Who we are

Reaching Critical Will (RCW) was created in 1999 to coordinate and enhance the engagement of activists and organizers in the United Nations’ work for nuclear disarmament. Since then, RCW has become a global leader in providing analysis and advocacy for disarmament and arms control across many weapon systems, working to end militarism and war and to investigate and elevate gendered aspects of weapons and of diplomatic processes from feminist, queer, and antiracist perspectives.

RCW’s staff have been steering committee members of many of the leading global disarmament campaigns and coalitions, including the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), the Internenational Network on Explosive Weapons (INEW), and Stop Killer Robots (SKR). We have been critically involved in initiatives to ban nuclear weapons, curb the global arm trade, end the use of explosive weapons in populated areas, prevent autonomous and AI weapons, and much more. 

RCW is committed to creating change by altering discourse, promoting new perspectives and approaches, and affecting policy by taking a holistic view of the challenges we face and solutions we can achieve. Our approach to disarmament is embedded in our commitment to justice, solidarity, peace, and wellbeing for all people and the planet.

Our fiscal sponsor is the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom United Nations Office in New York (WILPF UNO Inc.). WILPF is an ECOSOC-accredited organization at the United Nations.