by Katharine Daniels, Executive Editor

One light amongst the darkness of the tragedy that befell Newtown, Connecticut and this nation last week is the collective outrage that persists. In daily conversations with friends and family, throughout the social media, and in the news people are feeling the injustice, the inhumanity, and the vulnerability. Everywhere there is outrage.

Today, in the wee hours of the morning, I lay awake after nursing my youngest son. I found myself repeating over and over the second line of Reinhold Niebuhr's Serenity Prayer – a prayer commonly heard in rooms of recovery around the world. In this verse, the prayer asks God to give us the “courage to change the things which should be changed.”

by Katharine Daniels, Executive Editor

Post last week’s gains for women in the United States Senate and record numbers of women running for seats in Congress this election cycle, the country and the US media has been aflutter with insight and analysis about women and leadership. My attention and thoughts were on women and leadership in the days prior to Tuesday’s historic election as one of The WIP's contributors had just received the International Women’s Media Foundation’s (IWMF) 2012 Lifetime Achievement Award.

by Katharine Daniels, Executive Editor

2011 was a remarkable year. People no longer conceded to sit idly while unjust economic policies and governments denied them prosperous futures. Around the world citizens began to occupy the establishment. At these global protests and uprisings women were common symbols - holding placards, marching in the streets, and speaking truth to power.

by Katharine Daniels
Executive Editor

June 8 is World Oceans Day – a growing global celebration of the big blue body of life that covers 71 percent of the earth’s surface.

“The ocean makes life on Earth possible,” reads the 2006 United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP) publication "Ecosystems and Biodiversity in Deep Waters and High Seas." Generating nearly half of the oxygen in the atmosphere, the ocean “absorbs huge quantities of carbon dioxide, governs our climate and weather, regulates temperature, drives planetary chemistry, harbors most of the water and contains the greatest abundance and diversity of life on Earth.”

by Katharine Daniels
Executive Editor

This commentary was originally published on Silent Heroes, Invisible Bridges and has been republished on The WIP under Creative Commons licenses. -Ed.

Does the successful bin Laden mission prove that U.S. values as a nation need not be compromised to wage a war on terror? Relying on old-fashioned intelligence techniques like surveillance and data analysis, the Obama administration successfully killed the head of al-Qaida, a figure who remained illusive to the Bush Administration in their eight-year quest to find him.

Where in the world are the best and worst places to be a mother? Watch this Link TV/Save the Children documentary – The Mothers Index – and learn about how you can get involved in supporting mothers and children around the world.

by Katharine Daniels, Executive Editor

In preparation for this year’s centenary celebration, one that early reports indicate will be the largest International Women’s Day the world has ever seen, I thought a lot about my role in the movement. In planning The WIP's commemorative event, I wanted to include the facts and statistics that need to be shared about the status of women, but I also hoped to deliver a solution for balancing and healing a world that has become so terribly out of whack.

by Katharine Daniels, Executive Editor

This author profile is the first in a series of conversations between our executive editor and The WIP Contributors. Many women, like Binalakshmi, are successful agents of change in their communities and are leading powerful movements for peace. By highlighting their work we hope to strengthen The WIP’s role promoting the extraordinary efforts of our contributors.

Peace and Happy New Year from everyone at The WIP. –Ed.

In Manipur, a state in northeast India bordering the country of Burma on the east and south, a political conflict with India has persisted since the once independent kingdom was forced to join India after the British left in 1947. While the conflict is political in origin, the influx of weapons over the last five decades has prompted soaring rates of violence among ethnic groups in the region. Manipur has the highest number of gun-related deaths in India – violence that creates 300 widows per year. Yet the world rarely hears about Manipur or the “slow genocide” Binalakshmi Nepram has witnessed.

by Katharine Daniels,
Executive Editor, The WIP

What began as a simple introduction to Zimbabwean child rights activist Betty Makoni in 2007 through an article published on The WIP has since developed into a partnership with the filmmakers of Tapestries of Hope and a nationwide event to end violence against women worldwide.

