Welcome to Our Secure Future’s monthly Women, Peace and Security (WPS) Research Digest, “the done for you” newsletter on WPS. Read on for a selection of articles and reports from January focused on women’s rights and international peace and security matters.
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WPS in the US
GIWPS Analysis: The US is Pulling Back from Multilateralism (Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security)
“The White House issued a presidential memorandum announcing that the United States will no longer participate in 66 critical international organizations, including most UN organizations related to advancing and protecting women and girls. By withdrawing from these organizations, the U.S. is continuing to isolate itself and undermine its own security and influence.”
The Elimination of the Women, Peace and Security Implementation Capacity at the Department of State (New Lines Institute)
“Between January and July 2025, the State Department dismantled the Office of Global Women’s Issues, terminated over 65 expert staff, and suspended active WPS programs in more than 50 countries. This establishes a dangerous precedent of ‘impoundment by elimination,’ where deliberately destroying institutional mechanisms makes executing legislated directives operationally impossible.”
Opting Out: United States to Stop Engaging with More UN Entities (Center for Strategic and International Studies)
“The United States is losing options for advancing various policies, missing opportunities for geopolitical competition, and leaving many forums unmonitored. America First policies dismiss that premise, aiming instead to halt U.S. taxpayer funding and participation in organizations seen as prioritizing globalist agendas over U.S. interests or addressing key issues so inefficiently that U.S. resources would be better spent elsewhere.”
Defense and Security
The Operational Imperative of Integrating Gender into Peacekeeping-Intelligence (International Peace Institute)
“Integrating gender into peacekeeping intelligence is not merely a normative obligation but a core operational requirement. Gender-responsive intelligence strengthens threat assessment, early warning, and the protection of civilians by improving how missions understand conflict dynamics and communities.”
Pentagon will begin review of 'effectiveness' of women in ground combat positions (National Public Radio)
“The Pentagon is mounting a six-month review of women in ground combat jobs, to ensure what it calls the military ‘effectiveness’ of having several thousand female soldiers and Marines in infantry, armor and artillery. This pretextual, rushed effort is clearly intended to shrink the number of women who bravely serve in combat roles, which would be devastating to our military readiness.”
Russia recruits young migrant women from Latin America to build Iranian drones (Foundation for Defense of Democracies)
“Russia is recruiting young migrant women from Latin America with false promises of education and high wages, then putting them to work in its defense-industrial base. Not only does the Alabuga Start program likely qualify as human trafficking and forced labor, it also feeds Russian aggression in Ukraine.”
Why Losing Local Voices in Foreign Aid–Diplomacy Mergers Threatens National Security (Center for Strategic and International Studies)
“Efforts to fold the few remaining aid programs from the now shuttered USAID into the U.S. Department of State provide the most recent and most consequential of these changes to date. Local priorities undergird diplomatic and national security interests, and working with local organizations . . . sets the ground for productive future engagement even in the midst of upheaval and chaos.”
Economic Empowerment
Women Made Up Nearly All the Job Losses Last Month. Here’s Why (Forbes)
“A thriving economy is partly reflected by a labor force that represents the demographics of our population. The latest Bureau of Labor Statistics’ jobs report shows some striking disparities: 91,000 women left the labor force last month, compared to 10,000 men who joined the labor force last month. If we zoom out to look at all of 2025, men’s labor force size grew by 572,000, while women’s grew by only 184,000. That means men joined the labor market at a rate three times greater than women.”
Rural women in Georgia: Insights from the Country Gender Assessment (FAO)
“Georgia’s first time use survey, published in 2022, found that 90.3 percent of rural women performed unpaid domestic work, more than twice the rate of men . . . spending about five times more time on household tasks than men. Without policies to redistribute unpaid care, such as accessible childcare, improved rural infrastructure and labour-saving technologies, rural women’s empowerment will remain out of reach.”
