Established in 2015 as a hub of knowledge and ideas to advance gender equity, the Center for Gender and Development Studies (CGDS) at the American University of Iraq, Sulaimani (AUIS) integrates teaching, research, and community development. We aim to ensure that academic initiatives lead to normative change and improved gender relations, with the ultimate goal of gender equity. As a vector of social change in Iraq, Kurdistan and the MENA region, we seek to support women in their struggle to regain the voice and agency that belongs to them and to support women and men working together to achieve a healthy society. In 2017, CGDS launched the first gender studies minor in Iraq.