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Founded in 1915, the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF) is a membership-based feminist peacebuilding organisation with presence and impact around the world.
Our global movement includes member Sections and Groups in over 40 countries across the Americas, Africa, Europe, Asia-Pacific, South Asia and the Middle East and North Africa.
Feminist, pacifist and antimilitarist in our values and approach, we promote and amplify the voices of women and allies who are advancing peaceful and sustainable alternatives to crises and conflicts.
As a mobiliser, convenor and thought leader, we work hand in hand with activists, networks, coalitions, platforms and civil society organisations worldwide to advance a future of peace, justice and equality for all.
WILPF has consultative status with the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC).
Everything we do is in pursuit of our collective vision:
A world of permanent peace built on feminist foundations of freedom, justice, nonviolence, human rights and equality for all, where people, the planet and all its other inhabitants coexist and flourish in harmony.
To achieve our vision, we work towards four interconnected goals:
WILPF exists because sustainable peace and freedom remain out of reach for the majority of the world’s population. We believe sustainable peace and freedom cannot be achieved when inequality is perpetuated by militarism, capitalism, racism and colonialism. These affect our societies, our communities and our homes. As a global movement, we are working towards a future in which people and the planet flourish in harmony.
Here are just a few reasons why a state of permanent peace has not yet been achieved for people and the planet. You can also learn more by reading our International Programme for 2022–2025.
| The growing threat of militarism and conflict |
Around the world, militarism and military activity continue to fuel violence in the name of security, leading to deepening inequalities and exacerbating environmental destruction.
From active conflict within and between countries to the violence of economic warfare, people and communities are increasingly faced with the deliberate erosion of social welfare systems, lack of access to education and health care, food insecurity and constant threats to their lives and livelihoods.
| The continued erosion of human rights, justice and equality |
People and communities continue to be deeply impacted by systemic inequalities in our society created by a capitalist and neocolonial global economic system. Those experiencing marginalisation and oppression suffer the most severe impacts of inequalities while the wealth and privilege of the few are protected.
These inequalities are exacerbated by the climate and environmental crisis as the world’s most vulnerable populations disproportionately grapple with the effects of a crisis they did not cause.
| The differential impacts of discrimination |
These challenges have also clearly demonstrated that oppression based on gender, race, ethnicity, disability, age, class and other intersecting factors directly impacts the enjoyment of human rights, including to health and education.
Women, girls and people experiencing marginalisation — particularly those facing multiple and intersecting forms of discrimination — are among those at greatest risk of having their human rights violated as they face increased job insecurity, growing poverty, worsening health, lack of access to education and heightened risk of gender-based violence.
Read our current International Programme (2022-2025) and our Manifesto to learn more
The challenges before us are profound and unprecedented. But just as we always have, WILPF continues to work for a future of peace, freedom, justice, human rights and equality for all.
We hope you’ll join us. Learn more about how you can become a member or volunteer with WILPF, check out our latest news and events, donate to support our cause or come work with us!
Berit Aasen is a sociologist by training and has worked at the OsloMet Metropolitan University on Oslo. She has 40 years of experience in research and consultancy in development studies, including women, peace, and security, and in later years in asylum and refugee studies. Berit Aasen joined WILPF Norway five years ago. She is an alternate member of the National Board of WILPF Norway, and representing WILPF Norway in the UN Association of Norway, the Norwegian 1325 network and the Norwegian Women’s Lobby. Berit Aasen has been active in the WILPF European Liaison group and is committed to strengthening WILPF sections and membership both in Europe and relations across continents.
Your donation isn’t just a financial transaction; it’s a step toward a more compassionate and equitable world. With your support, we’re poised to achieve lasting change that echoes through generations. Thank you!
Prior to being elected Vice-President, Melissa Torres was the WILPF US International Board Member from 2015 to 2018. Melissa joined WILPF in 2011 when she was selected as a Delegate to the Commission on the Status of Women as part of the WILPF US’ Practicum in Advocacy Programme at the United Nations, which she later led. She holds a PhD in Social Work and is a professor and Global Health Scholar at Baylor College of Medicine and research lead at BCM Anti-Human Trafficking Program. Of Mexican descent and a native of the US/Mexico border, Melissa is mostly concerned with the protection of displaced Latinxs in the Americas. Her work includes training, research, and service provision with the American Red Cross, the National Human Trafficking Training and Technical Assistance Centre, and refugee resettlement programs in the U.S. Some of her goals as Vice-President are to highlight intersectionality and increase diversity by fostering inclusive spaces for mentorship and leadership. She also contributes to WILPF’s emerging work on the topic of displacement and migration.
Jamila Afghani is the President of WILPF Afghanistan which she started in 2015. She is also an active member and founder of several organisations including the Noor Educational and Capacity Development Organisation (NECDO). Elected in 2018 as South Asia Regional Representative to WILPF’s International Board, WILPF benefits from Jamila’s work experience in education, migration, gender, including gender-based violence and democratic governance in post-conflict and transitional countries.
Sylvie Jacqueline NDONGMO is a human rights and peace leader with over 27 years experience including ten within WILPF. She has a multi-disciplinary background with a track record of multiple socio-economic development projects implemented to improve policies, practices and peace-oriented actions. Sylvie is the founder of WILPF Cameroon and was the Section’s president until 2022. She co-coordinated the African Working Group before her election as Africa Representative to WILPF’s International Board in 2018. A teacher by profession and an African Union Trainer in peace support operations, Sylvie has extensive experience advocating for the political and social rights of women in Africa and worldwide.
In response to the takeover of Afghanistan by the Taliban and its targeted attacks on civil society members, WILPF Afghanistan issued several statements calling on the international community to stand in solidarity with Afghan people and ensure that their rights be upheld, including access to aid. The Section also published 100 Untold Stories of War and Peace, a compilation of true stories that highlight the effects of war and militarisation on the region.
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WILPF uses feminist analysis to argue that militarisation is a counter-productive and ill-conceived response to establishing security in the world. The more society becomes militarised, the more violence and injustice are likely to grow locally and worldwide.
Sixteen states are believed to have supplied weapons to Afghanistan from 2001 to 2020 with the US supplying 74 % of weapons, followed by Russia. Much of this equipment was left behind by the US military and is being used to inflate Taliban’s arsenal. WILPF is calling for better oversight on arms movement, for compensating affected Afghan people and for an end to all militarised systems.
Mobilising men and boys around feminist peace has been one way of deconstructing and redefining masculinities. WILPF shares a feminist analysis on the links between militarism, masculinities, peace and security. We explore opportunities for strengthening activists’ action to build equal partnerships among women and men for gender equality.
WILPF has been working on challenging the prevailing notion of masculinity based on men’s physical and social superiority to, and dominance of, women in Afghanistan. It recognizes that these notions are not representative of all Afghan men, contrary to the publicly prevailing notion.
In WILPF’s view, any process towards establishing peace that has not been partly designed by women remains deficient. Beyond bringing perspectives that encapsulate the views of half of the society and unlike the men only designed processes, women’s true and meaningful participation allows the situation to improve.
In Afghanistan, WILPF has been demanding that women occupy the front seats at the negotiating tables. The experience of the past 20 has shown that women’s presence produces more sustainable solutions when they are empowered and enabled to play a role.
