The 2011 Nobel Peace Prize - A Note from the Chair

Dear Friends,

It is with pure, unrelenting joy that we celebrate that President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf and Leymah Gbowee have won the Nobel Peace Prize for “their non-violent struggle for the safety of women and for women’s rights to full participation in peace-building work.” The Nobel Committee has shined a light on the essential work of women preventing and stopping war across the globe. This is a wake-up call to the policy community that they can no longer ignore women leaders, who are the most valuable untapped resources for global stability.

Two of these recipients are close friends of ours. Leymah Gbowee is an extraordinarily determined and visionary leader who organized the women of Liberia to put an end to the catastrophic rule of Charles Taylor. Since we began working together six years ago, she has become a model within The Institute for Inclusive Security’s Women Waging Peace Network of more than 1,000 women putting their shoulders to the wheel and their lives on the line to stop ruinous conflict.

Leymah’s grassroots organizing paved the way for Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, the first elected female president in Africa and a global symbol of women’s particular ability to stabilize nations reeling from war. The new president described herself first as a technocrat, taking the reins of one of the most corrupt nations on earth. But she added that as “Ma Ellen,” she nurtures her people, and as a grandmother, she looks to the future. Thanks to the Nobel Committee, President Johnson Sirleaf’s unyielding leadership will become iconic.

While we steal time to toast the phenomenal contribution of heroic women, let’s not forget the work that’s ahead. This is both a moment of triumph and a call to continue building momentum for inclusive peace. May these awards be just the beginning of a new era in which women's participation is regularly celebrated in the widest expanse of countries, from Congo to Colombia to Korea.

And finally, this moment of celebration is not only for the awardees, but for all men and women who struggle to make the world more secure – and refuse to take no as their answer. I’m sure our friends are willing to share their award with you who are insisting on advancing women as leaders throughout peace processes. So congratulations to you!

Swanee

P.S. Leymah’s story is documented in the award-winning Pray the Devil Back to Hell. That film (which I use in my course and we have used for training across the globe) is part of PBS’s brand new Women, War & Peace series, produced and directed by our good friends Abigail Disney and Gini Reticker, respectively. The series begins airing on October 11— (check the date and time with your local station, and convene your friends for viewing parties).

Also, if you’re already, or want to be, in DC, please join Abby and me for a discussion and reception Tuesday, October 25, 2011, 3:00 to 5:30 PM at the US Institute of Peace. I’ll introduce my newest book – Worlds Apart: Bosnian Lessons for Global Security – and Abby will show the Bosnian part of her Women, War & Peace series, entitled I Came to Testify.