The United Nations (and Emma herself) announced today that Emma Watson is the newest Goodwill Ambassador for their UN Women organization, which is dedicated to gender equality and the empowerment of women.

Best known for her role as Hermione Granger in the ‘Harry Potter’ film series, the accomplished actress, humanitarian, and recent graduate of Ivy League institution, Brown University, will dedicate her efforts as UN Women Goodwill Ambassador towards the empowerment of young women and will serve as an advocate for UN Women’s HeForShe campaign in promoting gender equality.

“We are thrilled and honored to work with Emma, whom we believe embodies the values of UN Women,” stated Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, Under-Secretary-General and Executive Director, UN Women. “The engagement of young people is critical for the advancement of gender equality in the 21st century, and I am convinced that Emma’s intellect and passion will enable UN Women’s messages to reach the hearts and minds of young people globally,” added Ms. Mlambo-Ngcuka.

Ms. Watson has been involved in the promotion of girls’ education for several years, and previously visited Bangladesh and Zambia as part of her humanitarian efforts.

“Being asked to serve as UN Women’s Goodwill Ambassador is truly humbling. The chance to make a real difference is not an opportunity that everyone is given and is one I have no intention of taking lightly. Women’s rights are something so inextricably linked with who I am, so deeply personal and rooted in my life that I can’t imagine an opportunity more exciting. I still have so much to learn, but as I progress I hope to bring more of my individual knowledge, experience and awareness to this role,” said Ms. Watson.

Emma Watson was a guest on last night’s The Late Show with David Letterman and we have a full video of the interview thanks to a Youtuber. Watch the interview where Emma talks about Noah, Quidditch and more with Dave.

In a new interview with Reuters, Emma discusses Noah which hits theatres in the US this Friday. The interview may be read below:

“Noah” marks your return to large-scale spectacle films, do you approach your role any differently than you did while making the “Harry Potter” series?
I remember being on set and Darren was saying, “Okay, the water is going to be cold, we’re probably going to be here for a full day, try and conserve your energy between takes, like keep warm and make sure you eat properly. This is going to be physically very demanding.” For a minute I felt very intimidated and then there’s something about having done those “Harry Potter” films and they were very physical. We did a lot of stuff in Scotland. It was freezing cold, filming at four in the morning, working crazy hours.

It’s kind of comforting in a way to know that in some senses, nothing will be as hard as that again, and I’m pretty prepared for most things people can throw at me, whether it be animals, water, stunts, CGI (computer-generated imagery), whatever it is. It was a very good school in a way and set me up very well for this kind of environment and this kind of pressure.

Did you do any reading on your character of Ila outside of the script?
I actually didn’t do a lot of reading, but I did a lot a research because I become a mother in the story, and obviously have never given birth myself. That required quite a lot of careful thinking. Darren and I had this conversation where we both agreed that in so many films, women give birth and it looks like they’re barely breaking a sweat. We wanted it to feel very raw, very real and so I took it pretty seriously.

Did you talk to anybody about what it’s like to give birth?
Any pregnant woman anywhere, I’d be like, “Can I talk to you? Can I talk to you about your experience?” I spoke to my own mother a lot, obviously, and then I watched a lot of YouTube videos of natural births, lots of documentaries, spoke to midwives, just any information I could get my hands on, really.

Ila is unable to conceive initially, but then is made fertile by a miracle. Was there anything in particular you tried to emphasize of her psyche?
I guess just her self-doubt. … Ila is barren, she can’t have children, and she doesn’t want to deprive her future husband of being able to have kids and to have a family. There’s this real wrestling match within her. She’s so in love with him and she kind of sacrifices her own happiness for his, and that struggle and self-doubt felt very relatable to me.

What attracted you to the role in the first place?
I was a huge fan of Darren’s films. I loved “Requiem for a Dream.” “The Fountain” is one of my favorite movies of all-time, “The Wrestler,” “Black Swan.” So, you know, even before you read the script, you’re intrigued because his work speaks for itself, really.

And then having read the script, I loved my role. She’s got such a huge heart. She’s very wise, very relatable, and then you hear about the cast, it’s like Russell Crowe and Sir Anthony Hopkins and Jennifer Connelly and Ray Winstone. And you realize that it’s the opportunity to work with people who really are at the top of their game.

Emma Watson was a guest on Ellen today to discuss her newest film, Noah, which will be released in theatres on March 28th. In the interview she discusses the Oscars, graduating from Brown, and writing a journal to help her remember all her experiences.

In a new interview with MTV UK, Emma Watson discusses how she stayed grounded while growing up and her impending graduation. For those of you who enjoy fashion, Emma is wearing a Stella McCartney dress in the interview which can be watched here.

“I’m very excited to graduate,” she said. “I’ll be having a hell of a party! It’ll just be a relief, I think, because I’ve been juggling so much and it’ll just be really nice to be able to just focus on one thing.”

“I’ve been so fortunate in the people that I’ve had around me and I honestly think that makes or breaks a child that works in this industry,” Emma said in an interview. “You have to have people that truly care about that child’s best interests. It can be a very corrupt environment for a young person,” she added.

Emma Watson is the cover star on ELLE US’s April 2014 issue. The magazine has posted a preview of the interview as well as some photos. The issue will hit newsstands on March 25th and should be arriving for subscribers soon.

Emma Watson on the importance of having a life outside of her acting career: “I remember reading this thing that Elizabeth Taylor wrote. She had her first kiss in character. On a movie set. It really struck me. I don’t know how or why, but I had this sense that if I wasn’t really careful, that could be me. That my first kiss could be in somebody else’s clothes. And my experiences could all belong to someone else.”

On Noah, Darren Aronofsky’s $125 million dollar blockbuster, and what it was like playing Noah’s adopted daughter, Ila: “It’s Shakesperean, what happens to this family when they’re put in this confined space for 40 days and 40 nights. It’s the end of the world – how these different human beings are dealing with the impact of that. Are humans good? Are we bad? All of these themes are epic.”

Darren Aronofsky on Emma’s steely nerve while filming Noah: “We started off with one of Emma’s hardest scenes. We shot in Iceland on a beach with an extremely difficult weather situation. The force of the wind – we could barely hear the actors. The sun kept coming in and out. We had to wait for the right light, then, Go, go, go! Then, Wait, wait, wait! She was able to block out all those ridiculous external forces and just focus on the emotion at hand.”

Emma Watson on coming of age in the public eye: “There are all these actresses who have emerged in the last year or two, and they get to emerge as this complete human being. And I’m so jealous!”