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WOMEN'S HUMAN RIGHTS: BUILDING A PEACEFUL WORLD IN AN ERA OF GLOBALIZATION
An International Human Rights Education Institute (flyer)
May 22 to June 29, 2007

Part One: May 22-June 8, 2007
Women’s Human Rights Education in the Age of the Market: Challenges and Visions

Part Two: June 11-29, 2007
Women’s Human Rights Education: Instruments and Activism

• Six-week Institute: Two three-week sessions which can be taken separately.
• Participation in the full Institute is highly recommended. Preference will be given to applications for the full six weeks.
• Classes will normally be held from 10 am to 6 pm five days a week, with some periods for private study. Unless otherwise specified, Alda Facio with Mónica Muñoz-Vargas will lead the sessions.

Director: Alda Facio
with Peggy Antrobus, Angela Miles and Monica Muñoz

The Institute brings feminist perspectives and an activist orientation to the inextricably related issues of peace, human rights and life-sustaining development. Participants will gain an understanding of the global economic, ecological, legal, cultural and political contexts of this work, as well as of the groundbreaking work that is currently being done and has been done over decades by women and men around the world.

Important milestones such as the U.N. Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, the African Protocol on Women’s Rights, the Inter-American Convention on the Prevention, Punishment and Eradication of Violence Against Women, Security Council Resolution 1325, the Beijing Platform for Action, and Women’s Action Agenda 21, will be featured. Women’s historical struggles for their adoption, their potential as resources for social change, and effective ways of using them as tools for education and practice will be explored.

PURPOSE
In today’s environment of rising fundamentalism, disregard for human rights, ecological and economic devastation, and the aggressive use of force we are faced with major challenges in practice. There is an urgent need for broad transformative approaches, supported by increasing clarity of analysis and vision and effective practical skills. Participants will learn how to deliver Human Rights education and to work for women's human rights in their own country, with an increased awareness of varied international strategies and exposure to diverse local and national contexts.

The Institute’s goal is to raise awareness of the human rights standards set by the U.N. with the objective that foreign as well as Canadian participants will be able to engage in human rights education themselves. The need for human rights education at all levels and for all ages was understood by the international community when the U.N. declared a Decade For Human Rights Education. This was a response to the discovery that although most countries have committed themselves to upholding human rights and have ratified many of the U.N. human rights instruments, most people, especially women, are unaware of their existence. Although the decade ended in 2004, the need continues because in many countries very little progress was made during the decade.

The UN Security Council Resolution 1325 passed in October 2000 affirms the principles that women should be involved in peacebuilding processes at all levels and that the rights of women and girls need to be respected in times of war and conflict. However, without women's organizations and peace groups around the world holding UN member states and the international system responsible for the commitments they have made, these are not likely to be implemented. Unless and until most of the inhabitants of each country are aware of their rights and responsibilities, democracy, peace and justice will continue to be unattainable.

Vernor Munoz Villalobos, Special Rapporteur on the Right to Education, UN Commission on Human Rights, Letter of Recommendation.

WHO SHOULD DO IT?
Participants should have an interest in and openness to feminist approaches and respect for their variety, a commitment to social change, and a desire for dialogue with others with different experiences and approaches.

Anyone involved in humane governance, human security, peacekeeping, conflict transformation, constitution building, poverty eradication, personal transformation, sustainable development, crime prevention, eradicating violence, sexual and reproductive health will gain insights about these issues through learning about human rights as a way of being in this world and in their communities, and as a legal and ethical framework to guide them into the future. Participants will learn about peace as a comprehensive, multifaceted concept aimed at not only ending the direct violence of war and armed conflict but also of creating the conditions for a just and sustainable world.

We encourage a wide variety of participants, including teachers and educators, union representatives, practitioners, policy-makers, movement activists, development workers, government workers and staff, and students. The Program will serve those interested in learning how to develop their projects within a human rights framework, those wishing to strengthen their practice and develop their theoretical and conceptual understanding of human rights and peacebuilding and those interested in human rights education within both school and community settings.

