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"An event like this can really make a difference. I have seen it in the faces of those women who know that they're not laboring in vain. I've seen it in the networks that have been created to support them. And I've seen it in the changed attitudes of governments and leaders."

- U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton

"As long as violence against women, sexual or otherwise, remains strictly and exclusively a women’s issue, it will always be an issue. We men must own this and we must recognize it as vital to our own survival. And we must help our brothers see it as such."

- Ben Affleck, 2009 Presenter

"In honoring me, you are honoring the 700,000 women who are standing behind me. You may not see them, but they are here in spirit — their stories, their struggles and their triumphs echo throughout this hall."

- Jaya Arunachalam, 2005 Honoree

"It is an award to recognize the full human rights of our girls and of our women, but most of all, it is a reminder of the remaining task for equality, development and peace in our respective nations."

- Mu Sochua, 2005 Honoree

"This award, you must know, is going to protect my life...No one can silence me because I have new friends — you are my friends — and you are watching over me."

- Anabella de Leon, 2003 Honoree

Past Global Leadership Awards

2011 A Decade of Investing in Women to Improve Our World 

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2010 Impact through Innovation: Women Inspiring Change 

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2009 Women Leading Change Across the World 

2008
 

2008 Vital Voices Global Leadership Awards

2007

2007 Women Changing Our World

2006
 

2006 Vital Voices Global Leadership Awards

  • Economic Opportunity Award: Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Nigeria
  • Fern Holland Award: Mukhtaran Mai, Pakistan
  • Global Trailblazer: Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Liberia
  • Human Rights Award: Rita Chaikin, Israel
  • Special Recognition: The Women of Kuwait

2005
 

2005 A Call to Action

2004
 

2004 Changing the Face of Leadership

2003
 

2003 Honoring Voices of Hope in a Time of Global Challenge

2002 Honoring the Vital Voices of Global Women Leaders 

  • Economic Opportunity Award: Dawn Marole, South Africa
  • Human Rights Award: Oksana Horbunova, Ukraine
  • Political Participation Award: Inez McCormack, Northern Ireland
  • Special Recognition: The Women of Afghanistan