Welcome to Our Secure Future’s Women, Peace and Security (WPS) Research Digest, “the done for you” newsletter on WPS. We curate the latest articles and reports on cross-cutting issues related to women’s rights and international peace and security. We searched the web for you, and here’s what we found . . .
Defense and Security
"The fair and responsible harnessing of critical minerals can help lift hundreds of millions of people out of poverty. And it can help promote peace. “Control over mineral-rich areas is a major driver of violence and shapes regional political dynamics," DiCarlo warned, adding that mining for these minerals has been linked to human rights abuses and environmental degradation."
Japan’s Defense Ministry Sets 13% Target for Female SDF Personnel by FY35 (The Japan News)
“The aim is to reach a level on par with the average among North Atlantic Treaty Organization member countries. While this proportion has risen from the 5.7% recorded at the end of fiscal 2014, 10 years prior, it remains low compared to many other developed nations. The drive to increase the proportion of female personnel stems from the growing necessity for activities that leverage a female perspective, in areas such as supporting disaster victims at evacuation centers during disaster relief operations.”
Iran crisis: Schoolgirls killed, thousands displaces and aid compromised (UN News)
"Children, little girls…at the beginning of the school day being killed in this manner, backpacks with bloodstains on them — this is absolutely horrific," said UN human rights office spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani. If there is any image that captures the essence of the destruction, despair and senselessness and cruelty of this conflict, those are the images.”
Driving change from within: Across the globe, women in PCCP-supported units are reshaping the fight against transnational organized crime (UN Office on Drugs and Crime)
"Women at borders may not be great in quantity but we are of quality. We can manoeuvre and work effectively even in a male-dominated environment," noted one participant of the Women's Professional Development Programme in East and Southern Africa. The initiative "contributes directly to achieving global frameworks, such as the WPS Agenda," and has been honoured with the UNOV/UNODC Gender Award.”
International Women's Day 2026: balancing the scales in security (ASPI)
“Women are increasingly making their marks on the historically male-dominated fields of defence and security. Too often, security thinking overlooks the lived experiences of civilians, particularly women. Addressing these gaps is essential to building more inclusive and effective security frameworks.”
Economic Empowerment
Women in South Sudan are Creating their own Financial Futures (The Borgen Project)
“Women in South Sudan continue to face extreme levels of gender-based violence, economic exclusion, and limited access to education due to ongoing conflict and deep-rooted patriarchal norms. Despite these challenges, women are increasingly driving peacebuilding efforts, community resilience, and small-scale economic recovery across the country. Organizations working in South Sudan are focusing on empowering women through education, entrepreneurship, and participation in decision-making processes.”
Experts: Women dominate PH tourism, creative sectors-but lag in leadership (Philippine Institute for Development Studies)
“Speakers highlighted a gap between women’s participation and empowerment in two of the country’s key growth sectors. While these industries collectively generated PHP 4.29 trillion in gross value added and employed more than 14 million Filipinos, women—despite comprising the majority of workers—remain underrepresented in positions of leadership and control over economic resources. Women remain largely concentrated in labor-intensive segments of the value chain—such as production, processing, and service delivery—while having limited access to higher-value areas, including asset ownership, brand control, intellectual property, and investment.”
AfDB and UNDP Join Mozambique in Launching Flagship Project to Support Post‑Conflict Recovery and Economic Empowerment (UNDP Mozambique)
"The RISE-PS project is a timely and transformative intervention designed to address the complex drivers of fragility in Northern Mozambique. By focusing on institutional capacity, resilient societies, and private investment, we are supporting economic recovery and giving approximately 24,000 young people and women a reason to believe in their future."
Female food scientists turn Việt Nam’s farm produce into high‑value product (Viet Nam News)
“Many female scientists are helping transform Việt Nam’s agricultural products into high-value goods. Their work contributes to improving farmers’ incomes and enhancing the competitiveness of Vietnamese agriculture.”
Technology
Deminers race to keep up with military technology (UN News)
“Deminers are focusing on prevention and finding new solutions to help protect the lives of civilians and reduce the damage landmine contamination inflicts on their communities. Nonetheless, against the backdrop of growing conflicts worldwide, these advances have not kept pace with the number of mines being planted worldwide.”
The Grok deepfake scandal shows the need and possibility of policy to protect women and girls online (LSE)
"The source of the issue is misogyny and gender bias in the creation of AI tools. Removing autonomy from women and girls is not free speech. It is predictable, gendered harm. The collaborative pressure from governments around the world shows that the power imbalance can and must be redressed."
Women’s Leadership in Addressing Emerging Threats to Peace and Security: Artificial Intelligence and Technology–Facilitated Violence (Amani Africa)
“Technology-facilitated violence disproportionately targets women in public life, including peacebuilders, journalists, activists and leaders. AI-amplified disinformation, cyber-harassment, and online gender-based violence compound these risks. Women’s leadership proves indispensable for tackling both AI-driven threats and technology-facilitated violence.”
Climate
Middle East crisis exposes global energy fault line as UN urges shift to renewables (UN News)
“The disruption to supplies has already resulted in reduced access to the fossil fuels which countries around the world need to produce power, leading to higher prices rattling global markets in the process. While energy security is a growing geopolitical issue that sovereign nations need to address, it is also deeply personal, affecting families and individuals around the world, as people face higher energy bills and an overall increase in the cost of living. One solution to guard against the crisis and chaos caused by a lack of access to fossil fuels is to transition to renewable energy sources, for example solar, wind and water power.”
