4 May 2026

Malta, in its capacity as gender focal point for the Treaty for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW), organized a side-event on the margins of the 11th Review Conference of the Non-Proliferation Treaty on 4 May 2026 titled “Nuclear Policymaking Across Generations: Ensuring Inclusive, Peaceful Processes for a Sustainable Future for all.” This side-event was co-organized with UNIDIR and co-sponsored by Mexico and Austria.

This side-event sought to bring experts together across generations to advance fresh thinking about nuclear policymaking and diplomacy. The dialogue explored 4 questions: 1) How are youth-led movements shaping the agenda on nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation? 2) What role can youth meaningfully play in advancing the goals of the NPT? 3) How can gender and humanitarian considerations contribute to rethinking nuclear diplomacy? 4) How can processes, working methods and institutional cultures be improved to achieve more effective results in the nuclear domain? Overall, discussions helped to provide clear insight into current initiatives taking place within the international community to promote the voices of women and youth. They additionally discussed the importance of empowering intersectional voices for better understanding the nuanced effects of nuclear and arms proliferation.

The discussion was moderated by Dr. Renata H. Dalaqua, Head of the Integrated Approaches Programme, UNIDIR. During her opening remarks, HE Natasha Meli, Permanent Representative of Malta to the United Nations, noted that when it comes to official discussions taking place within multilateral processes, the younger generations are severely underrepresented. Young people have a right to participate and shape decisions that will affect their lives. Furthermore, young people can bring fresh perspectives and bold ideas, which are much needed in nuclear diplomacy today. Permanent Representative Meli also highlighted that advancing gender equality is not only a matter of fairness, but a prerequisite for more effective and inclusive policy making. Supporting women’s education, participation, and leadership in nuclear-related fields was therefore a concrete way to operationalise our commitment to gender-responsive disarmament, while ensuring that future generations of decision-makers reflect the diversity of the societies they serve.

HE Matteo Fachinotti, Ambassador, Permanent Representative of Switzerland to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the Preparatory Commission for the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization in Vienna, underlined that young people can contribute by preserving and renewing arms control expertise and changing the political dialogue. He noted that youth can work with senior leaders, who have accumulated significant amounts of expertise and institutional knowledge, to understand history its impacts. These youth can then find the balance between the maintenance of knowledge and the importance of leveraging emerging technologies.

Ms Kseniia Pernavskaia, Network and Engagement Specialist from Open Nuclear Network presented her experiences in two youth-led UN initiatives: the Youth Leader Fund for a World Without Nuclear Weapons and the Youth for Disarmament Forum, both led by UNODA. Both initiatives provide an opportunity for young people to engage in the disarmament and non-proliferation architecture and support the UN’s work here. From her experiences, she highlighted several lessons learned. She stated that younger experts in the field are more open to a humanitarian framing of disarmament rather than solely focusing on strategic logic. She additionally noted that young experts are usually more intersectional, where senior leaders tend to be more siloed. She also expressed that youth movements can create community bridges and address gaps between countries. Ms Pernavskaia also made additional insights including that young experts must be institutionally supported in negotiations rather than just allowing them to speak at events and that there must be genuine on-the-ground retainment, where funding must be consistent and opportunities must be maintained.

Ms Syeda Aurchita, IAEA Marie Sklodowska-Curie Fellow, stated that she was motivated to work in the field of nuclear engineering and diplomacy after reading a book titled “Voices from Chernobyl” by Svetlana Alexievich. This book motivated her because it allowed her to understand the fear of combatting something that was invisible like radiation but also the need to prepare for it. She expressed that her current focus on the intersectionality of nuclear energy and geopolitics at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies helped to shift her from a purely technical background to the policy space. As a woman from the global south, Ms Aurchita stressed that opportunities, especially in the nuclear space, were difficult to find and urged the international community to fund further opportunities like the IAEA fellowship. She concluded by stating that, at times, practitioners and policymakers had an inherent gap where they sought to solve the same problem but were speaking different languages. Ms Aurchita emphasized that it was important to bridge this gap.

Mr Mohammed Alkurashi, Youth Advisor at the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation, highlighted Nuclear Age Peace Foundation’s work on their “Reverse the Trend” initiative. Here, he noted the need to address the empowerment of youth and women in the global human rights regime where the WPS and YPS agenda are central. Mr Alkurashi expressed that calling out private sector actors engaged in arms proliferation and the military industrial complex was of utmost importance, where dozens of companies were actively working in nuclear weapons production and sustainment. Regarding WPS, Mohammed noted that a less-than-ideal portion of those engaged in nuclear diplomacy were women. There was a need for solutions to actively encourage women to take up technical roles and build diverse institutional cultures for them.

