Bright Spots: Where the Future Was Built

In 1975, leaders from around the world converged on Mexico City for the first-ever UN World Conference on Women. The historic story of that conference and the conferences that followed — in Copenhagen, Nairobi and Beijing — is one of collaboration, resistance, strategy, and joy.

Explore the landmark UN gatherings that inspired the global women’s movement and propelled women’s rights worldwide. This groundbreaking project explores the four UN World Conferences on Women — Mexico City in 1975, Copenhagen in 1980, Nairobi in 1985, and Beijing in 1995 — and how they energized a global women’s movement to catalyze transformative progress within a single generation, and what has followed. The project also offers a roadmap for the next era of gender equality advocacy.