Swanee Hunt, AWA ’05

Today’s featured alumnae, Swanee Hunt AWA ’05, served as ambassador to Austria from 1993 to 1997 and is a tireless advocate for global human rights, women’s empowerment, and gender equality in American politics. She is the Founding Director of the Women and Public Policy Program at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government.

In 2007, Swanee was inducted into the National Women’s Hall of Fame in recognition of her remarkable public service and philanthropic efforts. Her most recent book, Rwandan Women Rising, is set for release in 2015 and gives voice to the women creating a new Rwanda twenty years after one of the worst genocides in human history.

“We tend to think, ‘oh, this is the story of just Rwanda,’ but this is the story of the world. This is the hope of the world. I’ve worked in 60 countries, and I know that there are women with the same drive who are highly, highly motivated because they want security for their children.”

Watch Swanee Hunt on a 2014 Women in the World Summit panel on “The Triumph of Rwanda’s Women.”