Strengthening the Representation of Women in Diplomacy: Challenges and Policy Solutions

Friday, September 12, 2025 from 2:30 pm to 4:00 pm

• In-person event
• 5320D, Richcraft Hall, Carleton University
• 1125 Colonel By Drive, Ottawa, ON, K1S 5B6

• Contact
• Ann Morneau, NPSIAComms@cunet.carleton.ca

Please join us on September 12, 2025 for a talk about the work of the LSE IDEAS Women in Diplomacy project, which seeks to strengthen women’s representation and leadership in diplomacy by examining both the barriers and enablers to their advancement in national diplomatic services and international organizations. In June 2024, the project published its first report, Strengthening the Representation of Women in Diplomacy: Challenges and Policy Solutions—a key step in understanding how to promote gender equality in international affairs and spark broader dialogue on the issue. Building on this foundation, the team has been engaging diplomats and practitioners in cities around the world, with findings from these discussions shaping a second edition of the report to be released in early 2026. This event will highlight progress to date and share insights emerging from these global consultations.

Karen E Smith

Karen E Smith is Professor of International Relations at the LSE. She is the Director of the LSE IDEAS Women in Diplomacy project. Her main area of research is the ‘international relations of the European Union’, and she has written extensively on the formulation and implementation of common EU foreign policies. She has examined the EU’s pursuit of ‘ethical’ foreign policy goals such as promoting human rights and democracy, and policy-making within European states regarding genocide. For over a decade she has also analysed EU-UN relations, and more recently has extended her research to consider the role of other political and regional groups in UN diplomacy. She is now working on projects on women in foreign policy-making and diplomacy, and on the role of that emotions play in EU foreign policy-making.