11 March 2026

Malta, in its capacity as Gender Focal Point for the Treaty for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons organised a side event on the margins of the 70th Commission of the Status of Women (CSW) on 11 March 2026 in New York on Empowering Women in the Nuclear Field & Strengthening the Role of Men as Allies in Gender Equality. This side-event was co-sponsored by Austria, Costa Rica, Ireland, Kiribati, Mexico, South Africa, Thailand and the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN).

The event explored the underrepresentation of women in nuclear-related fields, the intersection between disarmament and gender equality, and the practical steps that can be taken to ensure the meaningful participation of women in nuclear-related fields.

During her opening remarks, HE Natasha Meli, Permanent Representative of Malta to the United Nations, noted that women have historically contributed to nuclear science and diplomacy, but are still underrepresented, with women comprising less than 25% of the workforce in nuclear-related fields. Malta highlighted that although previous commitments, such as the TPNW and WPS agenda, exist, there are still disparities of women in nuclear-related fields. Women are often portrayed as victims of nuclear weapons, which can reinforce stereotypes, while noting the importance of recognizing women as leaders and addressing the unequal impacts and barriers they face. Finally, in this regard, the role of support from male allies and partnerships was highlighted.

HE Maritza Chan, Permanent Representative of Costa Rica to the UN and Chair of the 70th Commission of the Status of Women delivered key-note remarks during which she mentioned how survivors of nuclear use and testing were not given a place to speak. It was noted that the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) included obligations that act as a justice framework and recognized the disproportionate impact of nuclear weapons on women and girls. In contrast, the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) has no victim assistance framework, no gender-sensitive implementation requirements, and no accountability for harm already caused. She noted that institutional cultures kept feminist analysis on the margins of nuclear policy, and those in power shared responsibility to change this. She also referred to the role of the Commission on the Status of Women in promoting access to justice for those impacted by nuclear weapons.

Dr Emma Belcher, President of Ploughshares and co-founder of Women Transforming Global Security, discussed the resurgence of nuclear rhetoric, the weakening of cooperation, and the risk of a new nuclear arms race, along with the erosion of arms control and declining transparency. She highlighted the connection between gender equality and disarmament, and discussed that while women were often most at risk from nuclear impacts, they were also innovators helping shape better approaches to security. She also noted that when women lead, the definition of security expanded to include governance, accountability, human dignity, and community resilience, while adding that women were also helping reconnect nuclear risk to broader technological, political, and social systems needed to sustain peace.

Ms Fiona Simpson, Deputy Chief in UNODA, referred to UNODA’s integration of gender perspectives in disarmament reporting, representation of women in male dominated fields, support for women-led side events, and youth engagement. She noted the importance of a talent pipeline, talent retention, economic diversity within the talent pipeline, and the inclusion of gender language in mandates.

Mr Stefan Pretterhofer, the Deputy Permanent Representative of Austria discussed the importance of integrating women's perspectives and contributions in negotiated documents and policy frameworks, noting that the 2010 NPT Review Conference outcome was gender blind, and that Austria will strongly advocate for gender responsive language in the upcoming NPT review process. He highlighted Austria’s support for the TPNW and its full implementation and noted national policies and programs that support women’s inclusion in disarmament efforts. Austria also emphasized recognizing women peacebuilders and grassroots organizations as key actors and ensuring age and gender sensitive victim assistance, since women and children are disproportionately affected by radiation exposure. He also stressed that women should not be reduced to victims and highlighted the importance of male allies.

Ray Acheson, Director of Reaching Critical Will, stated that enhancing diversity extends to also addressing the gender binary, highlighting the need for an intersectional approach that also included the voices of those impacted by nuclear activity. Ray Acheson called for rights such as reproductive rights, healthcare , affordable childcare, and educational and training opportunities, to ensure that people could participate in spaces for dialogue. They also discussed the TPNWs' broader rejection of nuclear weapons, overall asserting that the care of people is more important than the potential benefits of nuclear weapons. Finally, they emphasized that merit without opportunity is an illusion.

