 Well good morning everyone. Mary thank you for that introduction. You know usually the story of the understudy waiting in the wings is about a woman all right who suddenly is a cheese stardom. The fact that I'm waiting in the wings probably says a lot about how we're going to shake things up over the next day and a half all right because as we all know women peace and security is an issue that's only going to be successful with the participation of women and men. You know when I was asked to come to speak I realized that I wasn't coming alone. I was going to be here with a Washington team that has heard me say these things over and over and over again. Nala Arnes, Nala you should have my partner and what I'm calling success at NDU and women peace and security issues. Sara Capel who she and I have been trying to push these issues forward and of course we have here Jeff, Lieutenant Colonel Jeff McDonald who promises that he'll remain awake throughout my presentation. He made that promise because Jeff is one of my students in the women peace and security elective and I haven't turned in my great jet. But most importantly today actually marks my last set of formal remarks as a foreign service officer. I'll be retiring soon but I began my journey on these issues on the team of Ambassador Judy McLennan. So I think it's very fitting that I began my career on women peace and security with Judy and today I'm going to end it with Judy in the audience. So what we're going to do this morning is focus on a number of issues. Some of which you've heard before but they probably bear repeating again. Others really is a history of what we tried to do at National Defense University and promoting women peace and security. And finally I think I'll have just a few thoughts about where we should go next. I think that that's really important in terms of trying to understand that the issues regarding women peace and security are not our vibrant issues. They're not static. You know women peace and security is a cross-cutting policy issue that will impact the future of our policy makers. At NDU women peace and security is not a discourse on gender preference, gender prerogatives, or gender promotion. Our goal is to define an operational doctrine to undergird the development and implementation of strategies and policies that would lead to the successful formulation of a sustainable framework that meets the foreign policy and security objectives of the United States and its global partners. It's a long sentence but I think it captures what we're really trying to do. Critical issues of human rights, security, justice, employment, health care that ought to be at the very core of this armament. The mobilization and reintegration planning are often neglected or inadequately addressed by primary stakeholders who hold the decision making authority. When women are allowed to participate to any extent in these discussions, women's bring to the forefront success. Through organizations and as individuals, they provide social services and support that not only act as essential compliments of formal programs but in some instances wholly replaced them. As we all know, the United States, the United Nations Security Council adopted a set of several resolutions and what is referred to as its women peace and security agenda. These resolutions were adopted on the chapter 6 of the United Nations Charter. As we frame women peace and security for future policy makers at NDU and other senior service schools, our students are given this paradigm to understand the United Nations process. These resolutions while binding on UN member states lack the coercive power of security council resolutions adapted under chapter 7 of the UN Charter. When President Obama issued executive order 13595 on December 19, 2011, an issue of significant international importance became a national security priority. His mandate called for federal agencies' development and institution of a national action plan on women peace and security, the core of which would be a gender responsive approach to all diplomatic development and defense related work in conflict affected environments. The lead agencies implementing the order are state, defense, USAID and Treasury, which reflect a continual growth of political consideration for making a gender inclusive approach to US national security policy. This executive order, the US national plan and the Department of Defense's implementation plan that was put forward by Secretary Gates all referred to one thing, enhanced professional education and training to institutionalize the women peace and security agenda. In response to the President's policy directive and in accordance with our mission, NDU developed and implemented a responsive strategy. It was important to familiarize military academics with the President's executive order and the overarching goal of enhancing the place of women peace and women peace and security issues within NDU. In spring 2016, the Eisenhower School inaugurated a 12-week elective course consistent with joint professional military education requirements that familiarize students with the importance of considering gender in the operating environment. We are working with the Department of Defense, state and organizations like the Institute for Inclusive Security as well as other relevant agencies and non-government organizations to firmly establish that understanding the operating environment is critical to operational success. In order to frame the operating environment holistically, it is necessary to examine gender along with religion, history, governance and other aspects of a given culture. Valerie Hudson last night set us on this path with her outstanding lecture so I don't have to add anything to my comments, but I think that we have to understand that this is not a discourse about current discussions regarding the combat exclusion policy, military sexual assault, prevention of sexual harassment or equal opportunity in the U.S. military. Those are related issues. What we really are trying to do is to understand what are the objectives of a women peace and security national security agenda. First of all, we have to understand what is going on in the United Nations context. We have to understand the United Nations role in security. We have to comprehend the role of gender in framing the environment. We have to understand strategic guidance documents regarding gender in the operating environment and we have to comprehend the ethical dimension of gender in the operating environment and the challenges that it may present. Gender is important in shaping, planning and execution of joint force operations to facilitate the accomplishment of strategic and operational objectives. So we have to consider how do the goals of the United States National Action Plan support U.S. national interests? How should they inform U.S. military plans and actions? How does understanding gender in a given society contribute to understanding the operating environment? How might security differ for men and women before, during and after conflict? As part of our course requirements at NDU, students are required to submit a paper for the NDU Women Peace and Security Writing Award. The NDU Foundation was a principal sponsor of the University-wide Writing Award for three years. Its parallel grant with the award heightened student interest and underscored the importance of women peace and security and strategic leadership development. We had to move forward with this award because it became clear to me early on that the only way I was going to help move women peace and security into the curriculum of National Defense University, I had to think in terms of asymmetrical warfare. We had to create a student insurgency to force women peace and security into the curriculum. And for three years, the Writing Award sought papers that focus on a gendered understanding perspective and how to really institutionalize these notions. We had our students focus on how to advance peace, national security, economic and social development. They focused on conflict resolution, peace building, conflict prevention, countering violent