The Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace & Security honored women working for peace around the globe, including former heads of state and government as well as Palestinian and Israeli peace builders, in an Oct. 1 ceremony on campus.
Former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton returned to Georgetown to present the 2024 Hillary Rodham Clinton Awards to women whose work is making the world more peaceful and stable.
“Melanne Verveer and I founded the Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security, and these awards, more than a decade ago to recognize the importance of women’s participation and leadership in global peacebuilding,” Clinton said. “I keep waiting for the year when that mission feels less urgent. It’s certainly not this year.”
This year’s awardees included women who served as the first female heads of state and government in Lithuania, Estonia and Australia, and a Palestinian and Israeli woman who are working together to unite mothers on both sides of the conflict. Their efforts have recently been nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize.
“This year, we are honoring some of the women who have achieved the highest political office and those at the grassroots level who are doing hard work as well,” said Ambassador Melanne Verveer, the executive director of the Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security (GIWPS).
The event celebrated women’s leadership — and the benefits it brings for all members of society. In her opening remarks, Clinton spoke about the rise in harassment and attacks on women in public service, particularly online. She said the women honored in the awards ceremony serve as an inspiration for the next generation of female leaders.
“These attacks are designed to frighten women. To keep us out of public life. To tell the next generation of women leaders ‘you are not welcome here,’” Clinton said. “We may have the right to speak, but do we have the power? The women we honor today have answered that question forcefully and refused to be silenced.”
Learn more about these women who are leading the way toward peace around the world.
Dalia Grybauskaite
Former President of Lithuania
Dalia Grybauskaite served as the first female president of Lithuania from 2009 until 2019. She’s known as the Baltic Iron Lady or Iron Magnolia for her tough stance on Russian aggression against its neighbors — and for her black belt in karate. Under her presidency, Lithuania significantly increased its assistance to Ukraine.
“It is very tempting, especially in difficult times, including war times, to use strength and to limit partly democratic powers and rights,” she said during a panel discussion. “But even having that in mind, any leader needs to understand that democratic values and democracy is a guarantor of peace and freedoms for everybody — for people, for families, for human rights, for women and for country.”
Grybauskaite had previously studied at Georgetown through a certificate program for executives in 1991, shortly after Lithuania declared its independence from the Soviet Union. She also holds an honorary degree from Georgetown.
Kersti Kaljulaid
Former President of Estonia
Kersti Kaljulaid was the first female president of Estonia — and the youngest person to hold this role. She led her country’s digitization efforts that enabled Estonian citizens to vote, pay taxes and manage government services online. The work earned the government a reputation as the most advanced digital society in the world.
Kaljulaid was recognized both for her public denunciation of Russian aggression and for her advocacy for gender equality in the digital age.
“The rules, which apply in an analogue world — the human rights, respect of each other — this always also applies in the digital world and in the future, the new AI-enhanced world. It’s very important that as we move from one level to the other in technological development we keep our basic value structure in place,” she said.
Julia Gillard
Former Prime Minister of Australia
Julia Gillard served as the former prime minister of Australia from 2010 to 2013. In 2012, she gave a speech to parliament about misogyny that went viral. She was honored for her courage in calling out sexism and for continuing to help women overcome barriers to leadership.
In her panel remarks, Gillard also had a message for younger generations.
“There will be barriers and obstacles and things that just happen because you are a woman, and you need to be ready for those moments when they come,” she said. “Don’t assume they’re not going to come because they will. But one of the advantages that you have coming up today is you have the benefit, effectively, of seeing this movie before.“You’ve seen what happened, for example, when Secretary Clinton ran. You’re seeing now what happens as Vice President [Kamala] Harris runs, the critiques that come about her gender and race. And you can therefore be more mindful and more ready and more effective at pushing those barriers back.”
Women of the Sun and Women Wage Peace
Palestinian and Israeli partner organizations building pro-peace movements
GIWPS also honored two Israeli and Palestinian organizations that are working together to mobilize mothers who want safety, peace and freedom for their children and future generations.
Reem Hajajreh represented the organization she founded, Women of the Sun, which works to increase women’s participation in Palestinian leadership, empowering women economically and politically and ending the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Angela Scharf, the foreign relations coordinator for Women Wage Peace, the largest grassroots peace movement in Israel, accepted the award on behalf of her organization. Women Wage Peace is working to promote a peaceful solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict with women involved in all stages of negotiations.
“We are tired of wars, we are tired of death, so we decided to create a partnership… and speak in a loud voice and say that Palestinian mothers and Israeli mothers, we refuse for our children to be killed,” said Hajajreh.
The groups work to advance what they’ve called a Mother’s Call to “stop the vicious cycle of bloodshed.” The organizations have been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize for their efforts since the Hamas attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.
“When women from both sides of the conflict come together, good things can happen,” said Scharf.
Three members of Women Wage Peace, including co-founder Vivian Silver, were killed on Oct. 7. Dozens of members of Women of the Sun have been killed since Israel declared war on Hamas.
“These are women who refuse to be victims who say ‘no stop, it is enough,’” Hajajreh told the audience of dignitaries, diplomats, students, faculty and staff at Georgetown’s Gaston Hall.
Clinton presented both groups with a 2024 Hillary Rodham Clinton award, noting: “Their members are women in conflict zones who have lost children, parents, loved ones. But instead of turning to rancor and despair, they’re working for peace. We owe it to them, and the loved ones they honor with their work, to do the same.”
As part of this year’s ceremony, both groups received $25,000 grants from the Elevate Prize Foundation as a part of the Elevate Prize GET LOUD initiative, which funds grassroots movements.
“By honoring and shining a light on their critical work, we undoubtedly help to advance it,” said Elevate Prize Foundation’s CEO Carolina Garcia Jayaram. “We also understand how crucial funding is to supporting the immediate needs only grassroots leaders like them can quickly understand and effectively address.”
Adia Armstrong (G’25), a graduate student who’s pursuing her master’s in global human development, attended the event to learn from the awardees how to overcome challenges as a leader.
She engaged directly with the leaders during the Q&A section, asking them about how their view of courageous leadership has evolved as they broke barriers – and particularly in light of “marginalized women who face barriers that prevent them from reaching similar heights.”
Leaving the event, she said she felt energized and motivated to follow in their footsteps.
“Despite the obstacles and naysayers, these women had managed to unite their communities, stand up for women’s rights, and prioritize the well-being of those they served,” she said. “I left the event with a sense of hope and inspiration, confident that I, too, have the potential to be a changemaker.”
View a full recording of the 2024 Hillary Rodham Clinton Awards.