Participants taking part in the Institute will have the opportunity to:
• gain a deeper knowledge of gender and feminist analysis and theory
• engage in research/scholarship connected to and informed by practice
• gain increased understanding of the causes of injustice and possibilities for change
• learn about the U.N. Human Rights system and how it works
• increase their skills in community practice, political lobbying, and international networking and organizing
• increase their ability to use Human Rights education as a tool for social change
• develop their own perspectives by examining diverse approaches and current debates and addressing tough questions of practice


PROGRAMME
The Institute, while rich in theory and scholarly information, will be characterized by committed, engaged activism, rather than a purely academic stance. There will be an integration of theory and practice; reflection and action; and critique and vision. Human rights, peace, and emerging alternatives to globalization will be examined both as interconnected elements of a socially just and sustainable world and as alternative ways of knowing, acting, being, and interacting. This will be reflected in the teaching principles and methodology; the institute will aim to create a safe, supportive, cooperative and celebratory space that honours differences, affirms women's strengths, values individual and collective experience and draws on and contributes directly to practice.

All instructors have extensive activist experience at local, national and international levels and are known for their theoretical, academic and policy contributions in these areas. To maximize each individual’s learning opportunity, the number of participants is limited to twenty and will come from all regions of the world.

COURSE THEMES

Students will receive a Certificate of Completion for full participation in the Institute. Those who wish to apply their work toward academic credit in other programs will be supported to do this.

ASSOCIATED RESOURCES
WHRNet (Women's Human Rights Net) provides reliable, comprehensive, and timely information and analyses on women's human rights in English, Spanish and French, as well as: an introduction to women's human rights issues worldwide; an overview of UN/Regional Human Rights Systems; a Research Tool that serves as gateway to the best available online resources relevant to Women's human rights advocacy; and a comprehensive collection of related Links.
The Women's Human Rights Resources is a project of the Bora Laskin Law Library at the University of Toronto, Faculty of Law. The main goal of the Women's Human Rights Resources site is to provide online information to assist individuals and organizations in using international women's human rights law to promote women's rights.

TESTIMONIES from 2005 participants:
"At my current position in the International Centre for Ethnic Studies, an NGO in Sri Lanka, I utilize much of the knowledge gained through the course.  For example, in researching the criminal justice systems of the countries of South Asia, I have been enriched by my knowledge of international human rights instruments and standards gleaned through the course.  These instruments, such as the Convention for the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women, form an international standard by which I have analyzed the justice systems of these countries.  Also, I have been able to look at the human rights regime in Sri Lanka through a gendered lens gained through the instruction of Alda Facio. This gendered perspective will be useful in my later work in law school as well." -Bernadette Maheandiran

"As for the info I acquired during the last session, the one that I put to use immediately was the Human Rights component. I have done a visual presentation for our member agencies on CEDAW and it applicability to Canadian NGOs. There were 19 individuals present from a variety of agencies that serve survivors of sexual violence. It was well received and what amazed me was the lack of knowledge around CEDAW and international processes in place." -Kiruthiha Kulendiren

"I am working on the linkages between climate change, adaptation and vulnerability and gender. I've got very valuable inputs regarding human rights and women's rights... Because the convention on climate change is based under the UN framework, the lectures around UN and Women and possibly entry points were very useful." -Livia Bizikova

FACULTY
DIRECTOR Alda Facio is a feminist human rights activist, jurist and writer. In September 1996, she was awarded the first Women’s Human Rights Award from International Women, Law and Development in Washington D.C. As one of the founders of the Women’s Caucus for Gender Justice in the International Criminal Court, she was its first Director. Since 1990, she has been the Director of the Women, Gender and Justice Program at the United Nations Latin American Institute for Crime Prevention (ILANUD) based in Costa Rica.

She was very involved in all the activities around the World Conference on Human Rights in Vienna and the IV World Conference on Women and has participated in many U.N. meetings as an expert on gender and human rights., She was one of the final candidates for Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Women in 1994 and was an official candidate to the CEDAW Committee. Alda is also now a member of the Advisory Committee for the UN Secretary General's Study on Violence Against Women.

