![The 2025 International Woman of Courage, or IWOC, award, “[is] an honor bestowed only on eight women from across the glo...](https://img4.glunis.com/246/977/1097008972469773.jpg)
04/15/2025
The 2025 International Woman of Courage, or IWOC, award, “[is] an honor bestowed only on eight women from across the globe in recognition of their exceptional work to advance peace, justice, human rights and the empowerment of women everywhere. The work that these women do, and the work that they empower and mobilize others to do, is truly remarkable.”
Heather Maiirhe Caruso
Associate Dean, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion
Faculty Co-Director, Inclusive Ethics Initiative
Adjunct Associate Professor of Management and Organizations and Behavioral Decision Making
The awardees participated in a private roundtable discussion with leaders from across the university community, as well as in a public panel event organized by UCLA Anderson School of Management. Both events were made possible with the support of UCLA's executive vice chancellor and provost, senior advisor to the chancellor and the International Institute, as well as the U.S. Department of State's Office of Global Women's Issues, Meridian International, International Citizen Diplomacy of Los Angeles and American Women for International Understanding.
UCLA hosted the U.S. State Department's 2025 International Women of Courage on April 7, several of whom spoke about their work and life experience at a public panel event.
Amat Al-Salam Al-Hajj, founder of the Abductees’ Mothers Association in Yemen, said her work was motivated both by the joy of helping people be released from prison and by the goal of justice.
“[The mothers] push us and they tell us, ‘Never stop until everybody gets released. Continue!' This is the part that really makes us go on.”
Read about several of the honorees here: ucla.in/4j8gzWN
cc: UCLA Anderson School of Management UCLA College UCLA Center for the Study of Women Streisand Center UCLA Burkle Center for International Relations UCLA Center for India and South Asia-CISA UCLA Center for Near Eastern Studies UCLA Center for European and Russian Studies