IWF Hong Kong member and 2019 WWMD honoree Katharina Zellweger (in black) poses with female cataract patients in North Korea.

For this edition of In the Lead, we are delighted to feature one of the extraordinary Women Who Make a Difference honorees who will be celebrated at our International Hall of Fame Awards Gala in Toronto on November 15. IWF Hong Kong member Katharina Zellweger manages KorAid Limited, a Hong Kong-based NGO she established in 2015 that serves children in institutions and the disabled in North Korea and China.

Photo by Alisha Townsend/Grand Magazine

Earlier this month, we commemorated International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples (August 9), which shines a light on the unique indigenous cultures and languages around the globe. To help celebrate, we are highlighting the work of indigenous activist Melanie Goodchild. Melanie is a Senior Indigenous Research Fellow, Ambassador and Suncor Fellow at the Waterloo Institute for Social Innovation and Resilience, founder of Turtle Island Institute, and an IWF Fellow alumna. She is a member of the Anishinaabe community, and utilizes that background to inform her research around sustainability and systems thinking.

At the IWF World Leadership Conference in Toronto, Melanie will speak on a panel about entrepreneurship, economic development and social innovation. Here, we asked her about using indigenous knowledge to combat climate change, how the IWF Fellows Program influenced her professional journey, and what it takes to join a group called the Iron Butt Association.

Above, IWF founders Muriel Fox (left) and Eleanor Holmes Norton are honored at the 2019 Elly Awards in New York City.

For this edition of In the Lead, we’re looking back at the people and stories that converged to create the International Women’s Forum 45 years ago. In the following video, Women’s Forum of New York founder Muriel Fox provides an oral history of the organization, including her relationship with fellow founder Elly Guggenheimer, her own professional journey and her role in the larger women’s movement.

FIFA Secretary General Fatma Samoura reacts to the audience during the 2019 IWF Cornerstone Conference in Barcelona.

As the FIFA Women’s World Cup kicks off this month, the latest edition of In the Lead features a conversation with one of sports’ most powerful people: FIFA Secretary General Fatma Samoura. While in Barcelona to speak at our 2019 Cornerstone Conference, Samoura talked to us about why she decided to take the role at FIFA, what she's changing to make football a powerful force for good, and how a new slogan – #DareToShine – will help take the women’s game to a new level.

Christine Heenan with her children

In honor of Mother’s Day, the latest edition of In the Lead highlights the power of mothers and the importance of access to maternal care. We spoke with Christine Heenan, Women's Forum of New York member and Vice President of Global Policy and Advocacy for The Rockefeller Foundation, about a new Rockefeller campaign that centers on the crisis of maternal mortality, entitled #WithoutMom.

Archival photos of IWF Idaho member Peggy Elliott Goldwyn during her days as a comedy writer.

During the 2019 IWF World Leadership Conference in Toronto, we welcomed three hilarious women for a plenary session about women in comedy. Allana Harkin, Tumi Morake and Saskia Schuster discussed their journeys and insight on today’s entertainment industry.

To expand on this important conversation, we wanted to hear from an IWF member who has experience in the worlds of comedy and entertainment. IWF Idaho member Peggy Elliott Goldwyn began her career writing, directing and producing documentaries for syndicated television. She wrote television comedies for many years, including "That Girl," "The Odd Couple" and "Happy Days," as well as television movies and motion pictures. Today, she’s a novelist, activist and fierce woman’s advocate.

Below, Peggy describes what it was like being the only woman in the writer’s room at 23 years old, how social media is changing access to new audiences, and the trick to making comedy approachable today.