Edit Schlaffer

Edit Schlaffer is a social scientist, author and activist and started Women without Borders (WwB), an Austrian based international NGO, in 2002. Her research and activities focus on women in international politics, women as agents of change and driving forces in stabilizing an insecure world.

Edit designed a number of ground breaking Women without Borders projects focusing on building up female self-confidence as the key for establishing a female powerbase around the globe in countries of transition, from tradition to modernity, such as Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, India and Yemen.

The latest initiative Edit launched is SAVE – Sisters Against Violent Extremism, the first women´s anti-terror platform. Headquartered at the Women without Borders offices in Vienna, Austria, SAVE brings together a broad spectrum of women determined to create a united front against violent extremism. SAVE provides women with the tools for critical debate to challenge extremist thinking and to develop alternative strategies for combating the growth of global terrorism.

Edit´s mission is to inspire a new global sisterhood based on the power of smart power. The alternative female diplomats of the 21st century are the mothers, wives, sisters and daughters who must be encouraged to realize their roles as early warning systems to challenge injustice, inequality, exclusion and extremism in the private and in the public sphere.