Jody Williams

Jody Williams received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1997 for her pioneering role as the founding coordinator of the International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL), which also shared the Peace Prize with her that year. She served in this crucial position until February 1998, overseeing the Campaign's expansion to include over 1,300 organizations in 95 countries. Her efforts were instrumental in achieving an international treaty banning antipersonnel landmines, culminating in a diplomatic conference in Oslo in September 1997.

An unwavering peace activist, Williams has dedicated much of her life to addressing the destructive impact of war. She is deeply committed to redefining peace as more than just the absence of war, but as a state defined by human security and environmental justice, ensuring the basic needs of the majority. Since 2006, she has advanced these ideals through the Nobel Women’s Initiative, which she chairs. Founded alongside fellow Nobel Laureates, such as Dr. Shirin Ebadi and Wangari Maathai, the Initiative elevates the work of women globally striving for sustainable peace with justice and equality. Under her co-chairmanship, the Initiative launched the International Campaign to Stop Rape & Gender Violence in Conflict in May 2012.

Williams has also been a beacon of advocacy against landmines post her tenure with ICBL, serving as a Campaign Ambassador and engaging in numerous global discussions to support ongoing demining efforts. In addition to her activism, she has made significant contributions to academia as the "Sam and Cele Keeper Endowed Professor in Peace and Social Justice" at the University of Houston, where she has taught since 2003. She also enriched the academic community as the inaugural Jane Addams Distinguished Visiting Fellow in Social Justice at the University of Illinois at Chicago during the academic year 2012-2013.

Her literary contributions include several books, notably "Banning Landmines: Disarmament, Citizen Diplomacy, and Human Security" and her memoir "My Name is Jody Williams: A Vermont Girl’s Winding Path to the Nobel Peace Prize," reflecting her extensive experience and personal journey in activism. Williams's work has been recognized globally, earning her fifteen honorary degrees and numerous accolades for her relentless pursuit of human rights and global security.