The State of Women Institute

06/18/2026

06/10/2026

Last month, our executive director Dr. Odessa Lacsina attended a special celebration marking the 60th anniversary of independence for Guyana and Barbados — two nations that both achieved independence in 1966, and whose enduring friendship was reflected throughout the celebration.

For Dr. Lacsina, the occasion was personal. She is of both Guyanese and Barbadian heritage, and she was joined that evening by her mother, Celeste, and her daughter, Ishara — three generations celebrating together at both embassies.

Ishara volunteered at the Embassy of Guyana, greeted visitors, and had the opportunity to interview His Excellency Ambassador Fernandes and meet his wife, Ferida. At the Embassy of Guyana, the family was honored to celebrate alongside His Excellency Ambassador Hinds.

The Prime Minister of Barbados traveled to Guyana for the occasion — and among the highlights of the visit was the announcement of a new travel arrangement making it easier for citizens of both nations to move between them, deepening connections across families, businesses, and communities.

The evening concluded with the Caribbean Film Festival, hosted jointly by both embassies, celebrating the filmmakers, artists, and storytellers whose work reflects the richness of the Caribbean region.

"From commemorating independence to celebrating Caribbean cinema, these events serve as a reminder that our greatest strength has always been our people — their resilience, creativity, and commitment to building stronger, healthier communities for future generations." — Dr. Odessa Lacsina

👉 Read her full reflection here: www.thestateofwomen.org/blog/2026/6/10/honoring-a-shared-milestone-guyana-and-barbados-mark-60-years-of-independence

06/07/2026

Happy 36th Birthday to Our Queen. 🩷

Today, we join the people of Bhutan in celebrating Her Majesty The Gyaltsuen and offer our heartfelt wishes and prayers for Her Majesty’s good health, happiness, and every blessing in the year ahead.

06/07/2026

Amal Clooney left Lebanon at age two as the Civil War accelerated. She arrived in England with nothing structurally advantaged about her position. What followed was built: an Oxford scholarship, a master's degree from NYU, bar admission in New York, a clerkship at the International Court of Justice, and a practice that positioned her among the most consequential human rights lawyers operating today.The media that covered her early years focused substantially on her clothing. She used the platform that coverage generated — the cameras that came for the outfits — to direct attention toward Yazidi genocide survivors, ISIS war crimes, press freedom violations, and the cases that major powers would have preferred stayed invisible. Standing beside Nadia Murad at the United Nations was not an accident of celebrity adjacency. It was the deliberate deployment of visibility toward cases that needed it.In 2021, she was part of the legal work that secured the world's first ISIS genocide conviction. In 2024, she won Legal 500 International Lawyer of the Year. The Clooney Foundation for Justice operates globally. A refugee girl from Beirut did not wait for the world to decide she was credible before acting like she was. The world's eventual assessment of her credibility was the consequence, not the precondition.

06/07/2026

Fatima Sultan Al Kuwari, a senior executive with over 20 years of leadership experience, has been appointed CEO of Qatar's bid to host the 2036 Olympic and Paralympic Games, as Doha seeks to become the first Middle Eastern city to stage the Games.