Seth Shelden, from the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), commended the comprehensive nature of the TPNW and how it recognised the biological effects women face from nuclear weapons and provided assistance to communities affected by nuclear testing as well as gender-sensitive assistance. He noted the importance of centering traditionally marginalized voices and ensuring meaningful representation instead of token representation. He also called for addressing historic disregard for biological impact and historical imbalance in representation and noted that the stigmatization of nuclear weapons was a prerequisite for their elimination. He noted the Vienna Action plan, where gender considerations were in place and stated that men as allies was not enough, calling for men who work in security to embrace feminism. He also emphasized that nuclear weapons perpetuate violence, instead of preventing it.

19 February 2026

Malta in its capacity as Gender Focal Point of the Treaty for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons hosted a webinar on the Humanitarian Consequences of Nuclear Weapons: A Gender Perspective on 19 February 2026. The webinar was co-sponsored by International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) and the United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research (UNIDIR).

The purpose of this webinar was to highlight the disproportionate gendered humanitarian impact of nuclear weapons. Women and girls face higher risks of radiation related illnesses and reproductive damage and also having an unequal impact on social, economic and psychosocial burdens in matters of displacement, stigma, long-term care and its multigenerational trauma. It also sought to address obligations under articles 6 and 7 of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, with a view to informing operation guidance on age and gender sensitive victim remediation. In addition, the webinar aimed to elevate the value of survivor and civil society voices in the design of inclusive programmes and monitoring frameworks, whilst strengthening partnerships to better integrate gender perspectives across disarmament and humanitarian action.

The webinar focused on the gendered humanitarian impacts of nuclear weapons, emphasising that discussions on nuclear weapons often centre on strategy and deterrence rather than the lived experiences of affected people. The speakers stressed that nuclear use and tested produce catastrophic and long-term humanitarian consequences, and that these harms are not experienced equally. Women and girls were identified as facing heightened health risks, greater caregiving burdens, and wider social and economic disadvantages, while the effects of radiation exposure can also extend across generations.

Speakers from the World Health Organisation (WHO), International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), authors from the Biological Effects of Ionizing Radiation (BEIR) 7 report and a UNIDIR report on “Gender and Ionizing Radiation, and Civil Society members highlighted the following:

• nuclear weapons cause profound, long‑lasting, and unequal harm — and women and girls bear a disproportionate burden.
• health systems — and the global community — must adopt gender‑responsive approaches to prevention, preparedness, response, and long‑term follow‑up.
• biological sex and age significantly influence vulnerability to ionising radiation.
• women and children suffer disproportionate harm, with women facing higher rates of certain cancers, heart diseases, and stroke linked to radiation exposure. Particular concern was raised for girls, who may face the highest lifetime risk of both cancer and non-cancer related health consequences.
• the social, economic, and psychosocial consequences of nuclear harm.
• women were described as bearing disproportionate caregiving responsibilities, often unpaid, which can deepen economic dependency and long-term hardship.
• many survivors remained reluctant to register or seek assistance because of fear that their status may negatively affect their children and grandchildren.
• the humanitarian impact of nuclear weapons must be understood also as social and intergenerational, not solely medical.
• the importance of survivor testimony and lived experience, preserving testimonies both a moral responsibility and a policy necessity, as these accounts help inform better programme design, public education, and long-term accountability.
• that survivors and affected communities, including later generations, are treated as active contributors to policy and advocacy rather passive subjects of assistance.
• the link to international humanitarian law, obligations under the TPNW, especially the need for victim assistance and environmental remediation frameworks that are age and gender sensitive.

The webinar underscored the need for continued research, inclusive policymaking, and stronger partnerships. Much of the earlier scientific and policy framework was built around male-centred models, leaving important gaps in understanding and response. There was broad agreement that these gaps must be addressed through further research, survivor-led advocacy, and collaboration between states, civil society, and affected communities.

Overall, the discussion reinforced that a gender-sensitive approach is essential to understanding and addressing the full humanitarian impact of nuclear weapons.

27 January 2025

On 27 January 2025, TPNW states parties met for informal consultations on gender, convened by the Gender Focal Point, to hear the presentation of a new report “Gender and Ionizing Radiation: Towards a New Research Agenda Addressing Disproportionate Harm” and discuss its conclusions. Mary Olson, founder of the Gender and Radiation Impact Project, and Amanda Nichols, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of California, Santa Barbara, presented the report’s conclusions, with an introduction by Renata Hessmann Dalaqua, the Head of Programme of Gender and Disarmament at UNIDIR. The report surveyed new research since 2006 on radiation harm and biological sex, finding new evidence that a higher percentage of reproductive tissue in the female body could cause the disproportionate harm of radiation for females and that the life stage cycle is important to judge radiation impacts. Olson discussed the disproportionate impact of nuclear weapons based on biological sex and age, explaining that women are more likely to develop cancer and non-cancer related health consequences during their lifetimes as a result of radiation exposure than men and that girls from age 0-5 exposed to radiation are the most likely age and sex group to suffer. Nichols asserted the importance of considering gender, in addition to biological sex, to account for disproportionate impacts of nuclear weapons on women, as well as considering other compound effects, such as ethnicity and socio-economic status. States engaged in a discussion with the experts, including around the intergenerational impacts of nuclear weapons, accessibility of the data and opportunities to continue this area of research.

