s first-ever legislation governing the practice of midwifery. Truly a midwife’s
midwife, she is fighting to provide her fellow caretakers with the rights and resources they need to make sure no
woman dies while giving life.
Learn more: http://www.midwiferytoday.com/international/Pakistan.asp
Carolyne Kemunto, Kenya
Community Health Worker
Issue: Women’s health
How she delivers for women: A former sex worker herself, Kemunto was alarmed by the high death rates due to
HIV/AIDS among sex workers in Busia, Kenya. She started a peer education network called the ‘Survivors’ to educate
sex workers on health and legal rights, and has trained a group of ‘Survivors’ to act as community health workers
among an estimated 1,000 women in Busia’s sex trade. She and her allies have launched microfinance and microinsurance programs to help smooth workers’ income shocks – shocks which sex workers often manage by accepting
riskier, and higher paid, sex. According to the group, not one of the ‘Survivors’ has died in the past three years.
Through her innovative efforts to ensure the health and rights of Busia’s sex workers, Kemunto is empowering women
to protect themselves.
Imane Khachani, Morocco
Member of the Youth Coalition for Sexual and Reproductive Rights
Issue: Reproductive health and rights
How she delivers for women: At only 29, Moroccan physician Khachani has already made her mark
in the fight for young women’s sexual and reproductive rights. She speaks passionately and frankly
about the discrimination, exclusion, and severe lack of access young people face in seeking sexual
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and reproductive health care. And she advocates a wide-ranging approach to reducing maternal mortality, from
ending the child marriages that lead to premature pregnancy, to making abortion safe and accessible, to ensuring
universal education, including sex education. Khachani isn’t afraid to speak truth to those in power who are so often
blind to the needs of young women, and her work advocating for youth-friendly health services has helped to shape
international policies. A voice for her generation, Khachani reminds us that young women, speaking for themselves,
can be their own most powerful advocates.
Learn more: http://www.youthcoalition.org/html/member.php?ind=mmb&id_member=26&id_cat=2
Ban Ki-moon, South Korea
Secretary-General of the United Nations
Issue: Women’s and children’s health
How he delivers for women: Since taking the reins at the UN in 2007, Ban has made
maternal and child health a personal priority, and urged the international community to do
the same. He has ramped up global efforts to meet Millennium Development Goal (MDG) 5 – improving maternal
health – and has maintained that improving maternal health is key to achieving all the MDGs. In 2010, Ban launched
his $40 billion “Every Woman Every Child” plan to save 16 million mothers and children over five years. A role model
of transparency and delivering for women, Ban established an accountability commission to track and report on how
each dollar of his plan is spent – and ensure that resources reach the girls and women who need them most.
Learn more: http://everywomaneverychild.org/
Anuradha Koirala, Nepal
Founder of Maiti Nepal, 2010 CNN Hero of the Year
Issue: Human trafficking and women’s rights in Nepal
How she delivers for women: For thousands of women in Nepal, Koirala is the force standing between them and the
brothel. Since opening Maiti Nepal in 1993, Koirala has helped rescue and support some 12,000 Nepali women and
girls, providing free shelter, medical care, legal defense, and education to those who have been traded, devalued, and
exploited. Maiti Nepal runs prevention programs, educating communities and even raiding brothels, and sends daily
teams to intercept traffickers at the border – Koirala can sometimes be found there herself, checking vehicles for
Nepali girls being taken into India. Koirala’s goal? To deliver all women from slavery. Until that’s achieved, she says,
she won’t rest.
Learn more: http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/cnn.heroes/archive10/anuradha.koirala.html
Nicholas Kristof, United States
Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist, Author of “Half the Sky: From Oppression to Opportunity for
Women Worldwide”
Issue: Women’s health and rights
How he delivers for women: In his twice-weekly columns for The New York Times and on his blog,
Kristof tackles sensitive, provocative, and important issues – particularly for women in developing
countries. He is unafraid to speak his mind, and to open his readers’ eyes to the grave realities
that women face in so many parts of the world. His writing regularly recognizes local women leaders and fearless
women advocates moving mountains to change the future for themselves and their sisters.
Learn more: http://kristof.blogs.nytimes.com/
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Inkosi Kwataine, Malawi
Chief, Community Leader
Issue: Maternal health
How he delivers for women: Between 2000 and 2005, there were 52 maternal deaths in the 89 villages under
Kwataine’s traditional authority – a statistic which prompted him to launch a pioneering, grassroots maternal health
campaign. Kwataine’s initiative urged women to give birth in hospitals, organized counselors to advise pregnant
women, and launched an education campaign, even painting maternal health slogans on houses. When the increase in
patients threatened to overwhelm the local hospital, he organized villagers to construct their own clinic. In the three
years after the initiative began, not one woman died in childbirth – a groundbreaking achievement in Malawi, which
has one of the world’s highest maternal mortality rates. Kwataine’s brilliant, practical approach to maternal health is
proof of what can be achieved when leaders make it clear that women matter – and communities come together to
turn that principle into practice.
Learn more: http://ipsnews.net/africa/nota.asp?idnews=52965
Marta Lamas, Mexico
Feminist activist, Professor, Co-founder of the Information Group on Reproductive Choice (GIRE)
Issue: Women’s rights and abortion
How she delivers for women: To be an outspoken feminist in Mexico takes courage, perseverance, and strategic
thinking, and Lamas has all three. She spearheaded Mexico’s women’s rights movement and is widely recognized as
the country’s leading feminist. Her writing has revolutionized thought on critical women’s issues in Mexico, from
women’s leadership to gender discrimination to abortion. In 1992, she co-founded GIRE to provide lawmakers with
research on bioethical, social and legal perspectives on abortion, and in 2007 her labors bore fruit when Mexico City
decriminalized first-trimester abortions. She is President of the board of Semillas, a fund supporting women-led
initiatives. Semillas means “seeds” -- a fitting description for her groundbreaking work, which has yielded results for
women across the region.
Learn more: http://www.genderacrossborders.com/2009/04/20/global-feminist-profiles-marta-lamas-of-mexico/
Xie Lihua, China
Founder of Rural Women Magazine and the Cultural Development Center for Rural Women
Issue: Gender equality and women’s empowerment
How she delivers for women: Xie is the champion of China’s rural women, among the country’s most isolated and
vulnerable populations. Approximately three-fourths of Chinese women live in the countryside, often with little
economic opportunity or independence. In 1993, Xie founded Rural Women Magazine, which prominently featured
correspondence from women across the countryside. The magazine touched a nerve, offering readers an outlet and a
lifeline to the outside world. Her readers’ struggles drove Xie to found the Cultural Development Center for Rural
Women, which offers literacy programs, job training, suicide prevention, and microfinance programs, and supports
rural migrants to China’s cities. Xie has fought for protections for domestic laborers, pressed for government action on
sexual harassment, and exposed suicide rates among rural women. Perhaps most importantly, she has created a space
for women to connect with one another.