extremism, protection of rights, protection from gender-based harms, access to relief from recovery, humanitarian assistance and disaster relief. But most important, leadership. I often say to our students at NDU that those of you who take our course on women peace and security will thank us when they come back for their training as one stars. When they come back as three stars, they'll fully comprehend the importance of what they did. In addition to NDU's focus on women peace and security, we wanted to really develop what I call an issue taxonomy on the basis of which efforts could be organized. We used the solicitation of expert recommendations with respect to course content and research literature to encompass not only the full scope of women peace and security, but to compile a list of potential speakers and panelists and promote these through issue-driven events for the student body and alumni. I just read Nala Arnaz's bio for us on this. As I said, it's not just me. However, it is important that we begin to focus on how to make the strategic vision that we share on the importance of incorporating these issues into our overall planning for operational reality. The women peace and security concept should not be seen in its parts, but rather as a holistic approach. We cannot be distracted by using the word peace when the same elements of deployment are present whether we are discussing conflict zones or hermetic assistance or disaster response. At this stage, we must begin to devise mechanisms that bring our policy makers and war fighters into a coherent, comprehensive, and coordinated approach that reflects 21st century realities. Having a shared body of knowledge is critical to this endeavor. National Defense University published a book co-authored by then Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta entitled Women on the Front Lines of Peace and Security. It was a compilation of views of senior officials that addressed the engagement of women in conflict zones, their role with ensuring that invulnerable populations are protected from violence and total integration into recovery efforts. The book focused on determining both national and international stakeholders' respective roles in setting an advancing agenda. This book is noteworthy not just for the subject, but the realizations that the issues affecting how we implement women's peace and security requires the full participation of men and women. We only need to look at the ongoing migration crisis in Europe and North America to see the overlapping lines between conflict, humanitarian assistance, international law, domestic legislation, and the role of civil society in resolving these issues. Last March in the Youth Center for Complex Operations published a special edition of the journal Prism, which further explored the critical components of the agenda to help move discussion forward toward development of an international agenda and body of knowledge. The journal's objective was to broaden the dialogue at all levels to identify and share effective strategies amongst those countries that have implemented national action plans. On March 16th of this year, the Eisenhower School's combatant leadership series on women, peace, and security familiarized students with the concept of considering gender in the operating environment. What was important about this event was that it was mandatory. All 350 of our students and 40 faculty were required to be here for this hour and a half session. We were particularly pleased that this session included Ambassador Swanning Hunt of the Institute for Inclusive Security, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense Ann Wachowski, and most importantly, Dr. Mary Rahm, who was able to underscore, again, the importance of operational consistency. The events gave students an understanding of why integrating a gender perspective during planning and operations contributes to successfully meeting sustainable outcomes. However, we cannot in our efforts with singular events, but continue to promote a sustainable approach to curriculum development. There should be greater impetus to establish universal progress assessment metrics. These metrics should focus on gender doctrine as it relates to counterinsurgency and war, humanitarian assistance, the political empowerment, health, and education of women, as well as the formal mechanisms by which aims in these regards may be accomplished. This academic focus would include gender doctrine as it relates to conflict zones in war. Most importantly, we should reaffirm that our thinking has to be expanded to include all vulnerable populations to protect them in war and peace. The issue of the relationship between women, peace, and security and preparations for humanitarian assistance and disaster response can not be understated. As we continue to devise mechanisms to implement the U.S. National Plan, the focus on peace sometimes dilutes the necessity to inform doctrine. We have often heard that peace is not our business. However, the security requirements for humanitarian assistance and disaster response missions often mirror the requirements for deployment to conflict zones. To deflect such notions of irrelevance, we should continue to identify the commonalities in both missions to sustain the importance of developing an overall women, peace, and security doctrine. HADR is the appropriate portal from which to view how we integrate women, peace, and security into mission strategies and operations. The response to national disasters, the impacts of climate change, the growing needs for food security and water management, as well as the challenges of combating pandemics are essential areas of our national security strategies that will be buttress by including women, peace, and security as a critical planning to meet these challenges. Moreover, to help facilitate the global strategy, we should share the curriculum we've developed with other institutions and partnering countries. We should also identify opportunities to work with international partners to accomplish a wide range of national security objectives. Sharing common approaches with the international community will ensure a coordinated, cohesive, and coherent global approach. At NDE, our graduates leave with the understanding that an effective leadership strategy is based on a whole of government approach that rests on the pillars of good governance, rule of law, religious freedom, and gender equality. Moreover, we have an alumni network that is self-sustaining with graduates regularly participating in exchanges on operational information and best practices that can help make this approach visible, collaborative, and sustainable. So therefore, to help facilitate the global strategy outlined by President Obama, it is necessary to share the curriculum we've developed with other academic institutions and partner countries. Additional opportunities to work with international partners should be identified to accomplish a wide range of national security objectives, as well as the goals of the United Nations Security Council resolutions. In conclusion, the Executive Order, the U.S. National Action Plan, and the Department of Defense Implementation Plan all refer to enhanced professional education and training to institutionalize the Women, Peace, and Security Agenda in the classroom and training exercises. Sharing common approaches and understandings, not only with the international community, but also as we develop policies and programs here in the United States at the local, state, and national levels will ensure this coordinated, cohesive, and coherent strategy that we are here today to implement. It is an imperative then that we meet this challenge with a credible approach at the academic institutions that enable the U.S. government to develop leaders who understand the value of women, peace, and security. The Naval War College is at the center of this effort. In meeting our strategic objectives through using the concepts that we are developing today and tomorrow in policy formulation implementation, what we're trying to do here will undoubtedly lead to success. Thank you very much for your time.