Representation in leadership equates to representation in decision making and priority setting globally. And research shows that women’s leadership in particular can amplify the representation of other groups who are often marginalized or overlooked, including children and the poor. Unfortunately, there is a dearth of women leaders in the global health field. Recent data shows that women make up 70% of the global health workforce but hold only 25% of global health leadership roles. But if we look around our classrooms in global public health education, women are increasingly the majority of global health students; as many as 84% of undergraduate and 70% of graduate students in global health are women. Additionally, leadership training is usually reserved for senior-level individuals taking the final steps in their careers, rather than offered to emerging leaders at the start of, and throughout, their careers. A consortium of women from around the world formed working groups to conduct research and produce this special issue which focuses on the development of women’s leadership in global health. In this collection of papers, we use a peer and near-peer approach to promote diverse and intersectional perspectives and offer recommendations for substantive organizational change in global health.