WPS Through Your Lens: Atrium Launch
By: Siya Goswami and Gillian Bennett
Members of the Student Consortium on Women, Peace, and Security (WPS) held a student-led atrium exhibit at the Elliott School of International Affairs on February 28, 2025. The event highlighted various photos that participants felt represented the WPS Agenda in everyday life, giving all viewers an opportunity to internalize the mission of the Consortium and the WPS framework. Dr. Shirley Graham, director of the Gender Equality Initiative in International Affairs (GEIA) at the Elliott School, and leaders of the Consortium, Caroline Gilmore and Diya Mehta, made remarks about what living and advocating for women, peace, and security looks like to them in their everyday lives. The main purpose of the event was to prompt participants and viewers to answer the following overarching question: What does WPS look like to you in your daily life?
Exhibit Summary
The exhibit featured photos from many different walks of life, with some explicitly referencing women’s peace and security. For instance, one photo featured a plaque of the Western Australia War Memorial, which commemorates the service of men and women killed in action or those who may have died from service during the war. It emphasizes the role that women play as warriors on and off the battlefield, acknowledging their undeniably crucial war efforts.
Plaque of the Western Australia War Memorial
Jumping almost a century later, another photo featured the People’s March on January 18, 2025, in which thousands gathered to protest the right wing backlash against women’s rights and its negative consequences on women, girls, and LGBTQ+ individuals.
People’s March on January 18, 2025
Photo Submission by Cooper Tyksinski
At this same march, another photo featured men actively participating, holding up motivational and empowering signs for the women in their lives—emphasizing that women’s rights and the WPS framework are strengthened through the support of men and boys.
Photo Submission by Maya Nair
Other photos demonstrated the interconnectedness of women’s empowerment and well-being with women’s peace and security. One photo featured a women’s school in Morocco, emphasizing the importance of women’s agency and perspectives in their education.
Photo Submission by Aaliyah Stump
Another photo featured an all-girls dormitory in Nairobi, Kenya, which allows young girls and women to live in a safe, secure place and receive a comprehensive education. For many, this is a pathway to a more peaceful life, giving them an opportunity to build a future of their own determination.
Photo Submission by Ainsley Cobb
These glimpses of everyday life signify the importance of daily security and well-being in ensuring the next generation of WPS leaders and change-makers.
Key Points and Takeaways
Viewers and speakers’ discussions on the photos centered around the current challenges facing the WPS agenda given the Trump administration’s attacks on gender, and how it is important now more than ever to advocate for the participation and protection of women and girls, pressuring the administration to act on its past promises to uphold the WPS framework. Although the first Trump administration signed the Women, Peace, and Security Act in 2017, his current administration has so far not been committed to upholding the inclusion of women in peacebuilding processes, nor considering gender as an essential aspect of resolving conflict. This exhibit will stand to feature the essential nature of including and supporting women in conflict resolution and peacebuilding in order to sustainably promote national security and human rights and development.