Learn more: http://www.nongjianv.org/english/aboutus/askedquestions.html
Wangari Maathai, Kenya
Founder of the Green Belt Movement, Recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize
Issue: Environmental renewal and women’s empowerment
How she delivers for women: Maathai has proven that environmental integrity and
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women’s empowerment go hand in hand. When firewood runs scarce or rivers run dry, as they did in villages in
Maathai’s native Kenya, women are affected first. In response, Maathai founded the Green Belt Movement, which
taps the power of local women to address environmental degradation. Women are paid a small stipend to plant trees,
in the process protecting their land and empowering themselves. A pioneer of women’s rights, Maathai was the first
woman in East Africa to earn a PhD, and for her outspoken activism has braved imprisonment and violence. But her
commitment to environmental stewardship and women’s independence has never wavered. The result? 40 million
trees planted, and a Nobel Peace Prize for Maathai – the first ever awarded to an African woman or an
environmentalist.
Learn more: http://greenbeltmovement.org/w.php?id=59
Graça Machel, Mozambique
Founding Member of the Elders, President of the Foundation for Community Development
in Mozambique, Former Minister for Education and Culture in Mozambique
Issue: Women and children’s rights
How she delivers for women: As one of the fiercest and most respected voices of Africa’s
independence generation, Machel has been outspoken on issues ranging from maternal health to the plight of
refugees. As a minister in Mozambique’s first post-independence government, Machel championed the rights and
education of women and children. Her groundbreaking UN report on the impact of armed conflict on children in 1996
transformed international policy, and she has been tireless in drawing attention to the unequal impact of war on
women and children. In 2007, Machel and her spouse, Nelson Mandela, helped found the Elders, a group of eminent
global leaders working to address conflicts worldwide, and she has used the platform to focus global attention on
women’s health and equality.
Learn more: http://www.theelders.org/elders/graca-machel#biography
Marina Mahathir, Malaysia
Journalist, Columnist and Blogger
Issues: Gender equality, women’s rights within Islam, and HIV/AIDS
How she delivers for women: A newspaper columnist, blogger and TV producer, Mahathir has
been an advocate for women’s equality in Malaysia for almost two decades, and an evangelist for
safe sex and HIV prevention. On her blog, Rantings byMM, she often writes about the place of
feminism in Islam, calling for interpretations of the Quran that promote women’s rights rather
than stifle them. She has taken Islamic judges to task for discrimination against women within Malaysia’s Syariah Court
system, arguing that new Islamic laws have made Muslim women second class citizens while their non-Muslim
counterparts are gaining rights and opportunities. And she has written extensively about women’s vulnerability to
HIV/AIDS. Mahathir is willing to speak up, ask difficult questions and address sensitive subjects – and she has proven
herself an indispensable voice on behalf of Malaysia’s women.
Learn more: http://rantingsbymm.blogspot.com/
Somaly Mam, Cambodia
Founder of AFESIP (Agir Pour les Femmes en Situation Precaire) and the Somaly Mam Foundation
Issue: Sex trafficking
How she delivers for women: Somaly Mam’s story is one of remarkable resilience. An estimated
two million women and children are sold into sexual slavery each year. In the 1980s, Mam was one
of them. Orphaned during the Khmer Rouge, she was forced into prostitution as a child, enduring
torture and abuse before finally escaping to France with the help of a local aid worker. She returned
to Cambodia in 1996 to found AFESIP, a network of shelters for victims of sex-trafficking across
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Cambodia, Thailand, Vietnam, and Laos. Her shelters have supported thousands of women and girls, offering
education and job-skills training while working with police to help others escape the brothels. In 2007, she created the
Somaly Mam Foundation to support anti-trafficking efforts worldwide. Mam and her family have been repeatedly
threatened and attacked for her work, but she has remained an unyielding crusader against the sex trade.
Learn more: http://www.somaly.org/about-smf/somaly-mam
Mary John Mananzan, Philippines
Prioress at St. Scholastica’s Priory, Founder and Executive Director of the Institute of Women’s Studies at St.
Scholastica’s College
Issue: Women’s studies and gender equality
How she delivers for women: As a Missionary Benedictine sister, Mananzan has led the way in integrating feminist
activism into Catholic faith. She was a pioneer in the field of women’s studies, founding the program at St.
Scholastica’s College in Manila, one of the Phillippines’ most prestigious and progressive colleges for women. She has
been instrumental in developing a feminist and a third-world theology within the Catholic Church, criticizing the
Church for being hierarchical and male-dominated. In her writing, she has highlighted the particular oppression of
third world women through violence and gender discrimination. In her groundbreaking career, Mananzan has worked
to empower women and to combat injustice and oppression wherever she finds it –whether within the political
system, or at the hands of the church.
Learn more: http://www.catherineofsiena.net/about/patrons2.asp
María Consuelo Mejía, Mexico
Founder and Director of Católicas por el Derecho a Decidir
Issue: Sexual and reproductive rights
How she delivers for women: Mejia has dedicated her career to ending the ongoing devastation
wrought by unsafe abortions in Latin America. Every year, over four million women in the region
will undergo an illegal abortion, which is a leading cause of maternal death in Latin America.
Mejia has led the fight to turn these statistics around. As co-Founder and Director of Católicas por
el Derecho a Decidir, she is the leading pro-choice advocate in the region, and has been
instrumental in opening up dialogue between religious leaders and advocates for safe abortion. Mejia has worked to
show those in power that being Catholic and pro-choice is not only possible, but essential to saving the lives of women
throughout Latin America.
Learn more: http://www.catolicasmexico.org
HH Sheikha Mozah bint Nasser al Missned, Qatar
Chairperson of the Qatar Foundation for Education, Founder and Chair of the Arab Democracy Foundation
Issue: Women’s and children’s health and education
How she delivers for women: In Qatar, Her Highness Sheikha Mozah has become a symbol of women’s right to work
and an education. A mother of seven, she is leading an effort to improve education and increase employment
opportunities for young people across the region. As the chairperson of the Qatar Foundation, she established
Education City, a 2,500 acre hub for students including six coed universities. She has used her public position to speak
out against domestic violence, establishing the region's first battered women's shelter. And as founder and Chair of
the Arab Democracy Foundation, she has worked to increase women’s participation in politics and encourage freedom
of the press, and an open discussion of obstacles faced by Arab women. Her advocacy for women’s rights, education,
and opportunity is sure to reverberate across the region for years to come.
