Senior adjunct professor of global leadership in the Carey Law School and associate dean of international affairs Rangita de Silva de Alwis was recently elected to serve as one of the UN’s top leaders in the worldwide fight against gender-based discrimination. During the 2023-2026 term, Ms. de Silva de Alwis will represent Sri Lanka on the Committee on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women.

The committee is tasked with implementing and monitoring the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (“CEDAW”)­—a landmark treaty whereby 189 of the 193 UN Member States have pledged to both eradicate discrimination against women in every form and ensure women’s advancement “in order that they can exercise and enjoy their human rights and fundamental freedoms in the same way as men.”

An internationally recognized voice for women’s human rights, Ms. de Silva de Alwis has advocated for the advancement of women’s human rights around the world through her diplomacy, public service, and widely publicized scholarship. In addition to teaching at the Carey Law School, Ms. de Silva de Alwis directs the school’s Global Institute for Human Rights and leads the advancing inclusive leadership program.

A diverse range of esteemed women’s human rights advocates from around the world offered resounding support for Ms. de Silva de Alwis’s election.