Photo credit: David Elmes
On October 3-5, 2025, 70 leading scholars and practitioners came together for the colloquium Mothers Without Borders: The Phenomenology of Mothers' Soft Power in Peace Building. The event, convened by Wellesley Centers for Women (WCW) Senior International Scholar-in-Residence Hauwa Ibrahim, J.D., S.J.D., M.L., took place at Wellesley College, Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).
“Today is only the start of something larger,” said Senior Research Scientist Wendy Wagner Robeson, Ed.D., who helped plan the colloquium, during her welcome remarks. “For some it will be the spark, and for others it will be a renewed spark to bring change and peace to our world.”
Through dialogue, art, and music, the colloquium explored how women can mobilize their homes and communities, diffuse tensions, build trust, and strengthen participation in decision-making processes, while tackling gender-based violence, stereotypes, and threats. Aiming to spotlight mothers and women as actors in peace-building and positive social change, Mothers Without Borders seeks to spark a continued global movement for peace.
“Mothers understand that shaping a better world starts with each of us,” said Susan McGee Bailey, Ph.D., executive director of WCW from 1985-2010, during her keynote address. “We can’t change everything quickly, but we can change everything…By believing in ourselves and our vision, we can initiate major changes, not only in our own homes, but throughout the world.”
Photo credit: David ElmesThe colloquium was attended by world-class leaders, visionaries, and change-makers, including Her Royal Highness, Dr. Nahla Al-Qassimi; Emir of Zazzau, Ambassador Ahmed Nuhu Bamalli; Hon. MEP Cecilia Strada and Hon. MEP Alexandra Moretti, members of the European Parliament; Lt. Gen. Fernando Giancotti; peace advocates Prof. Safiya Umoja Noble and Prof. Sonja Lokar; and the Nigerian Minister of Women’s Affairs, Hon. Imaan Ibrahim-Sulieman.
“A mother’s love is the most borderless thing on Earth,” said Her Royal Highness, Nahla Al-Qassimi, Ph.D., associate professor, dean of students, and chair of the Women Empowerment Council at Ajman University in the United Arab Emirates, during her keynote address. “Mothers Without Borders reminds us that when mothers connect, the world becomes kinder, brighter, and stronger.”
The first day of the colloquium concluded with Ibrahim delivering the 2025 Kenner Lecture, sponsored by the Madeleine Korbel Albright Institute for Global Affairs at Wellesley College. Speaking on the topic of “leadership in a fragmented world,” Ibrahim talked about strength, and how it is not at odds with softness.
“Our strength is right inside of us, and as mothers we carry even greater strength,” she said. “Inside of each of us, there is a deep dignity—that we are human. If there is anything you remember in our long conversation today, let it be our humanity.”