by Stephenie Foster | Mar 2, 2013 | Women in Politics
Last year, I spent some time writing about divorce – no, not my own – but divorce law and practice in four countries. Here is my take away. A country’s laws and practices around divorce are indicative of how a country values women. I’m pleased that the newly...
by Stephenie Foster | Feb 8, 2013 | Book Reviews, Women in Business, Women in Leadership, Women in Politics
I’m excited that the newly published Multimedia Encyclopedia of Women in Today’s World contains seven entries that I authored, including short biographic pieces on Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff, Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra and Bahraini businesswoman...
by Stephenie Foster | Dec 26, 2012 | Book Reviews, Women in Leadership, Women in Politics
This article also appeared on the Huffington Post, January 23, 2013. I’m on an email list where, at each year end, we exchange lists of books and movies we recommend to each other. This year, I decided to focus on books and films re Afghanistan. This is in no way a...
by Stephenie Foster | Nov 8, 2012 | Elections, Women in Politics
Watching the 2012 election from a far has reaffirmed so much of what I think about the US and our still imperfect political system. On election night, I was struck by the remarkable nature of the American politics and political culture. Despite heated and partisan...
by Stephenie Foster | Oct 17, 2012 | Women in Business, Women in Leadership, Women in Politics
This also appeared today on the Huffington Post: Afghanistan has made significant progress over the last ten years, and in particular, Afghan women and girls have made great strides. Millions of girls are in school; the maternal mortality rate has dropped; and health...
by Stephenie Foster | Sep 17, 2012 | Women in Asia/Pacific, Women in Leadership, Women in Politics
After a hectic week, I’m back from the Grassroots Women’s Political Forum in Chittagong. It was an amazing experience, and given the multiple languages being spoken, quite a communications challenge. But, with Urdu, Hindi, Dari, Bangla, Nepalese and English flying...
by Stephenie Foster | Sep 10, 2012 | Women in Asia/Pacific, Women in Business, Women in Leadership, Women in Politics
The Asian University for Women in Chittagong, Bangladesh is hosting the first Grassroots Women’s Political Leadership Forum, being held in conjunction with the US State Department. I’m here with a courageous group of Afghan women leaders, who are participating along ...
by Stephenie Foster | Aug 31, 2012 | Readings, Women in Business, Women in Leadership, Women in Politics, Women in the Middle East/North Africa
Here’s a very interesting piece on US Global Ambassador for Women’s Issues Melanne Verveer’s recent conversation with women leaders in Nangarhar province, Afghanistan. The piece gives a great sense of the issues women care about in this region, and...
by Stephenie Foster | Aug 14, 2012 | Women in Politics
Also published on Huffington Post, August 26, 2012. We are fast approaching Women’s Equality Day on August 26, the 92nd Anniversary of women’s right to vote in the United States. This remarkable day marks the culmination of years of struggle by women...
by Stephenie Foster | Jul 21, 2012 | Women in Business, Women in Leadership, Women in Politics
I am always struck by how, despite our differences around the globe, there are so many similarities in the challenges we share as women and the potential solutions. Here’s a case in point. In May, I interviewed Ifat Zamir, the Executive Director of Israel’s...
by Stephenie Foster | Jul 8, 2012 | Book Reviews, Women in Leadership, Women in Politics
Not even a month after her book, Mighty Be Our Powers, was published in September 2011, Leymah Gbowee won the Nobel Peace Prize along with two other women, President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf of Liberia and Tawakkol Karman of Yemen. Gbowee was awarded the prize for...
by Stephenie Foster | Jul 4, 2012 | Women in Business, Women in Leadership, Women in Politics
As we celebrate July 4th today, here is my most recent Huffington Post blog piece on how women are key to economic and political progress. Across the globe – and here in the US – women are crucial to building strong, vibrant societies and economies. To...
by Stephenie Foster | Jun 27, 2012 | Women in Business, Women in Leadership, Women in Politics
“Breaking Down the Barriers: Women in Economic and Political Leadership” is the latest feature-length interview done by the Center for International Private Enterprise, one of the four arms of the National Endowment for Democracy. It’s a topic near...
by Stephenie Foster | Jun 25, 2012 | Women in Leadership, Women in Politics
You don’t often hear Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called a girl, but she was called just that on a powerful and touching video tribute to her featured at the National Partnership for Women & Families annual lunch, where Secretary Clinton also was honored. ...
by Stephenie Foster | Jun 20, 2012 | Women in Leadership, Women in Politics, Women in Sub-Saharan Africa
Today I was lucky enough to moderate a discussion with a group of six members of parliament (four women and two men) from Burkina Faso, who are in the US for a study mission through NDI and the Institute for Responsive Government. We discussed the differences...