WAR ROOM has presented our readers and listeners with a number of discussions in the past on Women in Peace and Security. In this episode our Editor-in-Chief, Jacqueline Whitt sits down in the virtual studio with Lauren Buitta, founder and CEO of Girl Security. Lauren began her career as a policy analyst in 2003, and she quickly recognized the underrepresentation of women in the national security arena. In response, she launched Girl Security – the only organization dedicated to advancing girls, women, and gender minorities in national security through supportive pathways. Their conversation includes the barriers young women encounter as well as the incredibly successful mentorship program Girl Security has developed to counter mindsets and misrepresentations.
If we can start understanding the root causes of a lack of diversity in national security that begin well before college, we can first of all, gather more data about why diversity in national security matters, but we can also develop better interventions to catalyze more diversity in national security over the next 10 to 20 years.
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Lauren Buitta is founder and CEO of Girl Security, a nonprofit organization advancing girls, women, and gender minorities in national security through supportive pathways. She began her career in national security in Chicago, IL in 2003 as a policy analyst with the National Strategy Forum, a nonpartisan national security think tank, where she focused on national security law. Prior to launching Girl Security, Lauren founded a consulting firm, which provided support to clients on local policy issues, including exclusionary land use policies and racial segregation in Chicago.
Jacqueline E. Whitt is an Associate Professor of Strategy at the U.S. Army War College and the Editor-in-Chief of WAR ROOM.
The views expressed in this presentation are those of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect those of the U.S. Army War College, U.S. Army, or Department of Defense.
Photo Description: One of the many tools used by Girl Security to reach out to young women is video presentations of prominent role models as well as peers in the national security realm speaking about their experiences and participating in panels.
Photo Credit: All photos are captured from videos presented on Girl Security’s YouTube channel.