The Liechtenstein Institute on Self-Determination's project on Gender in the Global Community will co-sponsor a Women, Peace and Security event, "The World Humanitarian Summit: Opportunities for the Women, Peace and Security Agenda," on Tuesday, July 21, 2015, at 3:00 p.m. at the United Nations in New York, GA Building, Conference Room 5. Panelists will include Kyung-wha Kang, UN Assistant Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Deputy Emergency Relief Coordinator, and Sarah Costa, Executive Director of the Women's Refugee Commission. The session will be moderated by Ambassador Christian Wenaweser, Permanent Representative of Liechtenstein to the UN. Note: special event passes are required for non-UN badge holders; please indicate in RSVP.

This panel creates a forum for UN member states and civil society stakeholders to discuss strategies to ensure that women will not be left out of discussions around the World Humanitarian Summit next year and the process to follow. 2015 is a crucial year for the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) Agenda: a global study on its implementation is currently underway and the Security Council will hold a high-level review of resolution 1325 in October. Consistent implementation is one of the biggest challenges to the WPS agenda and there continues to be a lack of awareness of the need to include a gender perspective at all levels of humanitarian work. The World Humanitarian Summit in Istanbul in May 2016 is meant to serve as a catalyst for a comprehensive reform of the humanitarian sector towards more effectiveness. It has been stated numerous times that women play a key role in this regard. The Summit will therefore be a historic opportunity for advocates of the WPS agenda to guarantee that women are well-positioned, front and center, to influence humanitarian efforts.   

The event is part of a series of lectures and panels on the UN's Women, Peace, and Security Agenda, organized by LISD's Project on Gender in the Global Community, the Permanent Mission of Liechtenstein to the United Nations, and the PeaceWomen Project of the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom.