US-Australia Indo-Pacific Conversation Series #4: Advancing the Women, Peace and Security Agenda: Successes and Challenges Ahead

May 4, 2021 (US) | May 5, 2021 (Australia)

Session 4 of the United States-Australia Indo-Pacific Conversation Series

Held with support from the U.S. Embassy Canberra & United States Studies Centre

Featuring

Jacqui True
Director & Professor, Centre for Gender, Peace and Security, Monash University

Joan Johnson-Freese
Professor of National Security Affairs, US Naval War College

Moderated by Sharon Feist, Command Gender Advisor, Office of Women, Peace & Security, U.S. Indo-Pacific Command

About this Session

The fourth session of the US-Australia Indo-Pacific Conversation Series assessed where the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda stands in the Indo-Pacific. Over 20 years after adopting the landmark UN Security Council Resolution 1325, there remains a lack of awareness about its mandate. Panelists addressed challenges (political, institutional, normative) to the WPS agenda’s advancement, how it relates to Great Power Competition, and why employing a gender lens provides critical opportunities for long-term stability. Failure to address WPS also poses risks, and speakers highlighted this in discussing gender and violent extremism, women’s participation in peace processes, and the increasing use of sexualized violence in conflict.