Because of my mother, it has always seemed self-evident that girls could do anything they set their minds to, as long as they were given the chance to get an education. Unfortunately, many girls in the developing world are never afforded that opportunity.

As a key player in shaping global development priorities -- priorities that include education, health care, food security, economic empowerment and ending violence against women and girls -- the United States has an important role in ending early and forced marriage worldwide.

When a young woman's needs of health and security are met, and she is equipped with the skills and insights to transcend circumstances, she gains the opportunity to realize her fullest potential.

Walking through the streets of New York I am always astonished by the diversity of what I see, smell, taste, touch, and hear. In this country of everything, the colors run wild.

Without a secondary school education, even the most modest dreams of improving one's station in life become just that: a dream.

In India, education is not a civil right but rather a privilege that young children dream and wish to be a part of.

By Jennifer Abrahamson Like typical teenagers growing up in a big city, Priya and Talat are on a regular basis exposed to tantalizing possibility and...

Once again, I recently returned to my home base in Washington, DC after spending several weeks in Ethiopia's deeply poor, yet breathtaking, Amhara region. And once again I was inspired by the sheer enthusiasm and thirst for opportunity among an often forgotten group: child brides.

A quiet revolution is taking place in Afghanistan. It is taking place in Learning Centers for women -- centers that have been requested and are supported by the community.

Women in developing countries are finally starting to dream big. At young ages, they can dream of being entrepreneurs, politicians, business owners, community leaders.

What would you do if you didn't have pads (or tampons)? Or, what would you choose not to do for fear of embarrassment?

My mind turns to Afghanistan -- a country where bombs go off and have been going off intermittently for the past 50 years. I imagine my father risking torn limbs and shards for my education. I imagine how it would feel to live in constant and pernicious fear.

Catalyst Foundation has had amazing volunteers since July 1999. We have enlisted the help of hundreds of people from around the globe -- ones that found us during a random Internet searches, families that have adopted from Vietnam, young Vietnamese American college and high school students, war veterans, teachers and friends.

Growing up in Kisumu, Kenya, life was difficult, but that did not hinder me from pursuing my goal of achieving an education. I knew that I could be of help to my community in Kisumu by working with the many children who yearned for education.

Lack of investment in girl's education shortchanges girls, their families, their communities, their country, and indeed, our world.

Today, millions of girls around the world are denied the privilege of even a basic education because they are too poor, because it is not safe, because we have not invested enough in the power of the girl.

However, statistics show if we educate girls, incredible things happen -- girls marry later, have fewer and healthier children, get jobs, provide for their families and move beyond poverty.

I do expect all humans to have the same blessings that we all have. I do believe all young girls should be given a chance at dignity. I do work tirelessly so parents are given a chance to care for their family.

In the red light area, children's access to mainstream education, health and protection services are often blocked due to stigma.

ICRW's Turning Point Campaign aims to draw attention to adolescence, when girls in particular are at a heightened risk of dropping out of school and child marriage.

Those of us who were lucky to be born in families who could take us out of Afghanistan after the Soviet occupation have a responsibility towards those who we left behind.

Far too often, global decisions about poverty and developing countries are made without accounting for the needs of women and girls. So what's the solution?

In societies such as sub-Saharan Africa where women are struggling to access their most basic right, education, a different type of "Lean In" circle is surfacing -- a camaraderie that does not play out in boardrooms, but rather in school rooms.

In the early winter of 2012, a twist of fate led me to 10x10 where I have since been tight-roping the synergistic line between media and activism. This is our Call to Action. Share the film and increase visibility.