"There are at present probably over one hundred million anti-personnel mines scattered over large areas on several continents," stated the Norwegian Nobel Committee. "Such mines maim and kill indiscriminately and are a major threat to the civilian populations and to the social and economic development of the many countries affected. The ICBL and Jody Williams started a process which in the space of a few years changed a ban on anti-personnel mines from a vision to a feasible reality."

Ms. Williams has overseen the growth of the ICBL to more than 1,300 NGOs in over 85 countries. She has served as the chief strategist and spokesperson for the campaign, and is now Campaign Ambassador for the ICBL, speaking on its behalf all over the world. Working in an unprecedented cooperative effort with governments, UN bodies and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), the ICBL achieved its goal of an international treaty banning anti-personnel landmines during the diplomatic conference held in Oslo in September 1997.

Ms. Williams has written and spoken extensively on the problem of landmines and the movement to ban them. For the first time, she traveled with the ICBL to Afghanistan in July 2002 to address mine clearance needs, educating the new government in Kabul on the landmine treaty, and urging their signing, which they did on July 30. She has spoken in many forums, including the United Nations, the European Parliament, and the Organization of African Unity. In recognition of her expertise on the issue, Ms. Williams was invited to serve as a technical adviser to the UN's Study on the Impact of Armed Conflict on Children, led by Ms. Graca Machel, the former first lady of Mozambique.

Ms. Williams co-authored a seminal study, After the Guns Fall Silent: The Enduring Legacy of Landmines, based on two years of field research in four mine-affected countries, detailing the socioeconomic consequences of landmine contamination. She has written articles for journals produced by the United Nations and the ICRC, among others.

Prior to beginning the ICBL, Ms. Williams worked for eleven years to build public awareness about U.S. policy toward Central America. From 1986 to 1992, she developed and directed humanitarian relief projects as the deputy director of the Los Angeles-based Medical Aid for El Salvador. From 1984 to 1986, she was co-coordinator of the Nicaragua-Honduras Education Project, leading fact-finding delegations to the region. Previously, she taught English as a Second Language (ESL) in Mexico, the United Kingdom, and Washington, D.C.

Ms. Williams has a Master's Degree in International Relations from the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (Washington, D.C., 1984), a Master's Degree in Teaching Spanish and ESL from the School for International Training (Brattleboro, Vermont, 1976), and a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Vermont (Burlington, Vermont, 1972).

Jody Williams is an eloquent and outspoken advocate for peace and human rights issues. She is one of only ten women who have received the Nobel Peace Prize and only the third woman from the U.S. to receive it. She has received honors around the world for her work, including the Distinguished Peace Leadership Award from the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation and the Fiat Lux Award from Clark University, among others. She has also been awarded honorary doctorates from Briar Cliff College, Marlboro College, the University of Vermont, and Williams College.

In his speech in 1997 regarding the award of the Nobel Peace Prize to ICBL and Jody Williams, Francis Sejersted, then chairman of the Norwegian Nobel Committee said: "There are those among us who are unswerving in their faith that things can be done to make our world a better, safer, and more humane place.... You have not only dared to tackle your task, but also proved that the impossible is possible."