She has written hundreds of articles on feminist issues and women's human rights published in various books, law reviews, newspapers and magazines, including FEMPRESS (a feminist Latin American news agency) for whom she was a correspondent for fourteen years. She has lectured extensively and been a visiting professor at universities around the world, as well as in human rights and women's organizations and law centers. In 2003 she was the 7th Dame Nita Barrow Distinguished Visitor at the University of Toronto. For the past three years she has been a professor at the U.N. University for Peace in Costa Rica. Alda Facio has also been a judge, the founder and General Director of the Costa Rican National Dance Company and for six years she was the Costa Rican Alternate Delegate to the United Nations Offices in Geneva.

Peggy Antrobus was born in Grenada and educated in Grenada, St. Lucia and St. Vincent. She holds a degree in economics, a professional certificate in social work and a doctorate in Education. She has worked with government and NGO programmes in St. Vincent, Jamaica and Barbados.

Since 1974, when she was appointed as Advisor on Women's Affairs to the government of Jamaica, she has worked in the field of Women in Development. In 1987 she set up the Women and Development Unit (WAND) within the School of Continuing Studies of UWI and was it's head until her retirement in 1995. She was a founding member of CAFRA (the Caribbean Association for Feminist Research and Action) and of the network of Third World women promoting Development Alternatives with Women for a New Era (DAWN), of which she was General Coordinator from 1991 - 1996.

Over the years she has written and published extensively on a wide range of topics related to women's role in and perspectives on International Development and has received numerous awards for her work in this field. Her doctoral work focused on the impact of government policies on women, and the ways in which these policies reflect global trends.
She has a special interest in transformative leadership in the women's movement. She describes women who exhibit this kind of leadership as feminists with a passion for justice and a commitment to change things and change themselves. She is the author of The Global Women's Movement: Origins, Issues and Strategies (2004).

Angela Miles is Professor of Adult Education and Community Development at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education of the University of Toronto. She has been involved in the Canadian women's movement since the early nineteen seventies and is a founder member of (currently) Toronto Women for a Just and Healthy Planet and the International Feminist Network for the Gift Economy and (earlier) The Feminist Party of Canada and the Antigonish Women's Association in Nova Scotia and is a member of the editorial board of Canadian Woman Studies. Her main research interest and passionate commitment is the theory and practice of feminism as an increasingly global and women centred politics, especially feminism’s central significance for transformative social change and its relationship to other social movements in the current period of neo-liberal globalization. Her publications include co-edited collections of writing on the Canadian women's movement, Feminism: From Pressure to Politics (1989), and the global feminist movement, Feminist Politics, Activism and Vision: Local and Global Challenges (2004), monographs on North American feminism, Feminist Radicalism in the 80s (1985), and the global feminist movement, Integrative Feminisms: Building Global Visions (1996).

Mònica Muñoz-Vargas is an expert in gender and women’s human rights. Feminist and sociologist, she studied in Chile (BA), in Brazil (Ma.) and in England (PhD). From 1985 until 1989 she worked for UNICEF as the Women’s Programme Coordinator for Central America, Panama and Belize. In 1990 she moved to Brazil, also working for UNICEF. From 1994 to 2003 she worked in UNIFEM as the Regional Programme Director for the Andean Region (1994-1999), Regional Programme Director for Brazil and the South Cone (2003-2004) and Chief for the Latin America and Caribbean Section (2000-2003). In 1999 she received the UN award for her leadership in the Latin American and Caribbean United Nation campaign "A Life Free of Violence is our Right" and the award of Woman of the Year 2000 offered by GEMS Television for her participation in the defense of women’s human rights in Latin America and the Caribbean. Currently she is an international consultant.

LOCATION
INSTITUTIONAL SETTING
The host of the Summer Institute is the Centre for Women's Studies in Education (CWSE) at the Ontario Institute for the Studies in Education at the University of Toronto (OISE/UT). CWSE is a research centre established in 1983, which generates and acts as a clearing house for research around the world, and coordinates a program for international Visiting Scholars. Centre activities include the international journal Resources for Feminist Research and the Dame Nita Barrow Distinguished Visitorship which brings a renowned feminist leader from the economic south to OISE/UT to teach a graduate course each Fall term.

