 The first time I realized that war had different impacts on men and women was during the troubles in Northern Ireland. I worked with children who lived the violence every day. The boys would tell me stories of how they would take revenge one day and the girls would emphasize how they had found a safe route to school or to the shops where they bought food. Every war is different, but some things remain the same. Men may be more likely to die as the direct consequence from the violence of armed conflict. But women often find themselves alone and carrying the burden of caring for the young and the old. Women often suffer more displacement and impoverishment, and at times they have to cope with wartime sexual violence and rape. And in many conflicts, women must navigate age-old social customs in which they lack voice and decision-making and have no legal rights to own property. Over the last several decades, international policies have sought to recognize that women are frequently not counted in war, and moreover, they are invisible in negotiations for peace agreements. USIP's gender work helps make the invisible visible. And throughout March for National Women's History Month and International Women's Day, we offer another opportunity to focus on the range of issues of women in war and women in peace. We will look closely at the ways that peace treaties ensure equal economic dividends for women as well as men, and we will better understand how men in violent conflicts become stuck in hyper-masculine roles and what this means to ending violence against women. By understanding the different impacts that war has on men and women, we can create effective peace-building approaches and ensure greater gender equality and protection for women and girls.