Recent talks between the Russian government and the Trump administration over the Russia-Ukraine War have failed to include women, despite the WPS Act which Trump signed in 2017. Women must be meaningfully included in any high-level peace negotiations between Russia and Ukraine or any peace created will not be sustainable, and it will not be true peace for all.

Despite 25 years of the WPS Agenda, women’s equal and substantive participation in conflict and peace processes is still far from being achieved. A truly feminist peace requires the recognition of gender as an essential part of conflict resolution, and a commitment to adapting security structures away from male protectionist models and towards gender-oriented solutions.

International Day of the Girl Child 2023: Analyzing the Status of Afghan Girls Two Years after the Taliban Takeover through the WPS and YPS Agendas

As a student of international affairs, imagine you’re holding up five sticks and can put down one stick for every professor who comes from a marginalized racial or gender identity. Put a stick down for every female professor you’ve had, every professor of color you’ve had, and every queer professor you’ve had. Would you be able to put all five sticks down?