Kenyan women lost their husbands and then their land. But some are fighting back (AP)
“In Kenya, widow disinheritance has long operated in the shadows — a widespread form of gender-based violence that strips women of property, dignity and security following the loss of a spouse. A new law in Western Kenya is beginning to offer widows long-denied legal protection and hope.”
Technology
Digital Assets for Good: Why They Could Improve Women’s Security in Humanitarian Settings (LA Weekly)
" In 2025, the words cryptocurrency, digital assets, and blockchain are becoming increasingly commonplace, yet they are still a new terrain for many in the policy world and almost absent from discussions about peace and security . . . Applying a Women, Peace and Security lens helps ensure that both men and women can benefit from economic innovations, creating safer, more resilient, and more independent environments, even in the most vulnerable situations."
It comes in peace? AI’s promise and peril for women, peace and security (Peace Research Institute Oslo)
“AI could help revive the WPS agenda, but only if it is implemented safely, transparently, and with women’s leadership at its core. Without inclusive governance, AI systems may reproduce gender bias, exacerbate surveillance, and endanger women and girls in conflict settings.”
UK threatens action against X over sexualised AI images of women and children (The Guardian)
"Downing Street described the move [to limit Grok to paying subscribers] as unacceptable, saying it simply turns an AI feature that allows the creation of unlawful images into a premium service. They [Ofcom] have a range of powers that goes from heavy, heavy fines all the way through to banning X from our country, if deemed appropriate."
Women’s Digital Empowerment: An economic imperative for India’s growth (Times of India)
"Women's entrepreneurship isn't a welfare issue but a strategic driver of national economic growth. Digital tools provide the most scalable solution by transcending geography, enabling flexible access, and connecting women to markets and finance that were previously out of reach."
Climate
The Women Saving America’s Climate Data (Time)
“For over a year now, more than a dozen groups have been working together to rescue environment and climate data—and the majority are being led by women . . . Past data is useful to give a picture of society and the planet at a given point in time, and it’s essential for analyzing trends. But unless this digital library of data—a library funded by taxpayers—is available to everyone, it won’t be able to do what it was gathered to do, which is to help inform our understanding about the world and guide decisions.”
Government and UNDP Supports Community-Led Green Farm Advancing Women’s Empowerment and Renewable Energy in Maldives (UNDP Maldives)
“The Vaadhoo Green Farm, a community-led initiative that strengthens food security, women’s economic empowerment, and renewable energy adoption in the Maldives. This project shows that sustainable development is most powerful when driven by communities themselves . . . demonstrating how innovation, clean energy, and women’s leadership can work together to build resilient livelihoods.”
General WPS
Women, Peace & Security in a Changing Global Economy: Mining and the Geopolitics of Critical Minerals (Our Secure Future)
“As critical minerals become central to geopolitical strategy and the global economy, this blog piece explores why integrating Women, Peace and Security (WPS) principles into the business operations of multinational mining firms allows for more effective risk management, strengthened local stability, and the creation of shared value for communities and investors alike.”
World Inequality Report 2026 (World Inequality Lab)
“This year’s World Inequality report labels gender inequality as a defining and persistent feature of the global economy . . . Women work longer and earn just a third – 32% – of what men get per hour, when paid and unpaid labour, such as domestic work, are taken into account. Even when unpaid domestic labour is not included, women only earn 61% of what men make, according to the report.”
How to Save the Fight for Women’s Rights (Foreign Affairs)
“Three decades after the Beijing Platform for Action, the groundbreaking UN declaration that affirmed that women’s rights are human rights, the global movement for gender equality and women’s empowerment is under strain. Adopted in 1995 and signed by 189 governments, the ambitious framework spurred a generation of legal reforms, gains in political representation, and consolidation of norms around gender equality. Today, however, that momentum is faltering. Although some countries continue to make steady progress, a UN report released in March 2025 found that one in four countries is experiencing a backlash against gender equality.”
