Call for papers: women and defense

Mick Andersen, who is editor of Security and Defense Review (the journal of the Center for Hemispheric Defense Studies) has issued a call for papers for a special issue on "Women in Defense and Security."


Among the issues we hope to address in the Fall/Winter edition are the following:

• Questions of gender in a variety of different contexts, including global; regional; military, police, and peacekeeping; and security and defense institution building;
• An examination of what currently exists in terms of career paths for women in security and defense; what has worked and what more needs to be done to help ensure gender equity, including analyses of what countries have already done (or could do), both in terms of political appointments and in the civil service, to ensure both paths are open to women;
• Potential opportunities for women as a result of both the expansion of, and changes in, the roles and missions of security and defense forces, where relevant;
• Country-specific examples from the Western Hemisphere of where measures have been taken to ensure equitable education and training opportunities for women.
• Role of women in science, technology, education, and math (hard skill sets) in supporting national security institutions.
• The roles of women in security and defense in comparative perspective, with emphasis on region, but also in comparison with other regions.

Among the questions we hope these and other topics help answer are the following:

• How does gender inclusion and mainstreaming contribute to effective security and defense institution building?
• How do considerations of gender inform action plans, directives and operations in the military, police and peacekeeping context?
• What is being done and what is missing for implementation and education?'
• What is the role of the media in Perception and Reality vis-à-vis women in defense and security?

We are asking for two types of submissions for consideration for publication.
The first category will  be comprised of standard academic papers of between 5,000-12,000 words in length examining these and other related issues. Those interested in offering these kinds of contributions are encouraged to take a look at the most recent issue of the Security and Defense Studies Review so as to keep papers submitted as close as possible to standard SDSR format.
The second type of contributions we seek are 500-1,000 word contributions by women security and defense professionals about their own experiences. Of particular interest are those stories which address obstacles faced; personal strategies used to contribute to individual advancement, professional education and training, and institutional awareness; the roles of mentors; continued challenges, and new opportunities. (Please note: We do not wish to publish contributions heavy with rhetorical flourishes or unseemly generalizations; we do want frank, sincere, insightful and refreshing looks at critical issues women face, in their own words, based on their own experiences.) 


We also welcome a smaller number of pieces of the same length written by men that help promote understanding and dialogue about critical issues facing women professionals in defense and security. These, too, should avoid rhetorical and time-worn devices, and focus on insights based on personal experience and observation.


The deadline for submission of both types of contributions is September 17th, after which we will select no more than 10 articles from the first category and 15 from the second for publication. We hope to publish this dedicated volume before the end of this year.