Learn more: http://www.mozabintnasser.qa/Her%20Highness/Biography/Pages/default.aspx
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Denis Mukwege, Democratic Republic of Congo
Founder and Director of Panzi Hospital, Bukavu
Issue: Violence against women
How he delivers for women: Up to ten times a day, Mukwege enters the operating room at Panzi Hospital in Bukavu
to repair the damage of Congo’s 14-year war. In a country where hundreds of thousands of women have been brutally
raped, Mukwege has become an unwilling expert at treating the wounds of extreme sexual violence. His Panzi Hospital
is one of the only institutions dedicated to caring for the war’s survivors, and he has treated over 21,000 women.
Mukwege has spoken out furiously and eloquently about the scale of atrocities during the war, and the way in which
rape has been systematically used to shred the social fabric of the Congo. In the face of unending violence and
strained resources, he and his staff maintain one of the only oases of support for women devastated by extraordinary
violence.
Learn more: http://www.panzihospitalbukavu.org/drmukwege.php?weblang=1
Chouchou Namegabe, Democratic Republic of the Congo
Journalist and Founder of the South Kivu Women’s Media Association (AFEM)
Issue: Violence against women
How she delivers for women: Namegabe was one of the first journalists to broadcast the stories of Congolese women,
hundreds of thousands of whom have been raped and tortured in the past decade. As Eastern Congo descended into
war in the late 1990s, Namegabe, a self-taught radio journalist, launched a talk show on community radio to air the
graphic testimonies of rape survivors. Realizing the potential impact of media coverage in holding governments
accountable for atrocities, Namegabe founded the South Kivu Women’s Media Association (AFEM) to fund her
activism and train other women journalists. With AFEM and through her radio broadcasts, Namegabe has exposed and
denounced government corruption and human rights abuses, and given Congo’s women a way to make their voices
heard.
Learn more: http://englishafemsk.blogspot.com/
Shada Mohammed Nasser, Yemen
Human rights lawyer
Issue: Girls’ and womens’ rights
How she delivers for women: When 10-year-old Nujood Ali came to Nasser, a human rights lawyer and the founder of
Yemen’s first all-female law office, Ali asked for one thing: a divorce. Nasser took the case, and in 2008 she won the
first ruling in Yemen’s history freeing a child bride from forced marriage. Roughly 50 percent of Yemeni girls are
married before they are 18, and though the law forbids sex until the bride is “suitable for sexual intercourse,” the
requirement is often ignored. Ali and Nasser gained worldwide attention for the case, and Nasser has gone on to
represent several other child brides, while pushing the government to raise the legal age of marriage. Through her
courageous work, she has helped to shatter the silence surrounding child marriage, offering a new hope to girls across
the region.
Woineshet Zebene Negash, Ethiopia
Women’s rights activist and aspiring lawyer
Issue: Violence against women
How she delivers for women: She may be only 23, but Negash has already helped countless girls in Ethiopia live free
from sexual violence. At 13, she was twice kidnapped and brutally raped by a neighbor who then tried to force her into
marriage. Ethiopian law at the time stated that a man could not be prosecuted for raping a woman he later married.
But Negash, in a breathtaking act of courage, refused to marry, and with her father and the help of the Ethiopian
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Women Lawyers Association, she fought to have her attacker arrested. In 2005, as a result of their taboo-breaking
stand, Ethiopia adopted a new penal code which states that rape is still rape, even when it is papered over by
marriage. Negash broke the silence on sexual violence in Ethiopia, and her action spurred her nation toward justice.
Learn more: http://www.equalitynow.org/english/actions/action_2204_en.html
Martha Sanchez Nestor, Mexico
Founder of Coordinadora Nacional de Mujeres Indigenas (CONAMI), Founder of Casa de
Salud de la Mujer Indigena-Manos Unidas
Issue: Maternal health and indigenous women’s health and rights
How she delivers for women: Nestor has led the fight to promote indigenous women’s
health and rights in Central America, speaking out on behalf of women who have long been
silenced. In Mexico, indigenous women are three times less likely to survive childbirth, and face daunting obstacles in
accessing quality health care, often confronting language and financial barriers. To combat this, Nestor founded the
CONAMI, which works with 40 NGOs throughout the region, providing leadership training to indigenous women.
Nestor is helping indigenous raise their voices and fight for the right to safe childbirth, and she is ensuring the rest of
the world listens.
Learn more: (in Spanish): http://casadesaludometepec.org/martha.htm
Dorothy Ngoma, Malawi
Nurse midwife, Executive Director of the National Organisation of Nurses and Midwives of Malawi
Issue: Women’s health and labor rights
How she delivers for women: Ngoma knows that a health system is only as strong as the workers behind it, and she
has organized Malawi’s nurses to fight for their rights --and for their patients’ wellbeing. In Malawi, sixteen women
die in childbirth each day; pregnant women are said to have “one foot in the grave.” As Executive Director of the
National Organisation of Nurses and Midwives of Malawi (NONM), Ngoma has trained nurses and lobbied legislators
to improve conditions in hospitals, clinics and schools. She argues that to save women’s lives, health systems need
skilled workers -- and those workers need effective management, facilities, and labor policies. Thanks to her, NONM’s
membership has grown from 50 to over 7,000 members in just five years. She has stood up for both the women
risking their lives to deliver their children, and the women who make safe deliveries possible.
Learn more: http://www.rcn.org.uk/aboutus/gov/fellows/browse/dorothy_ngoma
Sarah Nkhoma, Malawi
HIV/AIDS activist and educator
Issue: Sex education and HIV/AIDS
How she delivers for women: At just 21, Nkhoma has braved condemnation and violence to
educate Malawi’s young people about HIV/AIDS. Inspired by her own sister’s difficult
decision to disclose her HIV-positive status, Nkhoma committed herself to removing the stigma associated with HIV in
Malawi. At her alma mater, where one in three students graduated HIV-positive, she worked to deliver crucial
information about safe sex and HIV/AIDS, and to foster honest discussions about sexual behavior. For her life-saving
frank talk, she came under enormous pressure from her government and community, and she was jailed and brutally
beaten. But Nkhoma has persevered, dedicated to supporting those living with HIV, and working toward the day when
all Malawians will live free of it.