Defying Silence: reflections on the 25th anniversary of UNSCR 1325 (Safer World)
“Twenty-five years after the adoption of UN Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security (WPS), women across conflict-affected regions continue to push its promise from policy into practice. With wars intensifying, civic space shrinking, and gender backlash rising, local women’s rights organisations remain at the forefront of peacebuilding, protection and community resilience. To mark this milestone, women peacebuilders and leaders from Central Asia, Kenya, Somalia, and Yemen reflect on progress made and the systemic barriers that still prevent women’s meaningful participation in political processes.”
How can ASEAN live up to its commitments in Myanmar? (IPI Global Observatory)
“As Myanmar’s military junta speaks of holding elections later this year, millions of people remain displaced by conflict, and many, especially women human rights defenders, continue to risk their lives reporting conditions in conflict zones. The military claimed that the February 2021 coup was a necessary intervention for national security. Yet the regime has brutally repressed civilians, killed and detained thousands, bombed villages, and committed other alleged war crimes, including sexual violence. As the world marks 25 years of the women, peace, and security (WPS) agenda—and four years since the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) adopted a Regional Plan of Action on WPS—Myanmar stands as a stark reminder of promises left unfulfilled.”
Bangladeshi Women, Girls, Minorities Face Rising Violence (Human Rights Watch)
“Ahead of the elections, attacks on women, girls, and religious minorities are on the rise, exposing the interim government’s failure to protect fundamental human rights. In the upcoming general elections, 30 out of the 51 political parties do not have any women candidates.”
Backlash and Progress in a New Geopolitical Reality: Women, Peace and Security and the Ambiguous Role of the UN Security Council (Peace Research Institute Oslo)
“This chapter explores the resilience of the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda amid growing backlash in the UN Security Council. Opposing actors have increasingly challenged WPS norms, especially those related to sexual and reproductive health and rights, while broader pushback has targeted civil society participation . . . Still, the chapter argues that maintaining the Council as a negotiation platform remains crucial for defending women’s rights and ensuring WPS resilience, even amid rising militarization and institutional fragility.”
Upcoming and Past Notable Events
January 15, 2026 - Meet the Moment: Implications of U.S. Military Action in Venezuela (Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security)
This event featured a discussion with Anne Applebaum to analyze the implications of the U.S. military capture of Nicolás Maduro and the administration's subsequent focus on controlling Venezuelan oil. The panel examined how these unilateral actions undermine the international rules-based system and threaten regional stability through a revived Monroe Doctrine.
February 4, 2026 – Afghan Women Demand Their Rights (Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security)
This upcoming event by GIWPS will feature a private screening of The Sharp Edge of Peace, a documentary following Afghan women negotiators who risked their lives to advocate for peace and women’s rights during talks with the Taliban. It will also continue with a panel discussion with Afghan women leaders and experts examining the deterioration of women’s rights since the U.S. withdrawal and exploring pathways to advance women, peace, and security in Afghanistan.
Opportunities
Research Fellow, HRC Oral History Project (Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security)
“The Research Fellow will work closely with the Project Director and collaborate with the Research Director to develop and execute the project. Responsibilities include overall project management, coordination with key stakeholders, planning and conducting interviews, curating briefing books, supervising graduate student research assistants, developing educational materials, and supporting fundraising efforts. The Fellow must have a Ph.D in history, political science, international relations, international development, sociology, or related field.”
Research Coordinator, HRC Oral History Project (Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security)
“The Research Coordinator will work closely with the Project Director to support the overall execution of the project. Requirements include 2-3 years of relevant professional experience, including significant project management experience and archival expertise; a proven track record of conducting and communicating policy-relevant research; strong critical thinking skills; substantive expertise on U.S. foreign policy broadly and familiarity with the Hillary Doctrine and other efforts to integrate women into U.S. foreign policy, particularly during Secretary Clinton’s tenure; and a bachelor’s degree in a related field.”