CITIES & Communities
Women leaders of the world’s cities navigate governance challenges
To mark International Women’s Day at Harvard Kennedy School, a panel of urban officials discussed the experiences of women city leaders. The event was hosted by the Bloomberg Center for Cities at Harvard University and co-sponsored by the Kennedy School’s Center for Public Leadership (CPL) and Women and Public Policy Program (WAPPP). Speakers included former city executive Judith Tukahirwa Tumusiime from Kampala, Uganda; former Mayor Michelle De La Isla of Topeka, Kansas, and former Mayor Carmen Yulín Cruz of San Juan, Puerto Rico. Moderator Hannah Riley Bowles, an HKS senior lecturer who is co-director of both CPL and WAPPP, led a conversation on navigating highly charged governance situations—environmental disasters, political corruption, and racially-motivated violence—while remaining focused on solutions-oriented leadership. |