Learn more: http://www.womendeliver.org/updates/entry/rage-for-justice-motivates-young-people/
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Kakenya Ntaiya, Kenya
Founder of the Kakenya Center for Excellence
Issue: Girls’ education and empowerment in Kenya
How she delivers for women: In a region where girls routinely marry at 13 and only 11% go on to
high school, Kakenya is building a girls’ primary school - and with it hope for a different kind of
future. Raised in a Maasai village in rural Kenya, at 13 Kakenya struck a bargain with her father: if
she underwent female circumcision, she could postpone marriage and attend high school. From that
deal came another: if her village elders sent her to college in the US, she promised to return and build a school. Now,
the Kakenya Center for Excellence is in its third year, teaching academic excellence, female empowerment, and
leadership. And Kakenya is a passionate voice for girls on the international stage, speaking out about the power of
girls’ education, particularly in combating practices like genital mutilation and child marriage.
Learn more: http://www.kakenyasdream.org/
Rolake Odetoyinbo, Nigeria
Executive Director of Positive Action for Treatment Access
Issue: HIV/AIDS
How she delivers for women: Since learning that she is HIV-positive, Odetoyinbo has traveled a personal journey from
shameful silence to proud advocacy, and has inspired countless other women to do the same. Her devastating
diagnosis left her waiting for death. But in 2002, she attended the XIV International AIDS Conference in Barcelona,
Spain and realized she wasn’t alone. In Nigeria, over half of those with HIV are girls and women. This growing
“feminization” of AIDS drove Odetoyinbo to found Positive Action for Treatment Access to ensure equal access to
critical information on HIV prevention, and humane treatment. Odetoyinbo trains HIV-positive volunteers as health
educators, and works with doctors to reach out to those needing treatment. Today, she no longer waits for death, but
instead lives as a powerful advocate for HIV-positive women’s empowerment and survival.
Learn more: http://www.pata-nigeria.com/about.html
Olufunmilayo Olopade, Nigeria
Professor of Medicine and Human Genetics and Director of the Center for Clinical Cancer Genetics at the University of
Chicago
Issue: Women’s health and breast cancer treatment
How she delivers for women: Breast cancer often hits women of African descent earlier—and harder—than their
peers of European or Asian heritage, and breast cancer researcher Olopade has spent the past two decades trying to
find out why. Her research has led to groundbreaking discoveries, including the realization that breast cancers in
women of African heritage often originate in different cells, and require different treatments. As founding director of
the Center for Clinical Cancer Genetics at the University of Chicago, she developed a collaborative approach to cancer
treatment and risk assessment, coordinating oncologists, primary care physicians, genetic counselors, sociologists, and
psychologists to care for cancer patients. In both her pioneering research and her innovative approach to patient care,
she has delivered breakthroughs for millions of women facing breast cancer worldwide.
Learn more: http://cancergenetics.uchicago.edu/clinic/FOlopade.htm
Marina Pisklakova-Parker, Russia
Founder of Center ANNA (Association to Prevent Violence)
Issue: Ending violence against women
How she delivers for women: When Pisklakova-Parker opened Russia’s first domestic violence hotline in 1993, she
answered the phone herself, counseling women alone for hours each day. Domestic violence in Russia was epidemic
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but invisible. Police would not intervene; there were no shelters, no support groups, and no legal aid. PisklakovaParker dragged gender-based violence out of the shadows. Her Center ANNA now operates crisis centers across the
country and trains counselors, lawyers, and women’s rights groups to aid survivors of rape and domestic violence. And
she has expanded her focus, fighting against sex-trafficking and working with communities in the North Caucasus to
end honor killings and bridal abductions. With an estimated 14,000 Russian women killed by their husbands each year,
and still no law against domestic violence, Pisklakova-Parker remains an essential voice raised on behalf of Russia’s
women.
Learn more: http://www.vitalvoices.org/vital-voices-women/featured-voices/marina-pisklakova-parker
Jacqueline Pitanguy, Brazil
Professor of Women’s Studies, Founder and Director of Citizenship, Studies, Information and Action (Cidadania, Estudo,
Pesquisa, Informação e Ação-CEPIA), Former President of National Council for Women’s Rights
Issue: Violence against women and reproductive health
How she delivers for women: In the 1970s Pitanguy helped create an actual flag to represent the feminist movements
across Latin America, uniting women’s groups in opposition to the continent’s military regimes. When Brazil
introduced democracy after years of military dictatorship, Pitanguy worked to break the long-imposed silence
surrounding sexual violence and the severe lack of access to reproductive health services. She campaigned for gender
equality within marriage and for the prevention of domestic violence and founded Cidadania, Estudo, Pesquisa,
Informação e Ação (CEPIA) in 1990 to advocate against sexual violence and for reproductive health. During her long
career as a heroic champion of gender equality, she has taken the concept, “women’s rights are human rights” and put
it into concrete action.
Learn more: http://www.wmd.org/about/democracyvoices/jacqueline-pitanguy-cepia-brazil
Ai-jen Poo, USA
Director and co-founder, National Domestic Workers Alliance; Co-Founder, Domestic Workers
United
Issue: Women’s labor rights
How she delivers for women: Poo is a driving force in the movement demanding rights for
US domestic workers, one of the only groups still denied protection under American labor
laws. An estimated 2.5 million domestic workers suffer low pay, long hours, and no
guaranteed time off; they are often vulnerable to abuse and exploitation. In 2000, Poo
helped found Domestic Workers United, mobilizing New York’s nannies, housekeepers, and
caregivers to the elderly to fight for recognition and fair compensation. In 2010, New York was the first state to extend
basic labor protections to domestic workers. This is just the first step for Poo and the extraordinary women of DWU,
who are sending a message to the world that the work of female domestic laborers – often immigrants and women of
color – must no longer be ignored and devalued.
Learn more: http://www.domesticworkersunited.org
Zahra Rahnavard, Iran
Artist and Activist, Former Chancellor of al-Zahra University
Issue: Women’s rights and gender equality
How she delivers for women: During Iran's 2009 presidential elections, Rahnavard campaigned alongside her
husband, reformist Mir-Hossein Mousavi, -- the first time a political wife had ever done so. Women make up 65
percent of Iran’s university students, and they can work, drive, and run for parliament—but they have half the legal
rights of men in criminal, divorce, child custody, and inheritance cases, and have to adhere to a strict Islamic dress
code in public. During the elections, Rahnavard called for a revision of laws that discriminate against women and
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greater representation of women in government. In the aftermath of the election, when Iranians poured into the
streets calling for reform, Rahnavard joined her husband as one of the faces of the Green Revolution, and despite
brutal government repression, she has remained a steadfast voice for women’s rights.
