On Sunday, April 13, 2008, three thousand influential individuals and organizations in the women's, faith, and development communities from around the world came together to officially launch the Women, Faith, and Development Alliance (WFD-A) at the Washington National Cathedral.

This unprecedented gathering, called Breakthrough: The Women, Faith and Development Summit to End Global Poverty, was a highly visible forum for world leaders from across sectors to convene and announce new commitments to engender efforts to alleviate poverty. We are happy to announce that more than $1 Billion dollars has been pledged and committed thus far, with more to come!!

The Hon. Madeleine K. Albright, former U.S. Secretary of State, gave the keynote at the Sunday kick-off event, with messages from His Grace Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Her Excellency Mary Robinson, Her Excellency Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, Actress and Activist Ashley Judd, and other world leaders and luminaries.

"The WFD-Alliance is a powerful new force dedicated to putting women at the heart of efforts to end global poverty, " says Kimberly King, Co-Founder of the Sophia Women's World Conference and Sophia Global Action Network. "Our vision is a world that honors women and girls, and supports ALL people and cultures working together for the common good -- and nothing less."

The following day, Monday, April 14, one hundred diverse members of the esteemed Breakthrough Global Leadership Council met to brainstorm ideas regarding the new Alliance and to open a dialogue for creative cooperation. The meeting was co-chaired by the Honorable Mary Robinson and the Honorable Kim Campbell, former Prime Minister of Canada.

The Women's, Faith and Development Alliance is seeking participation, leadership and contributions across all sectors, industries and regions. For more information on how YOU can be a part of this global movement for change, please visit our website at www.wfd-alliance.org, or contact Kimberly King, WFDA Global Leadership Council Representative, at kimberly@thepeacecompany.com  for more details.

See Photo Highlights from the Breakthrough Summit:  1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12

Watch video on-demand:

Keynote by the Hon. Madeleine K. Albright

Remarks focusing on Youth by Ashley Judd

  Her Excellency Mary Robinson

Her Excellency Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf

and Archbishop Desmond Tutu.