Closing the Gender Gap: The Economic Benefits of Bringing more Women into the Labour Force

As girls, we were raised with the belief that we could accomplish anything, and that no barrier was insurmountable. Yet, for so many women, the reality doesn’t quite meet their aspirations. Things weren’t exactly equal in the relatively conservative middle-class society in India where we both grew up.

Fighting the World’s Largest Criminal Industry: Modern Slavery

Modern slavery and human trafficking is one of the fastest growing criminal industries and one of the biggest human rights crises today, United Nations and government officials said.

It’s Simple, but Requires Determination

I am drafting this on International Women’s Day - March 8 - with an eye towards World Water Day on March 22. On International Women’s Day we celebrate progress in gender equality. At the same time, we recognize how much remains to be done: how many women remain excluded from decision-making across many professions. Changing this is urgent. Water – clean and accessible – is getting scarcer at an alarming rate. While working to change this, we cannot afford to exclude women.

Seven Challenges for US Nominee for World Bank President

All incoming World Bank presidents bring a public record of their views about the bank and about development more generally. David Malpass, who is on track to become the bank’s next president, has not been shy in criticizing the role and management of the institution he now plans to lead.

Women, Work, and Migration

Social barriers have historically been blamed for the lack of gender parity in the workplace. But there are other dimensions to this age-old discourse.

Access to Water Is a Daily Battle in Poor Neighborhoods in Buenos Aires

"Look at this water. Would you drink it?" asks José Pablo Zubieta, as he shows a glass he has just filled from a faucet, where yellow and brown sediment float, in his home in Villa La Cava, a shantytown on the outskirts of Argentina's capital.

Q&A: Inventor from a Small Fishing Village in Saint Lucia Provides Hope for Water Woes

Karlis Noel spends his days in his lab in the small, picturesque community of Laborie in St. Lucia. The former fisherman’s story might sound like an overnight success, but his present accolades in the field of engineering are the result of years of hard work and an unceasing drive to make life easier for communities in the throes of a water crisis.

Will ‘People Power’, or Powerful People, Change the World?

When I was a little girl, I wanted to be a hero. While my friends dressed up as princesses, I wore a home-made Joan of Arc costume. Where others read romance novels, I read about fighting dragons. I didn’t want to be a princess, I wanted to save them.

Urgent Call for African Food Sovereignty Movements to Connect with Radical Feminist Movements on the Continent

Africa is facing dire times. Climate change is having major impacts on the region and on agriculture in particular, with smallholder farmers, and especially women, facing drought, general lack of water, shifting seasons, and floods in some areas.

Break the Menstrual Taboo

It is time to rise up and fight a long neglected taboo: menstruation. Marking International Women’s Day, United Nations human rights experts called on the international community to break taboos around menstruation, noting its impacts on women and girls’ human rights.

Protecting Women’s Space in Politics

Women human rights defenders around the globe are facing heightened threats of violence and repression. Sometimes they are targeted for being activists, and sometimes just for being women. World leaders should do much more to secure space for women’s safe participation in public life.

Was Slavery the World’s First Human Rights Violation?

The United Nations, which diligently monitors human rights violations worldwide, believes that centuries-old slavery still exists worldwide.

International Women’s Day in Cameroon: A Day for All Women?

On March 8, women all over Cameroon will don custom-made dresses sewn of pagne, specially printed for International Women’s Day. They will parade through cities and towns, joining women around the world in celebration of the day.

Decent Work Still a Distant Dream for Many Latin American Women

Women in Latin America earn one-fifth less than men for every hour worked, on average - one of the statistics that reflect the continuing inequality in the world of work that makes it unlikely for the region to meet the goal of equal pay by 2030.

The Future Women Want: Free of Violence

Bakera excelled in school. As a girl who grew up in a rural, poor community, she had, against all odds, realized her education goals and was elated to go to the capital city, Kampala where she would now work.

How Cultural & Creative Industries Can Power Human Development in 21st Century

Cultural and creative industries, which include arts and crafts, advertising, design, entertainment, architecture, books, media and software, have become a vital force in accelerating human development. They empower people to take ownership of their own development and stimulate the innovation that can drive inclusive sustainable growth.

INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY – Think Equal, Build Smart, Innovate for Change

In an increasingly connected world, innovation and technology should provide unprecedented opportunity. But the truth is alarming, as trends indicate a growing divide.

International Women’s Day Needs to Return to its Radical Roots

The theme for International Women’s Day this year doesn’t resonate with us. #BalanceForBetter brings to mind slow gradual change, and assumes that if you provide women and girls with equal access then the society will automatically be better. We know that’s false.

Latin American Women Programme Their World against the Digital Divide

Designed mostly by men, many digital applications are not suitable for women, but some initiatives are beginning to include them as programmers and beneficiaries in Latin America, where the gender gap is also technological.

Industrial Jobs in Danger When the Climate is to be Saved

The trade unions' solution for a greener world is new jobs with good working conditions. The critics argue that there's not enough time. ”We can either protect industrial jobs in the global north or save the climate”, says political scientist Tadzio Müller.

Awareness Raising, a Deterrent to Educate Guineans About Irregular Migration

Every year, there thousands of young people, including women and children, who try to irregularly reach Europe and what, they hope, will be a better life.