Learn more: http://www.oprah.com/world/The-2010-O-Power-List/16
Kavita Ramdas, India
Senior Advisor and Former President and CEO of the Global Fund for Women
Issue: Philanthropy
How she delivers for women: Ramdas has been at the forefront of a new wave in
philanthropy, and she sees grant-making as more than a simple transfer of money: it’s an
opportunity for grant-makers and women-led organizations to learn from each other and
together advance women’s empowerment. Under her leadership at the Global Fund for
Women, assets rose from $6 million to $21 million, and the number of countries granted funding nearly tripled.
Ramdas’ efforts enabled the Fund to scale up their critical work, making grants to help establish, strengthen and link
women’s rights groups around the world. By sustaining women’s leadership worldwide, Ramdas has ensured that
women are recognized for the work they do and receive the resources they need to keep it up.
Learn more: http://www.globalfundforwomen.org/kavita-n-ramdas
Nadia Ribadeneira, Ecuador
Founding member of La Casa Feminista de Rosa, Member of the Youth Coalition for Sexual and Reproductive Health
and Rights
Issue: Women’s rights and prisoners’ rights
How she delivers for women: Though only 26, Ribadeneira has already proven herself a passionate and effective
advocate for both female prisoners’ rights and for young women’s sexual and reproductive freedom. She has publicly
denounced abuse in Ecuador’s women’s prisons, where corruption, bribery, and overcrowding are commonplace. She
advocates for alternative penalties for women while raising awareness of female prisoners’ rights in the media.
Ribadeneira is a founding member of La Casa Feminista de Rosa (Rosa's Feminist House), a social center dedicated to
defending the rights of women, and of La Coalición Ecuatoriana por la Despenaliación del Aborto (Ecuadorian Coalition
for the Decriminalization of Abortion) which fights for safe abortion services, especially for young women. In her work
for women across the country, she is proving the power of grassroots feminist action.
Learn more: http://www.youthcoalition.org/html/member.php?ind=mmb&id_member=32&id_cat=2
Mary Robinson, Ireland
President of the Mary Robinson Foundation-Climate Justice, Former UN High Commissioner
for Human Rights, Former President of Ireland, Founding member of The Elders
Issue: Human Rights
How she delivers for women: Robinson has compiled an extraordinary track record as a
champion of the world’s marginalized and disenfranchised. As Ireland’s first female
President, she transformed the office with sweeping reforms, decriminalizing homosexuality and increasing access to
contraceptives. As a founding member and former Chair of the Council of Women World Leaders, she has worked to
address barriers to women’s leadership, and to promote women’s access to positions of power. She works with local
and national women leaders in conflict and post-conflict situations to increase their participation in the development
of peacekeeping policies and programs. And she has passionately called for women to lead the fight to avert climate
change. For amplifying women’s voices where they are needed most, Robinson never ceases to inspire.
Learn more: http://www.realizingrights.org
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Casimira Rodríguez, Bolivia
Labor organizer and former Minister of Justice
Issue: Women’s labor rights and indigenous women’s rights
How she delivers for women: At the age of thirteen, Rodríguez was trafficked from her village to work as a domestic
laborer in the city of Cochabamba, where for two years she worked over eighteen hours a day without pay. Among
young indigenous girls in Bolivia, her experience is hardly uncommon: 55% of indigenous girls start working before
they are fifteen, and only 47% ever complete their primary education. Determined to empower herself and her fellow
workers, Rodríguez helped found the Cochabamba Domestic Workers’ Union and became a leader in the labor
movement, spearheading efforts to pass a Domestic Worker’s Protection Law in 2003. In 2006, she became the first
indigenous Quechua woman to serve as Bolivia’s Minister of Justice. Rodriguez is committed to breaking the pattern of
exploitation and discrimination that has trapped so many indigenous girls in Bolivia, and helping them find their place
as true and equal citizens.
Learn more: http://ashoka.org/fellow/4070
Nawal El Saadawi, Egypt
Feminist, human rights activist, psychiatrist, poet and writer
Issue: Women’s rights
How she delivers for women: Egypt’s foremost feminist, El Saadawi has refused to be
silenced by either political or religious authorities. A psychiatrist and prolific writer, El
Saadawi has challenged political and religious taboos with frank discussions of women’s rights, health, sexuality, and
religion – and calls for full democracy. Her books have been banned in Egypt, and she was jailed under Anwar Sadat
and forced to flee the country for several years. But she continued her fight, pushing to end the practice of female
genital cutting, which she herself underwent as a child. Her relentless advocacy led to the banning of FGC in 2007. In
early 2011, at the age of 80, she joined the crowds demanding democracy in Cairo’s Tahrir Square, with the hope of
finally achieving the Egypt she has fought for: one that grants equality, and full rights, to all.
Learn more: http://www.nawalsaadawi.net/
Fred Sai, Ghana
Physician, Former President of International Planned Parenthood Federation
Issue: Maternal and child health
How he delivers for women: Throughout his career, Sai has been a prescient,
groundbreaking advocate for maternal health. When he began practicing medicine,
contraceptives were unavailable, and countless women were dying from botched abortions. Sai took on these issues,
providing health care and leading advocacy efforts in Ghana and worldwide. He founded the Ghana Family Planning
Association, and then served at the World Bank, where he was instrumental in increasing the Bank’s commitment to
family planning. In 1987, he chaired the Safe Motherhood Conference, putting maternal health on the global agenda.
In 1994, he chaired the International Conference on Population and Development, which called international attention
to women’s rights and demanded that gender equality form the basis of all human relationships – a goal Sai has
worked tirelessly to advance, in a long career dedicated to delivering for women.
Learn more: http://www.womendeliver.org/about/board-members/
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Zainab Salbi, Iraq
Founder and CEO of Women for Women International
Issue: Women survivors of war
How she delivers for women: A childhood in Saddam Hussein’s Iraq – where her father was Hussein’s
personal pilot – left Salbi deeply aware of how vulnerable women are in war and crisis situations.
Years later, moved by the plight of women held in rape camps during the Bosnian War, Salbi founded
Women for Women International, which helps women war survivors rebuild their lives. The
organization matches war survivors with women sponsors around the world, who offer financial and moral support,
and job skills and rights training. It has harnessed the power of connections between women to help some 271,000
survivors of war, offering not only an economic lifeline, but a crucial reminder that they have not been forgotten.
Learn more: http://www.womenforwomen.org/about-women-for-women/zainab-salbi.php
Sadiqa Basiri Saleem, Afghanistan
Co-Founder of the Oruj Learning Center
Issue: Girls’ education and violence against women
How she delivers for women: When the Taliban forced her university to close, thwarting her goal of becoming a
doctor, Saleem turned her formidable energy toward making sure other girls didn’t suffer the same fate. In 2002,
Saleem and three other women pooled their savings to found the only girl's school in their isolated Afghan village,
where most women remain illiterate. Since then, the Oruj Learning Center has grown from 36 students to over 2,800,
and runs literacy centers for over 200 adult women. But Saleem hasn’t stopped there, founding a domestic violence
prevention project and working to engage religious leaders to address women’s issues. Despite threats to her safety
and the safety of her students, Saleem remains committed to prying open opportunity for Afghanistan’s girls and
unleashing the potential of Afghan women.
