The two year Baikal Women's Leadership Program was funded by the US State Departments' Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. Over 500 women participated in the workshops and trainings over the duration of the program. These activities provided the women with the skills and resources needed to become more effective change agents in their communities. The enhancement of women's resource and training centers in both Irkutsk and Ulan-Ude, along with bringing the seminars to outlying, remote regions of Baikal, were important components in the success of the program.

An American Trainer-In-Residence traveled to the Baikal area each year to give a series of workshops on Women's Leadership. The graduates of these seminars then became trainers themselves, equipped with the skills and methods to independently train other individuals in the area. Many of these new trainers conducted their workshops in schools throughout the regions and helped bring their knowledge to a new generation of women.

A publication entitled "The Road to Leadership" was produced, containing many of the lessons from the trainings. Other activities included monthly radio programs, computer skills tutorials, web-site development training, coalition building sessions led by the Trainer-In-Residence and a final conference. The sustainability of this program has been upheld through the ongoing contacts and relationships formed through program activity.