Lecture Abstract:

In 2000 the UN Security Council adopted resolution 1325. For the first time the UN Security Council recognized that just and lasting peace will not be achieved without the full and equal participation of women. UN Security Council member states also recognized the importance of a gender perspective when engaging in conflict resolution efforts. The resolution has been followed by eight resolutions, including resolutions dealing with conflict related sexual violence—collectively they are known as the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda.

Over 58 countries and many regional organizations (including military organizations such as NATO) have adopted action plans to implement this resolution at a national or regional level. These plans detail how they advance gender equality and integrate a gender perspective within their foreign and security policies. Chantal de Jonge Oudraat will examine the relevance of gender and the WPS agenda to peace and security challenges in the 21st century. She will assess the implementation of the WPS agenda, including approaches to conflict related sexual violence, and outline future directions for the WPS agenda.

About the Speaker:

Dr Chantal de Jonge Oudraat is President of Women In International Security (WIIS). Her areas of specialization are: women, peace, and security; terrorism and violent extremism; international organizations; arms control and disarmament; economic sanctions, the use of force, and peacekeeping; and U.S.-European relations.

She was the founding Executive Director and CEO of the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute’s North America office. She has also held senior positions at the U.S. Institute of Peace; the Center for Transatlantic Relations, Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies; the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace; and the United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research in Geneva. She has been an adjunct faculty member at Georgetown University.

Dr de Jonge Oudraat is co-editor of Women and War: Power and Protection in the 21st Century, and Managing Global Issues: Lessons Learned. Other publications include: The 1325 Scorecard – Gender Mainstreaming: Indicators for the Implementation of UNSCR 1325 and its Related Resolutions; “Peace and Security in the 21st Century: Understanding the Gendered Nature of Power” in Managing Conflict in a World Adrift.

Dr de Jonge Oudraat did her undergraduate studies at the University of Amsterdam. She received her PhD in Political Science from the University of Paris II (Panthéon).