Speaker Information

Youth Session

Panelists

Wai Wai Nu

  • Founder and Executive Director, Women’s Peace Network (WPN) in Myanmar

Wai Wai Nu is a former political prisoner and the Founder and Executive Director of the Women’s Peace Network (WPN) in Myanmar. Through WPN, Wai Wai works to build gender equality, peace, and mutual understanding between Myanmar’s ethnic communities and to empower and advocate for the rights of marginalized women throughout Myanmar, including by documenting cases of sexual and gender-based violence.

Through her work on the My Friend Campaign, she has been recognized as a Champion of Prevention by the United Nations’ Office of the Prevention of Genocide and Responsibility to Protect. Nu briefed the UN Security Council open debate on Women, Peace, and Security and spoke at the UN General Assembly.

Wai Wai is a recipient of, among others, the Hillary Rodham Clinton Award for Women's Peace Security (2018); City of Athens Democracy Award (2021); and the International DVF Award (2021). She was also named as a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum; among "100 Top Women", BBC (2014); among 100 World Thinkers, Foreign Policy Magazine (2015); Next Generation Leader, Time Magazine (2017); Women of the Year, Financial Times (2018).

Wai Wai received her law degree, LL.B., from the University of Yangon in Myanmar and her Master of Laws, LL.M., from the University of Berkeley.

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