The Ontario Institute for Studies in Education of the University of Toronto (OISE/UT) is a graduate and research institute with a diverse student population, and significant student interest and a strong international reputation in the areas of feminist and community studies. Among the many resources available are excellent libraries, including the Bora Laskin Law Library’s Women’s Human Rights Resources and OISE/UT’s Women's Education Resource Collection with strong historical links to the women’s movement and noteworthy archival holdings of movement documents from countries around the world as well as a broad based international collection of books and periodicals.

TORONTO
Toronto is located on the land of the Mississauga of the Credit First Nation, and derives its name from the Huron word meaning "meeting place." The United Nations has recognized Toronto as the world’s most diverse city with 190 different ethnic groups represented here. Toronto is also home to Canada’s largest gay and lesbian population. All of these communities include many women's and feminist organizations with vibrant and active links to women in other parts of Canada and other regions of the world and to international networks. The Association for Women’s Rights in Development (AWID) also makes its home in Toronto. There are many excellent bookstores within easy walking distance of OISE/UT, including the Toronto Women's Bookstore, Wonderworks, A Different BookList.

Toronto is a global city 70 miles from Niagara Falls , and hosts first-rate theatre, a lively concert scene, alternative movie houses, over 5000 restaurants, art galleries, International film festivals, writers’ festivals, spoken word performances, Pride celebrations, and much more. Despite its cosmopolitan flair the people of Toronto are friendly and the streets safe, clean and well-maintained. On any given day you can see people riding their bikes to work and tending to community gardens. Each Toronto neighbourhood has its distinct character and history, and most are easily accessed by an excellent transit/subway system. (Toronto links / Toronto maps / University of Toronto map)

APPLICATION AND TUITION
Click here for on-line application form.

Application due date for guaranteed consideration is February 15, 2007. Applications received after this date will be considered if space remains. . Please be aware that a Visa may be required and take some time to process. See Canada Citizenship Immigration website http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/visit/visas.html .

To receive an application form in Word format, or further information regarding enrollment, contact Pat Doherty, Executive Assistant, at humanrights@oise.utoronto.ca, Tel. +1(416)923-6641x2204.

TUITION

Regular One Session tuition requires that a deposit be paid by February 15, 2007 and the balance of tuition be paid in full by March 15, 2007. Tuition per 3-week session is US$2,250 / CAD$2,500. Deposit amount is US/CAD$500.

Regular Full Institute tuition requires that a deposit be paid by February 15, 2007 and the balance of tuition be paid in full by March 15, 2007. Tuition for the 6-week institute is US$4,000 / CAD$4,500. Deposit amount is US/CAD$800.

Payment must be made by bank draft or money order, in U.S. funds drawn on a U.S. bank or in Canadian funds drawn on a Canadian bank, payable to "Centre for Women's Studies in Education OISE/UT." Details on Application Form.

Accommodation: arranged and paid separately by participants. We recommend Wycliffe College. Other U of T residences may also be of interest.

The cost of attending the Spring Institute will vary, but an estimate should include tuition, medical insurance (variable), travel & visa expenses (variable), accommodations (CAD$855 and up, for six weeks at a U of T residence), and meals & incidental expenses (allow CAD$25/day). The cost of accommodation and meals will be much reduced if self-catering or staying with family and friends. The University of Toronto is centrally located so additional costs such as transportation will be minimal.

Scholarships / Funding: Click here for a list of possible funding sources compiled by CWSE. Click here for a useful list compiled by the Association for Women's Rights in Development.

CONTACT
To receive an application form or further information regarding enrollment, contact:

Pat Doherty, Executive Assistant, at humanrights@oise.utoronto.ca, Tel. +1(416)923-6641x2204.

For academic information, contact:

Alda Facio, Director at aldafa@racsa.co.cr or Angela Miles at amiles@oise.utoronto.ca, Tel +1(416)923-6641 x2344.





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