At a pre-wedding evening party in central Tripoli, a group of Libyan women sing traditional songs to the beat of a drum as they prepare to apply henna to the bride's hands and feet.

Clapping her hands to the music as she waited for the bride to appear, 23-year-old Sarah Burruin said she has just one wish for women in the new Libya.

Photo courtesy of Sulekha.com

CAMP OLIVAS, Pampanga, Philippines — In a bid to stop violence against women in Central Luzon, police officers here literally blew their whistles to dramatize their support for the Anti-Violence Against Women (VAW) campaign of the United Nations (UN).

Half of all peace accords signed in the last 20 years have failed—and one reason is that they were left to men. Swanee Hunt on the women leading the charge in fixing how war and peace are waged.

On Saturday in New York City, in a pedicab amid a sea of yellow taxis, I made my way a dinner hosted by Crisis Group, one of the world's most influential sources of advice on prevention and resolution of deadly conflict.

For the past five years, Achieng*, a 35-year-old widow and mother of six, has sold fish on the Kenyan shores of Lake Victoria; like many women in the fish trade, Achieng often has to have sex with fishermen in order to get the best catch of the day, a system known in the local Luo language as 'jaboya'.

SECRETARY CLINTON: Thank you. (Applause.) Oh, my goodness. Well, if it ever were a secret. (Laughter.)

Thank you, Marc, and thanks to all of you for being part of this evening to support such an extraordinary, important organization that is relied upon certainly across the world, and that includes the State Department.

President Barack Obama released a U.S. plan on Monday to promote the role of women in preventing conflict and keeping the peace, designed to get more women seated at negotiating tables around the world.

Two days after ending the war in Iraq, President Obama on Monday issued a “national action plan” aimed at giving women a bigger role in resolving conflicts around the world.

Adversity, hardship and personal risk may not be everybody's idea of a fulfilling work-life, but for Maryam Bibi it literally comes with the territory.

Afghan women want peace, but not at the cost of losing all they have gained in the last 10 years. Yes, they believe in peace, but their rights are non-negotiable. During this transition process, Afghan Women want to emphasize security issues for the military and police but, primarily, for civil society.