IFOR Women Peacemakers Programme (IFOR WPP), The Netherlands
Founded in 1919, the International Fellowship of Reconciliation (IFOR) is a 90-year-old international and interfaith peace movement of socially engaged citizens who commit themselves to active nonviolence as a way of life and as a means of transformation: personal, social, economic and political.
Since 1997, IFOR’s Women Peacemakers Program (IFOR/WPP) has actively worked for the empowerment of women peace activists and the integration of a gender perspective in peacebuilding. Over the years, women peace activists in the WPP network indicated that two main obstacles interfered with their activism: society as a whole lacking a gender-analysis of violence, and many male activists in particular lacking gender awareness and interest in gender justice issues. To create sustainable peace, it is important for both women and men to be involved in gender-sensitive peace building.
Hence, the WPP works to support the empowerment of gender-sensitive women and men for the transformation of conflict through active nonviolence. The WPP advocates for the integration of a holistic gender perspective into peacebuilding, with particular emphasis on the importance of women’s empowerment and male involvement, supported by a feminist perspective on peace and security. Bringing the concept of masculinities into this gender focus, and how it relates to war and peace, will also contribute to increasing men’s understanding and involvement in addressing gender justice issues.
Through its activities, focusing nonviolence education and training, capacity building, networking, linking and learning and engendering peace, the WPP will focus the upcoming years on consolidating and expanding its network of women and men peace activists working as allies in peacebuilding, regionally as well as globally. The WPP will also work on the constructive role faith-based peacebuilding can play in countering religious fundamentalism and armed conflict, and the need for a gender perspective in this.
For more information, please contact: IFOR Women Peacemakers Program (IFOR/WPP); Telephone: 0031 72 512 3014; Fax: 0031 72 515 1102; Contact person: IFOR/ WPP Information Officer José de Vries; email: j.devries@ifor.org
For information on the newsletters and publications the WPP produces, please visit:
http://www.ifor.org/WPP/wppmaterials_newsletters.html
To visit our online archive with previous editions of newsletters, use the following link:
http://www.ifor.org/WPP/wppmaterials_newsletters_archive.html
The WPP produces a monthly newsletter, entitled the WPP e-opportunities, which contains information about upcoming trainings, seminars, campaigns, recently published materials, and job openings related to the issues of gender, peace and nonviolence. This newsletter is available in English.
We also produce a quarterly newsletter, entitled “Cross the Lines” which contains updates and news from the activities of WPP, WPP’s Regional Desks and from women activists in the field. It is available in English, French, German, Dutch, Russian and Spanish.
We also produce an annual publication to celebrate May 24, the International Women’s Day for Peace and Disarmament.
Direct link to the May 24 2010 package, entitled “Together for Transformation – Men, Masculinities and Peacebuilding” http://www.ifor.org/WPP/may-pack-2010_web.pdf
Direct link to the May 24 2008 package, entitled “Money for Women Peacemakers” http://www.ifor.org/WPP/may24package2008-web.pdf
Direct link to the May 24 2009 package, entitled “Voices of Peace from the Balkans and the Caucasus” http://www.ifor.org/WPP/may24pack2009_small.pdf
Direct link to the training report of the first training sessions of the Training of Trainers cycle for male peace activists we spoke about during our meeting http://www.ifor.org/WPP/Report_ToT2009_web.pdf
A publication which is the result of a one-year study, exploring the field of civilian-based peacekeeping from a gender perspective. This publication is entitled “Engendering Peace – Incorporating a Gender Perspective in Civilian Peace Teams” http://www.ifor.org/WPP/EngendPeace_publication.pdf
Website: http://www.ifor.org/WPP/index.html