21 June 2024

This was the first consultation convened by Mexico as Gender Focal Point, part of the programme of work presented in March. The meeting opened with a panel presentation by Amb. Elayne Whyte, Professor in John Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies and former Permanent Representative of Costa Rica to the United Nations (where she presided the UN Conference that negotiated and adopted the TPNW); Susi Snyder, Programme Coordinator of ICAN, and; Renata Hessmann Dalaqua, Head of Programme of Gender and Disarmament, UNIDIR. 

Ambassador Whyte recalled how the TPNW is a beacon of innovation for many reasons, including the incorporation of language on gender in the treaty- something which was not contentious at the time of the negotiations. She noted the importance of championing women’s leadership, and to connect intergenerationally to drive towards new security paradigms.  Susi Snyder concentrated on three elements of gender analysis to consider in fully implementing all articles of the treaty- equal participation, biological impacts and, gender theory frameworks. She noted that the solution is not ‘add women and stir’ but rather a deeper consideration of the ways dominant narratives assign different, gendered roles to concepts of strength and negotiations, and that applying a gender lens to efforts towards universalisation, positive obligations, and continued intersessional efforts can shift this paradigm. Renata Dalaqua offered specific recommendations for consideration, including adopting practices from the ATT to provide gender disaggregated data on participation at MSPs and other meetings, considering gender champions to share responsibility, and ensuring that gender questions are raised in all meetings throughout the intersessional process. 

The discussion following the panel included consideration of how gender analyses can be incorporated into the work around security concerns of all states, and to ensure that the humanitarian underpinnings of the treaty are always centered. 

14 July 2023

On Friday, 14 July 2023, the Mission of Chile convened a third meeting as the TPNW Gender Focal Point. Three speakers were invited to brief participants about various considerations in developing gender- and age-sensitive assistance as mandated by the TPNW’s Articles 6 and 7 on victim assistance, environmental remediation, and international cooperation and assistance.

Zia Mian, Co-Director of the Program on Science and Global Security at Princeton University and Co-Chair of the TPNW Scientific Advisory Group, noted that the process of the design, development, and testing of nuclear weapons has been dominated by men. From the very beginning, as illuminated by records of the Manhattan Project, these men knew the impacts that nuclear weapons would have and the dangers of radiation, yet they decided to drop the bombs on workers and housing, knowing this would kill many women and children. Mian also noted that in terms of the scientific knowledge about the physical impacts of nuclear weapons, men focused their experiments on animals and physically active young men in the military, and used these metrics as if they would apply equally to all everyone.

In the context of implementing the TPNW, Mian urged states parties to keep in mind that the effects of nuclear weapons go beyond just radiation. Fire and blast also impact people disproportionately depending on how a society is structured—on how and where people live, who is responsible for child care, who is at home and work, etc. Nuclear weapons also have social and economic impacts through the destruction of city, communities, and ecologies. He urged participants to look at broader social and economic impacts in order to design assistance efforts, so they can adequately address psychological, economic, and social impacts, taking into consideration how gender identity and normativity—and resulting discrimination and inclusion/exclusion—-already manifest within systems of health care, economics, and social and political life.

Ivana Hughes, President of the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation, reiterated data about the physical impacts of ionizing radiation on women and girls, drawing from research that Mary Olson presented to an earlier meeting convened by the Gender Focal Point. Hughes noted that there are higher risks of cancer among girls and young women in particular, and that intergenerational harm is key for TPNW states parties to be aware of and address. Hughes also highlighted the findings of the UN Special Rapporteur on toxics and other investigations of US nuclear testing in the Marshall Islands, as well as studies of Soviet nuclear testing in Kazakhstan, as case studies that will be useful to designing assistance programmes under TPNW Articles 6 and 7.