Learn more: http://www.vitalvoices.org/vital-voices-women/featured-voices/sadiqa-basiri-saleem
Sima Samar, Afghanistan
Doctor, Founder of Shuhada (Afghanistan’s largest NGO), Chair of the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights
Commission, UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Sudan, Former Minister of Women’s Affairs in Afghanistan
Issue: The rights, health, and education of girls and women Afghanistan
How she delivers for women: In a country where the life expectancy for women is 44, where the rate of maternal
deaths is among the highest and the rate of female literacy among the lowest in the world, Samar has long been a
beacon of hope. Samar founded Shuhada while in exile in Pakistan in 1989, to provide health care for Afghan refugee
women and children. In the two decades since, Shuhada has expanded into a remarkable network of hospitals and
clinics focused on Afghan women, and runs scores of schools for women and children. As the first Minister of
Women’s Affairs in the new Afghan government, Samar fought to restore women’s rights and economic opportunities,
and was eventually forced out of office for her courage to do so. Now Chair of the country’s Independent Human
Rights Commission, Samar has remained a relentless voice focusing international attention on the needs of Afghan
women and girls.
Learn more: http://www.shuhada.org.af/
Saudatu Sani, Nigeria
Chairperson of the House of Representatives Committee on MDGs, Chair of AdvocacyNigeria
Issue: Maternal health
How she delivers for women: Sani has convinced her government that investing in women
pays. Despite the deaths of nearly 60,000 women during pregnancy and childbirth each year,
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the Nigerian government had refused to reveal how it spent its health budget. Sani led the fight to make women’s
health a priority, and inspired the government to create a budget line dedicated to “reducing the maternal mortality
rate,” a critical first step in increasing funding. She opened a Youth and Women Development Center, which trained
many of its students to open their own businesses. And as chair of AdvocacyNigeria, she works to expand free
emergency obstetric care and fund reproductive health services. We’re confident that she will keep Nigeria’s
parliament focused on women for years to come.
Learn more: http://speakersoffice.gov.ng/constituencies_kaduna_7.htm
Amartya Sen, India
Economist, Professor of Economics and Philosophy at Harvard University, Recipient of the Nobel Prize in Economics
Issue: Gender equality and development
How he delivers for women: “More Than a 100 Million Women Are Missing.” That was the title of the breakthrough
article Sen wrote in 1990. He declared that 100 million women who should be alive are not, because of unequal access
to medical care, inadequate nutrition, and selective abortion. Since then, Sen’s research on women has been
groundbreaking, indispensable, and persuasive, convincing policymakers worldwide that in order to succeed, “the
central feature of any development program has to be greater power to women.” He has provided the empirical
evidence for the importance of gender equality, women’s empowerment, girls’ education and gender-focused aid
programs. He tackled gender discrimination when others in his field considered women’s issues marginal, and has
been unrelenting in his insistence that economists and policymakers take women into account. For that, we salute
him.
Learn more: http://www.economics.harvard.edu/faculty/sen
Jill W. Sheffield, USA
Founder and President of Women Deliver, Co-founder and former President of Family Care
International
Issue: Maternal health, reproductive rights and women’s empowerment
How she delivers for women: Sheffield is a champion of maternal health and reproductive
rights, fighting to end the deluge of preventable deaths that take the lives of approximately
350,000 girls and women each year during pregnancy and childbirth. In the mid-1960s, while
volunteering for a family planning clinic in Kenya, Sheffield met women who were unable to access contraception
without their husbands’ permission, and the experience launched a lifelong commitment to women’s reproductive
health and rights. In 1987, Sheffield co-founded Family Care International, a nonprofit organization committed to
improving maternal health in the world’s poorest nations, and helped to establish the Safe Motherhood Initiative,
which placed maternal health on the global health agenda. In 2007, Sheffield launched Women Deliver, a global
conference which brings together world leaders to galvanize action on the health of girls and women. Sheffield is an
icon in the field of maternal health, fighting to make sure that world leaders put women – and their health – first.
Learn more: http://www.womendeliver.org/about/staff/
Mu Sochua, Cambodia
Member of Parliament and human rights advocate
Issue: Gender equality and human rights
How she delivers for women: Forced to flee Cambodia as a teenager, Sochua returned after years
in exile to face the consequences of the Khmer Rouge: girls sold into prostitution to support
impoverished families, widespread corruption, and no female representation in government.
Sochua founded the country’s first NGO for women, Khemara, which provides education, childcare,
emergency shelter and other essential services to girls and women. She became a Member of
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Parliament and then the first female Minister of Women’s and Veteran’s Affairs, one of only two women in the
cabinet. In 2002, she mobilized 12,000 women to run for local elections, and over 900 won. In 2004, she stepped down
as Minister, decrying government corruption, and now serves as a member of parliament for the opposition. In the
face of overwhelming obstacles, Sochua has over and over again proven herself a champion of Cambodia’s women.
Learn more: http://musochua.org
Gloria Steinem, USA
Writer, Feminist, Organizer and Activist
Issue: Gender equality
How she delivers for women: As the face and heart of the American feminist movement, Steinem
has been redefining the fight for gender equality since the 1960s. In over four decades of activism
and organizing, she has pursued a radically simple goal: a world in which everyone matters.
Steinem co-founded Ms. Magazine in 1972, tackling issues that nobody else would, from domestic
violence to children’s rights to abortion. She was the force behind initiatives including Voters for
Choice, the Ms. Foundation for Women, Take Our Daughters to Work Day, and the Women’s Media Center. She has
lent her iconic voice to women’s causes worldwide, speaking out with particular passion for equal economic
opportunity and reproductive rights, and against sex-trafficking. Above all, she continually reminds us that as
feminists, our work is not over until everyone, everywhere is equal.
Learn more: http://www.gloriasteinem.com/
Shershah Syed, Pakistan
Ob/gyn, President of the Society of Obstetricians and Gynecologists of Pakistan
Issue: Maternal health and midwifery
How he delivers for women: An ob/gyn and outspoken advocate for maternal health and
women’s rights, Syed has devoted himself to saving poor women in his native Pakistan, where
each year an estimated 15,000 women die and some 400,000 more suffer devastating injuries
during pregnancy and childbirth. He founded the Koohi Goth Women’s Hospital in Karachi to
offer free care to obstetric fistula patients, and is working to improve professional standards and recognition for
midwives, a profession so crucial to women’s health and so often ignored. To relieve the country’s severe shortage of
skilled medical staff, his hospital offers free training to midwives and other health workers. In the face of extreme
poverty and adversity, Syed is committed to serving Pakistan’s marginalized women and supporting the health
workers who care for them.