Every degree of global warming deepens gender inequality. Here’s what we can do about it. (Women’s Agenda)
“As global temperatures rise, women are more likely to lose their livelihoods, face food and water insecurity, and experience heightened risks of violence. Without targeted climate action that addresses gender inequality, these disparities will only deepen with each increment of warming.”
General WPS
In conflict, women bear the heaviest cost (Manila Bulletin)
“Across conflict zones worldwide, they are more likely to be uprooted from their homes, exposed to violence, and left to navigate the long-term consequences of fractured communities. Reports from the United Nations also point to rising cases of conflict-related sexual violence, with women and girls disproportionately affected. Across many conflict-affected areas, women continue to face barriers to justice, safety, and representation in decision-making.”
Justice must work for all women and girls, and for every generation: Six key takeaways from CSW70 (UN Women)
“Progress depends not only on legislative reforms, but also on their effective enforcement and the strengthening of gender-responsive institutions. Meaningful access to justice requires coordinated efforts from police, prosecutors, courts, social protection systems, health services, local authorities, and civil society.”
Are women’s roles in peace and security the key to Europe’s tomorrow? (Friends of Europe)
"Inclusion is not optional; women's role in mediation and peacebuilding must be expanded to make security feel more human and immediate. Women comprise about 17% of personnel in Latvia's armed forces, above the NATO average of 13% — a sign of meaningful progress reflecting long-term investment in women's leadership to strengthen peace and security outcomes.”
Feminist foreign policy: What tangible progress has been made on the ground? (AFD)
"Across the world, women and girls are the primary victims of inequality, crises, and violence – but they are also powerful drivers of solutions. According to UN Women, at the current rate of progress, it would take another 300 years to achieve full gender equality. Investing in gender equality is not only a moral imperative but also an effective economic strategy.”
Women shaping the future of peace: From the front lines of WPS (JICA)
"WPS refers to the idea that women should actively participate in conflict resolution, peace processes and reconstruction. Women are often spoken of primarily as 'victims,' but in fact they can be key players in peacebuilding. When women were made mediators in the community, they connected hostile communities and helped lay the foundation for peacebuilding."
New strategy embeds gender equality into every aspect of life (European Commission)
"Gender equality concerns us all, and it benefits all. While progress has been made, at the current pace of change, it would take 50 years for the EU to reach full gender equality. The strategy includes a new action plan for women, peace and security, and a flagship initiative called 'SHIELD' which will focus on improving access to sexual and reproductive health and supporting survivors of gender-based violence.”
EU warns gender equality could take 50 years without faster progress (The Brussels Times)
“While improvements have been recorded, significant disparities between member states and across sectors continue to slow overall progress. EU leaders stress that stronger, more coordinated policies—both online and offline—are essential to accelerate gender equality efforts.”
Upcoming and Past Notable Events
April 21, 2026 – Knowledge as Resistance: Learning and Dialogue Labs for Ending Violence Against Women - Session 7: Tech for Safety, Joy, and Resistance (COFEM and UN Women)
This session brings together activists and practitioners to share how they are navigating online harm while sustaining themselves and their communities. We will explore how counter-narratives to online attacks are developed and amplified using accessible, low-cost tools, with a focus on community-led organising. The session will be conducted in English, with interpretation available in French and Spanish.
April 25-26, 2026 – Second Global Summit on Indigenous Peacebuilding (The Global Network of Indigenous Peacebuilders, Mediators, and Negotiators)
Two years after the inaugural gathering, the Second Global Summit on Indigenous peacebuilding in New York City will convene to reflect, strengthen, and operationalize this transformative agenda. It aims to advance a global movement where Indigenous Peoples are not only peace recipients but recognized as peace architects and guardians of our planet's balance.
April 27–30, 2026 – Women Deliver 2026 Conference (WD2026) (Women Deliver — Narrm/Melbourne, Australia)
For the first time, the Women Deliver Conference will be regionally hosted, centered on the leadership, knowledge, and resistance of feminists, activists, and First Nations leaders across the Oceanic Pacific. The gathering will bring together more than 6,500 advocates from across feminist, grassroots, First Nations, youth-led, LGBTQIA+, and women's rights movements, alongside world leaders, creatives, private sector changemakers, academics, and media. Registration is open; scholarships are available for youth from the Oceanic Pacific region.
May 6–8, 2026 – Privacy + Security Spring Forum (Women in Security and Privacy — George Washington University, Washington, D.C.)
The forum will feature 60+ sessions and workshops, bringing together practitioners working at the intersection of security, privacy, and gender.
May 12, 2026 – Beyond 1325@25: Strategies to Advance the the Women, Peace, and Security Agenda in a Shifting Geopolitical Landscape (Women in International Security)
The virtual policy forum will leverage its lessons learned to examine current geopolitical events, delve deeper into critical questions around WPS implementation, and make space for continued conversation and expert reflection around issues of gender, peace, and security.
May 12, 2026 – Water, Women, and Security: Preventing Conflict in an Era of Climate Stress (Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security)
Join this virtual discussion on the intersection of climate change, water insecurity, gender, and conflict prevention in an era of growing environmental stress. The event will explore how water governance and women’s leadership can strengthen peacebuilding, resilience, and security in vulnerable communities worldwide.