Tapestries a Hope, a film documenting Betty Makoni and the Girl Child Network she founded to create a refuge for girls in Zimbabwe, will be shown in 100 theaters around the country for one night only on Tuesday, September 28. In 2007 Director Michealene Cristini Risley traveled to Zimbabwe to film Betty’s work to help the victims of rape and sexual abuse and to expose the pervasive myth that sex with a virgin cures HIV/AIDS. As a result of her filming Michealene was jailed, interrogated, and deported from Zimbabwe.

by Katharine Daniels
Executive Editor, The WIP

In advance of International Women’s Day, celebrated around the world on March 8, The WIP is reposting this interview from last March with Anne Firth Murray, founder of The Global Fund for Women and transformative figure at the heart of the global women’s movement. –Ed.

by Katharine Daniels
Executive Editor & Founder, The WIP

This past weekend I was invited to keynote the Global Women’s Conference at CSU Fullerton. It was a great opportunity for me to reflect on the journey that we’ve been on here at The WIP and a chance to share the incredible hope that I feel.

For the first time in my life, I see a clear pathway to a future that is sustainable, safe, and free from oppression. Today I feel convinced, down to a cellular level, that the solutions and answers to every issue our global society faces – from the grave injustices committed against women and children to the severe effects of climate change and poverty – can be found in the global women’s movement – a movement that is growing, transformative, and one that I predict will take the world by force this decade.

by Katharine Daniels
Executive Editor, The WIP
- USA -

For me and my colleagues, Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn’s new book Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide is exhilarating. Already in its 17th printing, Half the Sky pulls no punches in detailing the major abuses women suffer worldwide. Through personal stories, told by the women living them, sex trafficking, forced prostitution, honor killings, mass rape, and maternal mortality become shockingly real. Critics believe Half the Sky will ignite the global women’s movement as Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring did the environmental movement in the 1960s. So do I. This remarkable book moves the conversation from women’s issues to human rights; shows change is possible one woman at a time; and, most importantly, inspires hope.

by Katharine Daniels
Executive Editor, The WIP

California’s Women’s Conference, one of our nation’s largest annual forums for women, took place in the port city of Long Beach October 26th and 27th. Hosted by Governor Schwarzenegger and First Lady Maria Shriver, this year’s conference included an impressive lineup of women and men brought together to empower and inspire an audience of more than 25,000 women to be “Architects of Change.”

by Katharine Daniels
Executive Editor, The WIP
- USA -

Recently, I had an insightful conversation with Linda Tarr-Whelan, author of Women Lead the Way: Your Guide to Stepping Up to Leadership and Changing the World. As the founder of this online publication it is such a pleasure when I can connect in person with writers in contrast to the virtual world where we usually communicate. This personal interaction always provides a greater depth and context to our work at The WIP, so it’s only natural that my conversation with Linda also brought refined clarity on the impact of women’s leadership and its implications for media.

by Katharine Daniels
Executive Editor, The WIP
- USA -

The WIP launched in 2007 on International Women’s Day, a commemorative day that marks the centuries-old struggle women have faced to participate in society on equal footing with men. The WIP was created to balance the under-representation of women in media and as a platform for women writers to share their stories in a global forum. I am thrilled to announce that The WIP is hosting a special Community Chat to discuss women in media with Carol Jenkins and Patricia DeGennaro.

by Katharine Daniels
Executive Editor, The WIP
- USA -

As many as a third of California’s teachers may retire over the next decade leaving California with a shortage of approximately 100,000 teachers. While budget cuts limiting opportunities for new teachers are compelling enough reasons to choose different professions, it is well understood by most prospective teachers that teaching, while honorable and at times rewarding, is a stressful, unappreciated, and undervalued career choice.

by Katharine Daniels
Executive Editor, The WIP
- USA -

It’s clear that school budgets are woefully inadequate and underfunded. But, will simply throwing money at a system that is flawed, broken, and unequal successfully nurture the academic achievement of under-performing students? The great state of California has the third highest student teacher ratio in the country and the dubious distinction of coming in dead last in total school staff - principals, teachers, guidance counselors, and librarians. Lack of adequate resources is exacerbated by grave inequalities in many school districts throughout the state. Often under-performing schools suffer from a lack of qualified teachers, textbooks, access to a curriculum that prepares students for college, and safe school environments.

