Good evening, ladies and gentlemen, and for those of you I haven’t already welcomed, welcome to Copenhagen!

It is an honour to host all of you here in Denmark’s capital city for the fourth Women Deliver Conference. And to be with you this evening, in the presence of so many distinguished guests to celebrate the International Center for Research on Women’s 2016 Champions for Change, is also an honour.

As I understand, these are not the first awards to be conferred this year; as recently as March, the Embassy of Denmark to the United States had the pleasure of hosting ICRW in presenting U.S. Supreme Court Justice, Ruth Bader Ginsburg with the Champions for Change Award for Vision.

Denmark is pleased to support and partner with an organization like ICRW, which pursues truth with such passion and ensures that facts and figures are creating powerful solutions and change for women and girls around the world.

In this, ICRW’s 40th anniversary year, I want to acknowledge the pioneering research that ICRW has done for four decades, transforming the lives of women and girls and building a more gender equitable world through evidence-based advocacy.

My warm appreciation to Sarah Kambou and to Søren Elbech for your opening remarks; this is my second Champions for Change awards reception and I remain grateful to Søren for first introducing me to Sarah and to ICRW, an organization that aligns so closely with my personal beliefs, the mission of my foundation and the commitments of Denmark to work for gender equality and poverty alleviation.

Gender equality is the foundation for supporting healthy individuals, fostering prosperous communities and building sustainable societies. In Denmark, gender equality is deeply embedded in our culture and I am very proud that Denmark has been recognized as a world leader in supporting policies and programs that empower women and eliminate gender disparities.

Last year’s adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals by the international community was a remarkable milestone. The new development agenda recognises that women and girls must be positioned where they belong, front and center of development efforts, and no longer on the periphery.

These “global goals” direct countries to achieve – rather than simply promote – gender equality and women and girls’ empowerment by 2030.  Achieving this is seen as fundamental to achieving a host of other global priorities, including tackling poverty, ensuring healthy lives and increasing and achieving prosperity and stability.

I have said it before and I will say it again: gender equality is the single most important thing that can be done to improve the world. I am so inspired by ICRW’s initiatives and by the work that people in this room have done to ensure a more equitable world - the thousands of people from around the world who have gathered here, to be a part of Women Deliver, have done so in a strong show of commitment to building a sustainable future for all.

There is a special atmosphere in Copenhagen tonight and for one very special reason: the incredible convening power of Women Deliver, and Jill Sheffield.

We are all here because Women Deliver’s Founder and President Jill Sheffield has brought global influencers, policymakers, researchers, journalists, activists, civil society and private sector leaders together in one place to demonstrate that when the world invests in women and girls, everybody wins.

For more than three decades, Jill has promoted women’s sexual and reproductive health and rights around the world. She has been a strong, imaginative and energetic leader of the global women’s movement. First as a teacher, then as an advocate for maternal health, as the co-founder of Family Care International and finally as founder of Women Deliver, Jill has made her mark and truly made a difference.

Through the Women Deliver platform, Jill has helped to drive the women’s movement forward through the intersection of advocacy and activism, galvanizing global attention to Millennium Development Goal 5 on improving maternal health through Women Deliver’s first conference in London in 2007.

It is exceptionally fitting that Jill is being recognized by ICRW for her enduring dedication to women’s reproductive rights and her lasting contributions to the improvement of maternal health across the world.

I am proud to preside over the Women Deliver proceedings this week and on behalf of the International Center for Research on Women, am honored to present the 2016 Champions for Change Lifetime Achievement Award to Jill Sheffield.

Our second awardee this evening, Melinda Gates, has transformed how resources can be leveraged to improve lives and create real change for people around the globe.

As co-chair and trustee of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, her philanthropy and unparalleled investments in human progress have inspired countless others to invest in the global good and to support equality between all people. I know that we all share Melinda’s belief that gender equality is the foundation of meaningful, lasting change.

Melinda has shown the world, time and again, that she not only believes investing in women and girls is the right thing, the smart thing to do, but that she knows it can be done.

She has seen firsthand how programs that empower women and girls improve the health and prosperity of people and communities. From programs that aim to improve access to reproductive health, to programs designed to empower girls to dream for a brighter future, she sees, and is a champion for, these important efforts to spur change at the local level.

Melinda is committed to ensuring the new global development goals are truly sustainable by guaranteeing lasting investments in women and girls. She is being honored by ICRW for her unwavering commitment to ensuring that every person has the opportunity to live a healthy, productive life, and for her leadership in galvanizing global momentum towards the empowerment of women and girls around the world.

On behalf of the International Center for Research on Women, it is my honor to present the 2016 Champions for Change Award for Leadership to Melinda Gates.