Women Bridging Divides for a Secure World
Colloquium 2012
When: January 7-13, 2012
Where: Cambridge, MA
Inclusive Security hosted women leaders working to connect across ethnic, religious, or other divides for its 13th annual Colloquium. Representing coalitions supported by the Institute in Afghanistan, Israel, Pakistan, Palestine, South Sudan, and Sudan, a dozen women traveled to Cambridge, MA, for a week of teaching, speaking, and exchange at Harvard University.
Those gathered included government officials, heads of nongovernmental organizations, and community activists.
Why Are We Hosting This Event?
Throughout history, women have proven their ability to act as connectors in communities and countries torn apart by armed conflict. As leaders within their societies, women recognize the cost of continued distrust and opposition, and have mobilized efforts to cross seemingly insurmountable divisions to build peace.
Women often prioritize relationship building among representatives of diverse perspectives and identities, and facilitate information sharing between parties that otherwise would be unaware that they have mutual concerns. By building networks and consensus across deeply fractured societies, many women move beyond partisanship to identify productive compromise and advance a more effective approach to peace and security.
How Women Have Built Lasting Peace
Examples from around the world demonstrate that women are often the first to bridge divides to prevent and resolve conflict, and to rebuild communities following war.
- In Liberia, Christian and Muslim women came together to pressure warring parties to negotiate peace, an effort for which Leymah Gbowee was recently recognized by the Nobel Peace Committee.
- Women in Northern Ireland overcame religious and nationalist divisions to organize a nonsectarian political party that became a signatory to the Good Friday Agreement, ending decades of violence.
- In Pakistan, women have organized across provincial, political, and ethnic lines to address rising radicalization in the country and promote social cohesion within their communities.
Recognizing the abilities of women to find common ground through informed dialogue, develop a shared vision of sustainable peace, and build a consensus for action, The Institute for Inclusive Security supports coalitions in fragile states and conflict areas around the globe.
What Did the Women Leaders Do?
Colloquium participants shared lessons from their cross-conflict work, raised the profile of women as bridge builders and peacemakers, and increased their knowledge and skills as coalition leaders.
As part of the program, Inclusive Security documented effective models for mobilizing women across divides to formalize lessons and methods for building coalitions.
For More Information
Click here to sign up for our newsletter to learn more about this year's colloquium, future events, and the publication on effective models that will be released in January 2012.