Four female diplomats in Ankara have expressed their support for women in diplomacy, saying they are hopeful that the number of female diplomats will increase worldwide in the future. Nina Vaskunlahti, the Finnish ambassador to Turkey, said in an exclusive interview with Sunday's Zaman that there are a greater number of female ambassadors in Finland than there were in the past.

UN Women today launched a major campaign in the lead-up to the commemoration of the 20th anniversary of the historic Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing. A year of activities around the world will aim to mobilize governments and citizens alike to picture a world where gender equality is a reality and to join a global conversation on empowering women to empower humanity.

A new survey shows the youngest bloc of voters is decidedly progressive, nervous about money—and not especially energized about voting.One big takeaway is that Millennials are strongly supportive of governmental intervention in society on a wide array of social issues. The survey also suggests Millennials place a high value on equality.

Danny Cohen, head of the BBC's television output, has promised viewers that the corporation will not make any more all-male comedy panel shows. Following recommendations made by the BBC Trust last year, Cohen has underlined his determination to see women appearing in the habitually macho environment of panel shows such as QI and Mock the Week. Talking to the Observer about his plans for better representing his audiences on screen, Cohen said: "We're not going to have any more panel shows with no women on them. It's not acceptable."

Cynthia L. Hogle, an advocate for women in Afghanistan, discussed her work at a seminar Wednesday hosted by the USC Center on Public Diplomacy. Hogle undertook projects to improve the lives of Afghan women in Maiwand, a village in the Taliban’s home province of Kandahar.