#BalanceforBetter: A royal celebration of Women, Peace and Security

Two of our leading researchers are joining HRH The Countess of Wessex for an International Women's Day event in Buckingham Palace to mark 20 years of Women, Peace and Security. Dr Catherine Turner, from Law, and Professor Nayanika Mookherjee, from Anthropology, are among women leaders who are seeking to speed up gender balance and raise women's voices in the area of international peace and security. Women and peace mediation Catherine is an expert on international law and conflict with an interest in representation of women in international peace mediation. Many women are active and successful local level mediators during violent political conflict, but this expertise is not recognised at international level. The under-representation of women in international peace-making is currently on the agenda of the UN Security Council. Working with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the Geneva Centre for Security Policy, Catherine's work contributes to policy in this area by examining the legal, political and cultural barriers that women face in accessing high-level mediation positions. Sexual violence during conflict Nayanika's research within political anthropology looks at sexual violence committed during the Bangladeshi War of Independence, the war crimes tribunal and 'war babies' linked to the war of 1971.