For the past few years, I've written an annual summer post about the books I'm reading. This summer however, nearly all of my free time was spent working on the final edits for my upcoming book, Becoming a Dangerous Woman, that is finally (!) off to the printing press. So here’s quick blog post highlighting some of the books (and movies, podcasts and gatherings) that I'm excited about reading, watching and visiting this fall.
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Suffragists march in October 1917, displaying placards containing the signatures of over one million New York women demanding to vote.
Women's Equality Day: The Fight Goes On!
Today is Women’s Equality Day. It's the day commemorating the 99th anniversary of the 19th Amendment. Let’s celebrate some of the truly dangerous women (in a good way!) who fought for our right to vote, including many who were left out of the history books. Thanks to several new museum exhibitions, these unsung heroes are finally getting their due.
Read MoreDangerous Times Call for Dangerous Women
These are dangerous times, but in such times, there is an opportunity for women to step up to these challenges. In my new book, 'Becoming a Dangerous Woman,' along with my personal stories from the frontlines of media as a journalist, documentary producer, executive and as an engaged advocate for greater representation, access and opportunity for all women, I talk with 15 women from around the world who are already leading this work.
Read MoreJoin Connected Women Leaders in Signing Our Declaration on Climate Justice
This week marked the launch of the Connected Women Leaders Climate Declaration proving that “almost impossible” problems like climate are possible to solve. We invite all women (and men) to rise and to lead on climate justice by reading and signing on to the Declaration. Join us and spread the word about the #WomenLeadClimate initiative.
Read More'The Time is Now to Invest in Equality'
This week, my friend Lindsey Taylor Wood, founder and CEO of The Helm, launches a new curated online shop featuring exclusively female-founded products, brands and designers. For The Helm, it represents the next phase in a comprehensive approach to investing in women.
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Connected Women Leaders Forum 2019
Join Us in Connecting Women Leaders Around the World
What’s possible when women leaders from around the world come together, listen and learn from each other, make connections and commit to actionable solutions? Read my dispatch from the Connected Women Leaders Forum that Ronda Carnegie and I convened in April at the Rockefeller Foundation’s Bellagio conference center on Lake Como.
Read MoreRemembering Leah Chase, New Orleans' Queen of Creole
Legendary New Orleans chef Leah Chase passed away this week at the age of 96. Ms. Chase spent seven decades serving her signature gumbo and hospitality to everyone from Martin Luther King Jr. to James Baldwin to Barack Obama. In 2017, I had the absolute pleasure of interviewing her about her life’s work on the TEDWomen stage.
Read MoreBecoming a Dangerous Woman — A Declaration and a New Book Title
Titles are tricky — both the personal titles that often follow our names in an introduction and certainly, titles of books which, according to my book editor, can make all the difference in whether potential readers see value in what a title promises. I had an opportunity to go public with my new "title" of dangerous woman earlier this month as a commencement speaker at the University of Miami.
Read MoreChristiane Amanpour on Truth in Journalism, Moral Courage and the Perils of False Equivalency
I had the absolute pleasure of interviewing CNN Chief International Anchor Christiane Amanpour last night at the Skoll World Forum in Oxford. I’ll share our entire conversation later, but here are a few video outtakes from social media.
Read MoreConnecting Women Leaders to Accelerate Positive Change
This month, in partnership with The Rockefeller Foundation, I’m convening a women’s leadership forum at the Rockefeller conference center in Bellagio, Italy. Along with Ronda Carnegie, one of the TEDWomen co-founders, we’re gathering a group of women leaders from all over the world on the frontlines of change in culture, media, business, social enterprises and government.
Women's History Month Is the Perfect Time to Ratify the Equal Rights Amendment
If you know the history of this struggle, you know that an ERA amendment was passed by Congress in 1972. But in order for an amendment to become part of the Constitution, it needs three-fourths of the states to ratify it and that hasn’t happened yet. But momentum around ratification is building and may happen very soon.
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Organizers Kyra Gantois, 19, and Anuna De Wever, 17, at Brussels school strike on January 10, 2019 with over 3,500 marchers. The movement is growing. Earlier this month, the Brussels march included over 12,000 students. (Credit: Instagram)
These Young Women Might Save the Planet
One of anthropologist Margaret Mead’s most famous quotes instructs us to “never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world: indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.” We might amend Mead’s observation to honor a group of thoughtful, committed teenagers across the world standing against climate change.
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Robert Redford spoke at the opening news conference for the 2019 Sundance Film Festival at the Eccles Theater in Park City, Jan. 24, 2019. (Credit: Getty Images)
Reflections on 10 Days at Sundance and Working Towards a Truly Inclusive Creative Journey
At SFF 2019, along with the most positive “buzz” I can remember about the films, the words often heard were “most diverse,” “most inclusive” — it was all that and more.
Read MoreHow Empowering Women and Girls Can Help Stop Global Warming
In an informative, bold TEDWomen talk, Project Drawdown author Katharine Wilkinson shares three key ways that empowering women and girls can help stop global warming. "Drawing down emissions depends on rising up," she says.
Read MoreThe Power of Reconnecting with Nature and Traveling with Purpose
Last year, I had the privilege of attending Roar Africa's inaugural Roar & Restore Retreat. Roar Africa is a woman-owned and -led company that offers specially designed experiences that combine Africa’s best safaris with adventures not included on the usual tourist itineraries. Experiences that are designed with purpose to go deeper, connecting participants with local communities and good work.
Read More3 Reasons I'm Grateful This Year
One of my favorite quotes is from the British writer Gilbert Chesterton: “Thanks are the highest form of thought and gratitude is happiness doubled by wonder.” My happiness is indeed doubled by the wonder-filled work that is creating change for individuals, communities and the small, fragile world we share.
Women in Washington Get to Work
As Congress became a lot more diverse and female earlier this month, our president lashed out at women of color in the press. Meanwhile, the women of the 2019 Congress got to work in Washington, redefining how representation works.
Read MoreWhy It Matters When Women Lead in Politics and Why You Should Vote
For too long gender has determined who holds the decision-making power in this country and around the world — and that needs to change. Here’s hoping that tomorrow is the start of something.
Read MoreTalking With Tom Hanks About His New Book 'Uncommon Type'
Earlier this week, I had the pleasure of interviewing Tom Hanks about his new collection of short stories, Uncommon Type: Some Stories as part of the MJCCCA Book Festival in Atlanta.
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Taping with Veronica Dagher earlier this month in The Wall Street Journal studios.
WSJ Podcast: Using Media for Social Change
This week, I’m a guest on Veronica Dagher’s Wall Street Journal podcast talking about the importance of mentorship for women, my work with the Women's Media Center and the Sundance Institute, and my own career.
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