Learn more: http://www.genderacrossborders.com/2009/07/20/global-feminist-profile-dr-shershah-syed/
Tatiana Therosme, Haiti
Head Psychologist at Zanmi Lasante
Issue: Women’s mental health
How she delivers for women: Not all lives are saved in hospitals – some are saved at
kitchen tables. That’s where Therosme, a psychologist, often does her work. Even before
the devastation of last year’s earthquake, she was one of very few mental health
professionals in all of Haiti. As Head Psychologist for Zanmi Lasante, an affiliate of Partners in Health, she worked to
shatter the silence surrounding mental illness, once patient at a time. Now, she is working with women recovering
from the trauma of the 2010 earthquake, and the epidemic of sexual assault, physical abuse, depression and anxiety
that followed. Helping women to work through their experiences and look forward into the future, Therosme is more
than just a listening ear – she is helping women to recover their lives.
Learn more: http://www.pih.org/haiti/news-entry/healing-a-shaken-psychosis/
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Karma Lekshe Tsomo, USA
Buddhist nun, Associate Professor of Theology and Religious Studies at the University of San
Diego, Director of the Jamyang Foundation
Issue: Gender equality and women’s education in Buddhism
How she delivers for women: Growing up, her family name was “Zenn” so it seems only
natural that this daughter of a Southern Baptist mother would become a follower of the
Buddha. An American Buddhist nun, Tsomo has been a leader of the feminist movement
within Tibetan Buddhism, working to re-establish and expand ordination for nuns – a privilege
enjoyed by men but long extinguished for women. Tsomo has organized annual Sakyadhita
gatherings where Buddhist women can meet and mobilize for greater equality. And as head of
the Jamyang Foundation, she has advanced educational opportunities for young Buddhist nuns and girls, stewarding
their futures when no one else will. In a religion which often favors men and monks, Tsomo is forging a place for
Buddhist women.
Learn more: http://www.sandiego.edu/cas/theo/faculty/biography.php?ID=296
Cristina Villarreal, Colombia
Psychologist, Executive Director of Fundacion Oriéntame
Issue: Safe abortion and mental health
How she delivers for women: Villarreal learned her passion for women’s health at the feet of
her father, a doctor who established Oriéntame to provide critical post-abortion care in
Colombia at a time when abortion itself was illegal. Villarreal was a leader in the movement that
decriminalized abortion, and went on to become the executive director of Oriéntame, which
now provides safe and legal abortions and is recognized throughout Latin America for its quality care. As a
psychologist, she pioneered counseling models for the humane and compassionate treatment of women seeking safe
abortions. She and her organization have trained more than 1,000 healthcare providers in safe abortion techniques,
counseling and professional ethics – improving the lives of women throughout Latin America.
Learn more: http://www.medicalabortionconsortium.org/video/interview-with-cristina-villarreal-executive-directorfundacion-orientame-colombia-9/
Oprah Winfrey, USA
Television producer, Philanthropist, Founder of the Oprah Winfrey Foundation and the
Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls in South Africa
Issue: Empowering women and girls’ education
How she delivers for women: The empress of American media, Winfrey is a singular
international role model who has used her prominent position to shine a bright light on
previously ignored women’s issues worldwide. Through her show, magazine, and now her network, Winfrey offers
activists an enormous platform, broadcasting their stories to the world and galvanizing her viewers and readers to
take action. She has raised awareness on issues from sexual violence in the Congo to maternal health to ending sex
trafficking. As a philanthropist, she has focused on girls’ education, funding scholarships, building schools, and opening
the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls in South Africa. In all the phases of her remarkable career, from
movie-making to philanthropy, Winfrey has been a voice, an example and a champion for women around the globe.
Learn more: http://www.oprah.com/pressroom/Oprah-Winfreys-Official-Biography
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Muhammad Yunus, Bangladesh
Founder of the Grameen Bank, Recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize
Issue: Women’s economic empowerment
How he delivers for women: Yunus pioneered the art of microfinance with a particular,
deliberate focus on poor women. In 1983, he founded the Grameen Bank — “the Bank for the
Poor”—which has provided small loans to over eight million borrowers who otherwise could not
access credit, empowering them to launch small businesses and lift their families from poverty.
Ninety-seven percent of Grameen’s borrowers are women, who are more likely than men to live
in poverty and are more likely to devote their earnings to their families. In 2006, Yunus was awarded the Nobel Peace
Prize for his efforts to unleash the potential of the poorest and most vulnerable, and remake societies from below. He
and the Grameen Bank have offered millions of women a chance to seize control of their economic destinies — and
become engines of economic and social change in their communities.
Learn more: http://www.muhammadyunus.org/
UNFPA’s Iconic Leaders
Nafis Sadik, Pakistan
Former Executive Director of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), UN Special
Envoy for HIV/AIDS
Thoraya Obaid, Saudi Arabia
Former Executive Director of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA)
Issue: Women’s rights and reproductive health
How they deliver for women: Sadik and Obaid together transformed the UN’s approach
to women and population. As the architect of the 1994 International Conference on
Population and Development in Cairo, Sadik helped remake international population
policy, introducing an agenda focused on women’s health and human rights. Fearless in
the face of challenges, Sadik is known for having stood her ground and defended
women’s reproductive rights in an audience with Pope John Paul II. Obaid, who
succeeded Sadik in 2001, had been the first Saudi woman funded by her government to
study at a university in the United States. At UNFPA she built alliances with religious organizations to support women’s
reproductive health, and was adamant that culture and religion could be positive forces in achieving women’s
human rights. She expanded UNFPA’s focus to include human rights issues including violence against women and the
treatment of obstetric fistula. Together, these two women redirected and reinvigorated the UNFPA, improving the
lives of the millions of girls and women served by the agency’s work on reproductive rights, poverty eradication, and
gender equality.
