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    Since 2006 we have worked in solidarity with women's movements, organizations, and activists around the world to build peace, defend justice, and champion equality for all.
    • The Laureates

      • Rigoberta Menchú Tum
      • Jody Williams
      • Shirin Ebadi
      • Leymah Gbowee
      • Tawakkol Karman
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      • Oleksandra Matviichuk
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 Jody Williams   USA, 1997

Jody Williams

USA, 1997

Jody Williams received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1997 for her work to ban landmines through the International Campaign to Ban Landmines, which shared the Peace Prize with her that year.

At that time, she became only the tenth woman in its almost 100-year history to receive the Prize. As its sole staff member, Jody played a pivotal role in the growth of the International Campaign to Ban Landmines from two organizations to over 1,300 organizations globally, leading to the international treaty banning antipersonnel landmines in 1997. 

Jody has been a life-long advocate of freedom, self-determination and human and civil rights. She is an ardent advocate for peace which is defined by human, not national, security and goes far beyond the absence of armed conflict. 

In 2006 Jody Williams co-founded the Nobel Women's Initiative, which she chairs to this day, where she works together with other women Nobel Peace Prize laureates to elevate the voices and support the work of women peace activists around the world.

Jody Williams continues to be recognized for her contributions to human rights and global security. She is the recipient of fifteen honorary degrees, among other recognitions. In 2004, Jody was named one of the 100 most powerful women in the world  by Forbes Magazine in the publication of its first such annual list. She holds the Sam and Cele Keeper Endowed Professorship in Peace and Social Justice at the Graduate College of Social Work at the University of Houston where she has been teaching since 2003. 

Jody's memoir on life as a grassroots activist, My Name is Jody Williams:  A Vermont Girl’s Winding Path to the Nobel Peace Prize was released by the University of California Press in early 2013.

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The Laureates

Rigoberta Menchú Tum

Guatemala

Shirin Ebadi

Iran

Leymah Gbowee

Liberia

Tawakkol Karman

Yemen

Maria Ressa

Philippines

Narges Mohammadi

Iran

Oleksandra Matviichuk

Ukraine

Related Links

In the media

‘It makes me want to scream’: Nobel peace prize winner horrified by planned exits from landmine treaty. The Guardian. 27 April 2025.

UNRWA students in Jordan share hopes, dreams with women Nobel Peace Prize laureates.The Jordan Times. 22 April 2025.

Nobel Peace Laureates Conclude Jordan Visit with Meeting with HRH Prince El Hassan bin Talal. ARDD. 21 April 2025.

Women Nobel Peace Laureates and Jordanian Human Rights Defenders Call for Collective Action for Peace and Security. ARDD. 16 April 2025.

Women Nobel Peace Prize Laureates Travel to Meet Palestinian Women. Fox4 News. 15 April 2025.

UN’s omission of fossil fuels in ‘Pact for the Future’ sparks global outcry. Nation of Change. 27 August 2024.

Nobel laureates for freedom for Abdullah Öcalan. Medyanews. 19 August 2024.

I hope we would be allowed to visit Öcalan in prison. ANF NEWS. 27 July 2024. 

PODCAST|Jody Williams on signing Nobel laureate letter expressing concern over Öcalan’s isolation. Medya News. 27 July 2024.

Restore the Olympic Peace. Project Syndicate. 15 July 2024.

Is the UN Becoming Irrelevant? Project Syndicate. 10 June 2024.

Tres premi Nobel de la Pau i un exdirector general de la UNESCO impulsen un manifest de suport a Wagensberg. La República. Dijous, 25 de abril del 2024.

Einer Maschine kann man sich nicht ergeben. Tagesspiegel Background. 16 February 2024. 

Ukraine joins calls to overhaul “dysfunctional” UN Security Council. Euromaidan Press. 19 September 2023.

Nobel Peace laureates join citizens' initiative to establish peace in Manipur. Deecan Herald. 21 August 2023.

Women in Zones of Conflict: An Interview With Jody Williams. The TEDx Vienna Magazine. 07 August 2023.

Disarmament, Collective Security, and Human Security. Global Governance Forum. 6 June 2023. 

Why the Next UN Secretary General Should be a Woman. Global Governance Forum. 27 March 2023.

Jody Williams: "Se están usando minas terrestres en la invasión de Ucrania". El Espanol. 8 February 2023. 

Minelegging truer sivile i Ukraina. Klassekampen. 25 January 2023. 

Will Russia use tactical nukes? It’s time to abolish nuclear weapons. Houston Chronicle, 6 November 2022.

How Women Respond to War: An Interview With Three Nobel Laureates. Women's Media Center, 4 November 2022.

Nobel Peace Prize Laureates Spotlight the Brave, Visionary Women of Ukraine And Launch 'Women Lead' Campaign. Forbes, 28 October 2022.

Books and Film

Jody Williams Ted Talk: A realistic vision for world vision TED, 11 January 2011.

Book: My Name Is Jody Williams: A Vermont Girl's Winding Path to the Nobel Peace Prize (2013)

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