Gill Hicks lost both her legs in the London bombings on July 7, 2005. Yesterday she walked into London having completed a 200 mile walk that began in Leeds on 19 July as part of the Walk Talk initiative that she began with her husband Joe Kerr. The aim of Walk Talk is to 'offer a wide variety of people of all ages – representing a broad spectrum of opinions and ideas – new opportunities to meet, walk and talk with each other about matters of belief and conscience, especially those that are most challenging and divisive.' People were invited to join sections of the walk, and it is hoped that dialogue will continue in each of the communities that the walk passed through, creating a chain of human connections between Leeds and London.

Many young women think sport is unfeminine and they would rather be thin than fit, something I blogged about a few months ago. So the Olympics may be a great opportunity to inspire them to view sport in a different light, particularly as there will be lots of female role models achieving amazing things.

Debbie Flood is aiming for gold in the women's quad rowing race. She is a committted Christian and is interviewed in today's Guardian:

"My faith is really important to me. I look back on my life and see that I have been put in these places which appear to be random, but as I see it I have found something that I am really good at and God has put me here as a witness for him. He has got my life in his hands and this is where he is taking me," she said.

Ann Pettifor

Christianity magazine has an article this month on 'Life after Joel' as Joel Edwards leaves the Evangelical Alliance. It wonders who will take over from him, and although the article agrees that the post could potentially be held by a woman, it assumes, probably accurately, that Joel's succesor will be male.

The article suggests a list of attributes of the ideal candidate:

• The preaching ability of a Steve Gaukroger or a Steve Brady
• The theological nous of a David Hilbourne or an Elaine Storkey
• The broad appeal of a Hugh Osgood or a Rob Parsons
• The grasp of the younger generation of a Krish Kandiah or a Pete Greig
• The networking skills of a Lyndon Bowring or a Russ Rook
• The strategic focus of a Steve Chalke or a Terry Virgo.

Well hooray for Elaine, who is clearly the only woman in Christendom that is worth emulating; let's hope she's not still the only woman that people have heard of. But it made me wonder who are the women who have been left out of that list. Who are the women leaders, entrepreneurs and activists that have the qualities that any leader, male or female, of an organisation or business would be pleased to have? I came up with the following.

• The grit, determination and vision of Ann Pettifor, driving force behind Jubilee 2000 and now executive director of Advocacy International
• The leadership wisdom and experience of Jill Garrett, director of leadership development at Caret
• The networking ability of Ann Holt, OBE, director of programme for the Bible Society
• The grasp of the younger generation of Jill Rowe, Oasis community and church development director, or Rachel Gardner, creative director of Romance Academy
• The passion, preaching abiity and practice of Danielle Strickland, Salvation Army captain
• The creativity and diplomacy of Beki Bateson, director of Greenbelt

Who would you add?

One of the aims of Sophia is to increase the visibility of women in youth work, and I hope other areas of life and ministry. That's not about superficial things like profile or platform or, God forbid, fame - but about making people aware of the excellent work, the inspiring qualities, the amazing talents that Christian women are using in all areas of life so that lists like these never again lack readily available examples of women to aspire to and none of us are left hunting in the dark for role models. I think we should be talking about these women, learning their names and what they do, being inspired by them and following in their footsteps.

Last week the body of Pauline Campbell was discovered close to her daughter's grave in Oakhills cemetery in Cheshire. Sarah, Pauline's only daughter, died of a drug overdose in Styal prison shortly after being admitted for non-violent manslaughter. She was 18.

Pauline became a determined campaigner against the deaths of women in custody. She highlighted the vulnerability of many women in the prison system who suffer from mental health issues and who arguably need help instead of punishment. Since her daughter died, every time another woman died in custody she would stage a demonstration outside the prison gates. She was arrested 15 times over the years. You can read a tribute to her here. There seems to be no news on the cause of her death.

Jen Lemen is a writer and artist living in Silver Spring, Maryland. I read her blog regularly and love the way she writes from the heart about connecting with people, overcoming blocks to creativity and pursuing your dreams. Over the last month she has told the story of an upcoming trip to Rwanda, where she will visit Grace and Lillian, the daughters of her friend Odette. Odette is in the US hoping that her daughters will be able to join her at some point, but unable to go and visit them herself. When Odette was seven, living in a refugee camp in Rwanda, she and her brother Innocent set up a microfinance project keeping chickens and selling the eggs to fund some of their friends through school.

I went to the Brilliant Women exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery today. It 'explores the impact of the original 'Bluestocking Circle', a group of celebrated women writers, artists and thinkers who forged new links between gender, learning and virtue in eighteenth-century Britain. These women were not just brilliant, they were exceptional, both for their individual accomplishments and for breaking the boundaries of what women could be expected to undertake or achieve.' The group also included a number of men who were willing to engage with the debate. Some of the names were familiar - like Hannah More and Mary Wollstonecraft - but most were new to me. You can read more about it online.

Yesterday I was at CMS in Oxford for a meeting and we met in the Li Tim-Oi room. I'd never heard of her either but Li Tim-Oi was the first woman to be ordained in the Anglican Church in January 1944.

Christmas is a great time of year for list-lovers. Not only can you make lists of presents to buy and cards to send, but as it's December it's also time to review the best of the year gone by. The Guardian today lists its Women of 2007, opening with 'While the media focused on Paris and Britney, a host of women were changing the world with their courage and ingenuity.'

Tomorrow sees the start of the third annual Be the Change conference in London. It aims to provide delegates with ideas about what they might do to combat the pressing issues of our times, in particular global warming. This year’s conference celebrates the launch of a book telling the stories of 28 of the most inspiring individuals connected to Be The Change, 12 of whom are featured in today’s Independent.

When Rebecca Hosking saw the devastating effect of plastic bags on marine life in Hawaii for a BBC documentary that she was filming, she was determined to do something about it. Back at home in Modbury, Devon, she suggested in the pub one evening that the town should become a plastic-bag-free zone. Six months later, it has happened and carrying a plastic bag in Modbury is now seen as anti-social behaviour. At least 50 towns and cities are following suit, with Mull, Arran and Guernsey all racing to become the first plastic bag-free island in the world.