Mahnaz Afkhami (Iran) is Founder and President of the Women's Learning Partnership, Executive Director of the Foundation for Iranian Studies , and former Minister of State for Women's Affairs in Iran. In exile in the United States, Ms. Afkhami has been a leading advocate of women's rights for more than three decades, having founded and served as director and president of several international non-governmental organizations that focus on advancing women's status. Most recently she was President of Sisterhood Is Global Institute. Ms. Afkhami also serves on advisory boards and steering committees of a number of national and international organizations including Commission on Globalization, The Global Fund for Women , International League for Human Rights , Women's Human Rights Net, Women's Rights Division of Human Rights Watch , World Movement for Democracy , and Youth Employment Summit. Her numerous publications have been widely translated and distributed internationally.