Leymah Gbowee is the recipient of the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize, a celebrated Liberian peace activist, social worker, and women's rights advocate. She is best known for leading a transformative nonviolent movement that successfully united Christian and Muslim women in the Women of Liberia Mass Action for Peace to end Liberia’s devastating fourteen-year civil war in 2003. This historic achievement set a global precedent for women’s unique and essential role in brokering lasting peace and security.
Driven by a sense of responsibility to the next generation, Gbowee, a trained social worker and trauma counselor, strategically built an unprecedented interfaith coalition for peace. Her leadership culminated in a decisive moment at the Accra peace talks: she led women to form a human barricade, applying pressure that was crucial to securing a peace agreement and the subsequent resignation of the then-President. This tactical brilliance and perseverance paved the way for the election of Africa’s first female head of state, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf.
Leymah Gbowee’s impact expanded globally following the war's conclusion. She co-founded the Women Peace and Security Network Africa (WIPSEN-A) in 2006, serving as its Executive Director for six years to promote women’s leadership in peace and security governance across the continent. Her inspiring story has been widely shared through her memoir, Mighty Be Our Powers, and the documentary Pray the Devil Back to Hell, engaging and motivating millions worldwide. Today, she is the Founder and President of the Gbowee Peace Foundation Africa in Monrovia, dedicated to leadership development for women, girls, and youth. She holds a Master's in Conflict Transformation from Eastern Mennonite University and serves on the Board of Directors for organizations like the Nobel Women’s Initiative. As a speaker, Gbowee delivers a profoundly moving and strategic message on the power of nonviolence, interfaith collaboration, and the absolute necessity of women’s leadership to solve modern geopolitical challenges.