Vanessa Griffen, a founding contributor to the Nuclear Free and Independent Pacific movement and a member of the Pacific Network on Globalisation, highlighted the importance of gender- and age-sensitive health care and medical responses as a priority in the development of any victim assistance programmes. She emphasised that the harm caused by nuclear testing and use is not something in the past; people today actively require assistance. Gender-specialised health care would be beneficial in treating radiation-related illness and to address the medical and health neglect when it comes to intergenerational effects. She also explained that age-responsive inclusion in care is essential, noting that the services needed, and the volume of service, for people of varying ages significantly different in countries that have experienced nuclear testing than in other countries. Griffen also noted that a focus on women and girls is not meant at the exclusion of attention to men when they are the majority, as ex-servicepeople who were exposed to nuclear tests were almost exclusively men and they are equally victims in need of health and medical care. While her remarks focused on health care, Griffen noted that land rights and displacement are also some of the other “vast cruelties” of nuclear testing that need to be addressed in assistance efforts. 

In response to these comments, Mian added that what happens to victims and survivors of nuclear tests is not up to them but up to health, economic, political, social, family systems to provide adequate care. Thus, when considering what we need for adequate assistance, we have to ask not just effects of exposure to fire, blast, and radiation, but also what is the capacity of society to deal with these effects already. Discrimination is built into these systems on the bases of gender, age, and disability, thus more awareness is needed about existing health care provisions, social and economic inclusions/exclusions, and how these structural issues can be addressed. 

In line with this, Griffen also noted that it’s important that assistance does not just go towards research on impacts, but that it directly helps people. The lives of many victims and survivors of nuclear testing are already based on exclusion, because of the colonial relations of their countries to nuclear-armed states. She also urged that psychological harm needs to be addressed through assistance programmes, which Hughes amplified, noting that the World Health Organisation defines health as physical, social, and mental well-being. Picking up on Griffen’s point about displacement due to nuclear testing, Hughes also noted that displacement has meant loss of sustainable practices and changing food sources, which has led to other health impacts such as diabetes. While these are not caused directly by the testing, they are caused by displacement from the testing, and these “indirect” impacts must also be included in assistance programmes.

A few states parties offered comments, including Kazakhstan, which as Co-Chair of the Working Group on Articles 6 and 7, suggested that the Trust Fund being considered should offer a practical solution for funding work to address some of these irreparable and disastrous impacts of nuclear testing. Kazakhstan also noted that this kind of practical support will hopefully be an attraction for states to join the TPNW.

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21 March 2023

Chile in its capacity as TPNW Gender Focal Point convened a second meeting to address gender in the TPNW, hearing expert presentations about how gender-sensitive guidelines and gender perspectives have been integrated into other treaty body victim assistance initiatives. Mary Olson, founder of the Gender and Radiation Impact Project, presented about the gendered harm of ionizing radiation, explaining that for every two boys who would develop cancer in their lifetime after radiation exposure, four girls would. Erin Hunt, co-director of Mines Action Canada, explained the evolution of a gender-sensitive approach to provisions under the Mine Ban Treaty and the Cluster Munitions Convention and provided examples of guidelines developed for implementation of a gender–sensitive approach to victim assistance. Wanda Muñoz, a consultant on victim assistance and humanitarian disarmament, spoke to provide recommendations for gender-sensitive victim assistance from the MBT, CCM and Convention on Rights of Persons with Disabilities, including employing a twin-track approach, pairing assistance with empowerment, and working towards gender-responsive budgeting. Experts addressed questions from attending states parties including about their recommendations for progress by the Second Meeting of States Parties and potential outputs.

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30 January 2023

On 30 January 2023, the Mission of Chile hosted the first meeting of the TPNW gender focal point at the UN in New York. Among other things, the gender focal point is tasked with developing guidelines for gender- and age-sensitive victim assistance in relation to the TPNW’s Article 6 provisions, as well as guidelines for integrating gender perspectives in relation to the TPNW’s Article 7 provisions on international cooperation and assistance. 

Ray Acheson of Reaching Critical Will/WILPF and Véronique Christory of the International Committee of the Red Cross were invited by the Chair to address the meeting. They presented some context for the gender components of the TPNW and the 2022 Action Plan and offered some recommendations for the intersessional period and 2MSP. A briefing paper from WILPF on this topic is forthcoming.

Several states parties in attendance indicated their support for the presentations and for pursuing work in relation to gender and the TPNW. The Chair indicated that he intends to convene virtual consultations with states parties and civil society during the intersessional period to get inputs to further work on these issues. There was also some discussion of how those interested in the gender focal point work can collaborate with the Article 6 and 7 working group, given the overlaps with the mandate of the focal point to develop age- and gender-sensitive guidelines in that respect.

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