Worldwide, women’s inequality
Most of the 350,000 women who die in childbirth each year — almost all of them in developing countries — should not do so. In addition, women around the world remain underrepresented in schools, jobs, and governments. And the situation is changing too slowly to meet international goals, according to Helen Clark, administrator for the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). Clark, who spoke Thursday at the Forum at Harvard School of Public Health, said that progress toward achieving the United Nations’ eight Millennium Development Goals is mixed. While some, such as reducing extreme poverty, may be achieved by the 2015 deadline, others, such as those involving maternal health and sanitation, remain far from being reached. Clark, who responded to questions put forth by Philip Hilts, director of the Knight Science Journalism Fellowships at MIT, delivered a progress report on the goals during the hour-long program and discussed possible next steps to lift...