I have a story in this week’s magazine about the 20 Senate women and their growing—and positive—influence on the Upper Chamber.

With the federal government at shutdown's door, the 20 female Senate members are setting new standards for civility and bipartisanship. Look out, old boys' club.

One evening, in a conversation with a group of impressive Afghan women activists in Kabul, the first participant started the conversation by making a simple but profound statement. She said, “Stop looking at us as victims, and look at us as the leaders that we are.” She was right.

Nigeria has committed itself to accelerate the national and regional implementation of relevant UN Security Council resolutions, especially on women, peace and security, Women Affairs Minister Zainab Maina has said.

Some say history repeats itself. In 2004, UNDP issued what I believe is one of the best of its global Human Development Reports, Managing Cultural Diversity.