In a region of the world where religion and government are still tightly tied, one Madison native has found a way to empower a population with a growing, but still comparatively quiet, political voice.

Shadi Sadr, a renowned Iranian human rights lawyer, women's rights activist and member of Women Living Under Muslim Laws (WLUML) – International Solidarity Network Council, has been awarded the International Women of Courage Award 2010. Ms. Sadr was also the recipient of the Lech Walesa and the Dutch "Human Rights Tulip" awards in 2009.

After a revolt that unfolded over less than 24 hours and surprised lawmakers and the public, Prime Minister Kevin Rudd stepped aside Thursday and was replaced by his deputy, Julia Gillard, who became Australia's first female leader.

The ruling Labor Party revolted against Kevin Rudd and installed his deputy.

Women's legal status is weak in patriarchal Palestinian society. The right to inherit is an especially weak point not least when it comes to the inheritance of land. The EU has granted 5,6 mio. kroner to DanChurchAid's work to secure women their legal right of inheritance. Women's right to inherit is a matter of awareness for both men and women - and legal aid to women whose right of inheritance is threatened.

Aid agencies have asked British Prime Minister David Cameron to intervene in talks to set up a new United Nations agency for women.Talks over setting up the agency have stalled as members argued about its remit and how it will be run. With saving women's and their babies lives in pregnancy and childbirth a key part of the weekend's G8/G20 talks among world leaders, many want to see the new UN women's agency get off the ground.

Gender equality and the empowerment of women will be the main focus of attention when government ministers from across the world gather in New York for the annual high-level meeting of the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) next week.

“When I was nine years old I dreamed of becoming a lawyer,” Viviana Palacios, 23, from Colombia told a packed auditorium on the second day of the Women Deliver conference.

While Asia and the Pacific can take pride in the region's vibrant economic transformation in recent decades, this has not translated into progress on gender equality.

As a part of the US – Pakistan Strategic Dialogue initiated in March, 2010 by US Secretary of State Hilary Clinton and Foreign Minister Shah Mahmud Qureshi, Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women's Issues Melane Verveer and Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Social Sector Shahnaz Wazir Ali on Friday chaired a dialogue on women empowerment.

THE Fiji Women's Crisis Centre has been a pillar of strength for women in Fiji for more than two decades.

It is a bold and brave non-government organisation that goes the extra mile to give women justice.

Not only the work it does is admirable, the people who work in the centre are brave and admirable.