by Katharine Daniels
Executive Editor, The WIP
- USA -

It is one of the greatest joys of my life to see the dream of The WIP coming true this year - a dream for real news stories as they affect real people; a dream for news that is unencumbered by the agendas of advertising and the corporate world; a dream for a platform where everyday people from all walks of life, in all corners of the world, can come together in conversation about the issues as we see them, through our own eyes and our own unique perspectives and experiences.

It is, however, breathtaking and frightening to look back on the stories we published in 2008. Wars raged on with very little respite. Natural disasters ravaged innocent victims from Burma to the Caribbean. The world participated in and protested one of the most anticipated Olympics in recent history. The USA elected its first African American President. Food is inaccessible for many around the world, and a global financial crisis is upon us like nothing we have witnessed since The Great Depression. And all this barely scratches the surface.

As we prepare to close a year’s worth of coverage, The WIP’s editors will be taking a week off to rest, spend time with our families and friends, and reflect on this incredible year. Our hope is to start the New Year fresh so we can do an even better job delivering quality news from the unique perspectives of women in 2009.

by Katharine Daniels
Executive Editor, The WIP
- USA -

Though the USA has typically been a leader in women's rights, the policies of the Bush Administration have taken us backwards in terms of women's issues, especially policies regarding the health and rights of women globally. Currently, the USA the only country in the world that does not financially contribute to UNFPA (the United Nations Population Fund) for reasons that are political and not financial. With Barack Obama as President-elect, we have reason to be hopeful that U.S. funding to UNFPA will be restored. There are many challenges facing the USA, but we must ensure that restoring American leadership on women's issues is included and prioritized in the foreign policy of the new Administration.

On Monday, December 8th from 10am-12pm PST we were joined by Anika Rahman, the President of Americans for UNFPA, for a live online chat. As head of the official support organization for the United Nations women's health agency, Anika's role is to increase American engagement in the promotion of the health and rights of women globally. For more than twelve years Anika has monitored and analyzed United States and international policies that affect the reproductive health and rights of women.

by Katharine Daniels
Founder & Executive Editor, The WIP
- USA -

On March 8th, we will celebrate The WIP’s one year anniversary. In that time, The WIP has made its way into homes, offices, and Internet cafés in 146 countries. Whether you’re a reader in the USA, Indonesia, Nigeria, Argentina or South Korea – you’ve found us somehow. You’ve read our articles and joined our community. Through your commentary you’ve added your voices to the critical dialog that begins with a story. In just one short year The WIP has built a community of men and women from all over the globe.

On the pages of The WIP, readers and writers have built a meeting place where everyone is invited to listen to each others’ voices, histories, and insights. On these pages we’ve come to realize that issues such as the plight of vulnerable children, genocide, and rising food prices are not just the misfortune of somebody else. Looking past the headlines, we see clearly how national policies have international consequences. We’ve come to understand that we are all interconnected and through our stories we are educating ourselves. By responding to the women who write our stories, we let them know we are listening and together we are discovering fair, workable solutions to the problems we all face in our world today.

by Katharine Daniels
Founder & Executive Editor, The WIP
- USA -

On Tuesday Hillary Clinton made a campaign stop in Salinas, California. Otherwise known as ‘the lettuce capital of the world’ or John Steinbeck’s East of Eden, Salinas just happens to be the farm town I call home.

Nearly 3,000 of Senator Clinton’s supporters showed up at the Hartnell College gymnasium to hear her speak. She was greeted in true Salinas Valley fashion, with mariachis and shouts for Viva la Causa (“Long Live Our Cause"). Clinton’s campaign stop was pulled together in just twenty-four hours following an official endorsement by the United Farm Workers of America, the union co-founded by Dolores Huerta and César Chávez that today represents more than 27,000 farm workers.