Learn more:
Sadik: http://www.unfpa.org/public/site/global/lang/en/pid/4827
Obaid: http://www.unfpa.org/public/site/global/lang/en/pid/4741
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IPPF’s Changemakers:
Gill Greer, New Zealand
Director-General of the International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF)
Carmen Barroso, Brazil
Regional Director of IPPF Western Hemisphere Region
Steven Sinding, USA
Former Director General of IPPF, Senior Fellow at the Guttmacher Institute
Issue: Reproductive health and rights
How they deliver for women: These three heroes transformed the International Planned
Parenthood Federation from your grandmother’s genteel family planning organization into a
vital advocate for women’s human rights. Sinding, a major theoretician in the population field,
became director general in 2002 and led the organization to tackle the “five As”: AIDS,
Adolescents, Access to sexual and reproductive healthcare, Advocacy, and the right to safe,
legal Abortion. He was followed by Greer who brought to the position on-the-ground
experience as Executive Director of the New Zealand Family Planning Association, a feminist
passion and the courage to tackle sexuality and sexual rights. As head of the Western
Hemisphere Region of IPPF, Barroso broke through the Latin American member associations’
reluctance to move beyond family planning, leading advocacy on comprehensive sexual and
reproductive rights, including access to abortion, and expanding collaboration with the feminist
community. As a result of their groundbreaking work, IPPF not only provides reproductive
healthcare to millions of women worldwide, but has also become one of their most powerful
advocates.
Learn more:
Greer: http://www.ippf.org/en/About/People/DG.htm
Barroso: http://www.ippf.org/en/About/People/Dr+Carmen+Barroso.htm
Sinding: http://www.genderhealth.org/about_us/our_board/
Scientific Visionaries:
Étienne-Émile Baulieu, France
Biochemist and Endrocrinologis at INSERM (National Institute of Health and Medical Research)
Ian Frazer, Australia
Director of the Diamantina Institute (DI), at the University of Queensland, Australia
Pak-Chung Ho, China
President of the Family Planning Association of Hong Kong, President of the Asia Oceania Federation of Obstetrics and
Gynecology
Robert G. Edwards, UK
Recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, 2010
Issue: Reproductive Health
How they deliver for women: Margaret Sanger once said, “No woman can call herself free who does not own and
control her body. No woman can call herself free until she can choose consciously whether she will or will not be a
mother.” Science and technology have served as catalysts for some of the most important transformations in women’s
lives, and these four men have delivered breakthroughs that changed reproductive healthcare forever. Baulieu is
known worldwide for his scientific work and advocacy on RU486 (mifepristone), the compound used for medical
abortion, which made possible safe, private abortions without surgery. Ho’s research cemented the place of
levonorgestrel as the emergency contraception of choice, providing that critical second chance for all women who
want to avoid an unwanted pregnancy. Edwards successfully pioneered conception through in vitro fertilization, for
which he was awarded the 2010 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. His work has helped millions of women
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conceive who otherwise could not have. Frazer is a co-creator of the first HPV vaccine against cervical cancer -- the
first vaccine designed to prevent a cancer, and a critical shield against a disease which claims 250,000 lives annually.
Together, these four have expanded women’s sexual and reproductive choices, offering women more control over
their bodies, their fertility, and their destinies.
Learn more:
Baulieu: http://institut-baulieu.org/biographie
Ho: http://www2.kenes.com/aspire/congress/speaker_CV/PC%20Ho.pdf
Edwards: http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/medicine/laureates/2010/edwards.html
Frazer: http://www.uq.edu.au/about/director-di
European Champions:
Tore Godal, Norway
Special Advisor to the Prime Minister of Norway
Bert Koenders, Netherlands
Former Minister for Development Cooperation, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Rutgers
WPF
Andrew Mitchell, UK
Secretary of State for International Development
Issue: Women’s health and reproductive rights
How they deliver for women: Together, Mitchell, Koenders and Godal are the architects and
guardians of Europe’s progressive, woman-centered aid policy; they have ensured that women
in the developing world are at the center of European foreign assistance agendas. Living in
countries where women’s equality goes without saying, European women have long enjoyed
health, economic and social benefits that far exceed those of women in the rest of the world.
But, in no small part thanks to Godal, Koenders and Mitchell, European nations have committed
to closing that gap. They have increased funding in the face of declining resources, kept the
spotlight on reproductive health through difficult economic times, and ensured a dramatic
increase in global attention to, and financing for, maternal health. Whether it involved stepping
in to replace lost family planning funds during the George W. Bush administration, keeping
reproductive health clinics open around the world; or committing to eradicate violence against
women; or dramatically increasing the global budget for maternal health, Mitchell, Koenders,
and Godal have kept international attention on the needs of the world’s most vulnerable girls
and women -- a remarkable commitment which is transforming the lives of millions.
Learn more:
Godal: http://www.norway.org.et/News_and_events/education/toregodal/
Koenders: http://www.rutgersnissogroep.org/news/bert-koenders-chairman-rutgers-wpf
Mitchell: http://www.dfid.gov.uk/About-DFID/Our-organisation1/Ministers/Andrew-Mitchell/
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Heads of State:
Jens Stoltenberg, Norway
Prime Minister of Norway
José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, Spain
Prime Minister of Spain
Tarja Halonen, Finland
President of Finland
Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Liberia
President of Liberia
Issue: Gender equality
How they deliver for women: Political leaders always face a critical decision: take the easy
road, or stand up for what’s right. These heads of state opted for the latter, and they have
become champions of women’s rights, both nationally and abroad. Prime Minister Jens
Stoltenberg of Norway has spearheaded a $1 billion campaign to end child and maternal
deaths (the Global Campaign for the Health MDGs), calling upon global leaders to join
Norway’s effort. Prime Minister Jose Luis Zapatero of Spain made history when he appointed
women to fill half of Spain’s cabinet positions, the highest proportion in Europe. Tarja
Halonen, the President of Finland, is a strong believer in the power of education to promote
gender equality, and a striking example of the impact powerful women can have: in 2009,
she convened the first International Colloquium on Women’s Empowerment, gathering
almost a thousand female leaders to brainstorm ways to educate and empower women
worldwide. Her partner in that endeavor, President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf of Liberia, is the first
and only female head of state in Africa, and she has made the empowerment of girls and
women a priority in post-civil war Liberia, pushing to prosecute violence against women, and
emphasizing girls’ education and women’s economic opportunity. For their work in advancing
the cause of gender equality and for the examples they have set for the world, we hail these
four as true leaders.
Learn more:
Stoltenberg: http://www.regjeringen.no/en/dep/smk/primeminister/prime-minister-jensstoltenberg.html?id=1597
Zapatero: http://www.la-moncloa.es/IDIOMAS/9/Presidente/Biografia/index.htm
Halonen: http://www.tpk.fi/public/default.aspx?nodeid=41419&culture=en-US&contentlan=2
Sirleaf: http://www.emansion.gov.lr/content.php?sub=President's%20Biography&related=The%20President
For more information, please visit: www.womendeliver.org
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