In honor of the upcoming International Women’s Day (March 8th), last night the documentary film A Powerful Noise was screened simultaneously in 450 theaters nationwide. A panel discussion followed the film, and included five individuals involved in some capacity in aide work. They were Helene Gayle, President and CEO of Care; Natalie Portman, actress and activist; Nicholas Kristof, New York Times columnist and author, Christie Turlington Burns, model, businesswoman, and CARE advocate; and former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright.

The event was sponsored by CARE, an organization focused on fighting global poverty by putting women at the center of the effort to improve the quality of life for themselves, their families, and their communities.

The film profiled three women who personify the belief that, in developing nations, it is women who hold the keys to fighting poverty, improving economic circumstances, and real community activism.

Hanh contracted HIV from her husband, who got it from sharing needles. They found out they were HIV positive when the doctor tested their daughter. In Vietnam, there is a stigma attached to HIV that presents a barrier to both prevention and treatment. After the death of her daughter and her husband, Hanh started a support group that has since gone public with education and awareness.

After the war, Nada returned to Kravica, her village near Srebrenica, Bosnia and Herzegovnia. She started a women’s community organization there, dedicated to easing ethic tensions in the region through Serbian and Bosniak women working together in an economic co-op.

Madame Urbain is on a mission in Bamako, Mali. In the city, her organization helps to teach young women to read and write, to fight abuse at the hands of their employers, and to understand the value of education in fighting poverty so that these young women will make sure their daughters attend school. In the villages, Madame Urbain conducts outreach about the importance of education for girls.

These three women are a testament to the fact that, when faced with extraordinarily difficult and seemingly hopeless circumstances, women find a way through. The film and the panel discussion that followed were in no way hostile or critical toward the men of the world. But the panelists did repeatedly come back to the point that when women control their own economic means, they use that power to improve the lives of their families, which in turn strengthens their communities. Through microfinance, through public health projects, and through education, women and their daughters are leaders in the effort to make things better.

While speaking to a village gathering about the importance of education, Madame Urbaine says, “When you educate a girl, you educate a village. You educate a nation.” Wise words. To find out how you can help empower women and girls in developing nations, please visit CARE.org today.