Washington, DC – As the founder, publisher and editor-in-chief of her own global affairs magazine, the Diplomatic Courier, when Ana Rold began hearing buzz about the work of the Women’s Democracy Network (WDN) from colleagues, she recognized a story the needed to be told.  It has now been four years since Rold first featured WDN’s work in the magazine’s International Women’s Day issue and since her support of the Network and its mission began.

With a background in leadership, peace building and conflict resolution, WDN’s mission resonated with Rold, whose magazine regularly features the work of women who are actively engaged in their communities and working to increase the rights of women around the world.  As Rold herself has said or her support for WDN, “This allows for an opportunity to not only celebrate the accomplishments of these women but also create meaningful relationships with counterparts here [in Washington].”

As editor-in-chief, Rold often choses to highlight women who, though not well known, are true change makers.  The women she features, the Top Global Women, hold various positions, ranging from parliamentarians and leaders of civil society, to activists and political hopefuls.  As Rold describes, “They are not celebrities or your usual suspects.  These are women who do incredible work under the radar who affect change in their societies.” 

What these women have in common is an admirable determination to strengthen the voice of women in decision making.  Rold underlines that the WDN members highlighted in the Diplomatic Courier “Are women who are working for things we take for granted – free speech, ability to vote and run for office – and they do so against all odds.  These challenges are what make them even more resolute and successful, in my opinion.” 

The Diplomatic Courier is not the only way Rold has supported WDN.  This year, Rold invited WDN to co-host the magazine’s annual Global Women Summit and hosted a dinner for the Network’s 2015 International Women’s Day delegation.  Both events connected the delegates, who were women parliamentarians from around the world, with women leaders in Washington, DC.  Rold also worked with WDN members from Afghanistan and Pakistan on developing the skills needed for conflict resolution and mediation, out of which grew the Pak-Afghan Women’s Forum – a cross-border network of women parliamentarians, media and civil society representatives who work to build trust and address cross-border issues.  

Rold is the founder of the publishing firm Medauras Global LLC.  She has also served as editor-in-chief of the annual commemorative publications of the G8, G20 and American-Pacific Economic Cooperation Summits since 2009.  In addition to her publishing and editorial work, she teaches comparative politics at Northeastern University’s College.