As part of our “Women on Wednesdays” series, please join the Women & Politics Institute for a virtual conversation with Kristin Kim Bart, Senior Director for Gender Equality at the International Rescue Committee (IRC) and WPI Executive Director Betsy Fischer Martin.

Kristin Kim Bart will discuss the International Rescue Committee’s recently released report, When Returning to Normal Doesn’t Work for Half the World’s Population: How to Build Back Better. The white paper amplifies how following times of crises, such as COVID-19, just how critically important it is for women, “that we do not just get back to “normal,” but that we actively build back better.”

This call to action comes as we near the 25th Anniversary of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action (UNGABeijing+25), where despite rhetoric affirming the “human rights of women and of the girl child as an inalienable, integral and indivisible part of all human rights,” women and girls, continue to be left behind. As we grapple with the large-scale loss and economic challenges of COVID-19, “it is important to look ahead at the opportunities for women and girls,” and “re-imagine what the next phase of life can look like.”

Kristin Kim Bart is the Senior Director for Gender Equality at the International Rescue Committee. In this role, she serves as a catalyst for change and oversees IRC’s commitment to break down gender-based barriers for clients as well as for staff and within IRC’s internal operations. Since 2003, she has worked for the International Rescue Committee, both in the field programs and at headquarters, addressing issues of violence against women and girls. She holds a master's degree in International Affairs from Columbia University’s School for International and Public Affairs, and a bachelor's degree in Sociology from the University of Iowa.

Betsy Fischer Martin is an Emmy-winning journalist and former TV news executive. Currently, she is the Executive Director of the Women & Politics Institute at American University and a faculty member in the School of Public Affairs, where she teaches courses on campaigns and elections. During her earlier career in television news, she spent 23 years at NBC News serving as the longtime Executive Producer of Meet the Press with Tim Russert and as the Managing Editor of NBC News Political Programming.

A native of New Orleans, Fischer Martin did her undergraduate and graduate work at American University in Washington, DC. She is a cum laude graduate of their School of Public Affairs and earned a master’s degree in Broadcast Journalism from the AU School of Communication.

"Women on Wednesdays": Kristin Kim Bart - "How to Build Back Better," in conversation with Betsy Fischer Martin