WUNRN
Direct Link to Full 60-Page Report:
|
|
|
|
|
”Creating Safer Communities for
Marginalized Women and Everyone”
was a project funded by
Status of Women Canada and implemented by
Women in Cities
International (WICI) over a three-year period (2007 –
2010). The project was
implemented locally in four Canadian cities by
community-based
organizations. Each organization worked with a target
group: Aboriginal women,
elderly women, women with disabilities, and
immigrant and visible
minority women. This project aimed to build
partnerships between
local organizations working with groups of women
whose views are often
marginalized and their municipalities. Partnerships
were formed through the
joint implementation of safety approaches to
create communities that
are more considerate of and responsive to the
needs of women and girls.
Women in each of the
cities took part in a 14-hour intensive training
session led by an expert
consultant on the development and execution
of women’s safety audits
(WSA). As the various phases of the WSA were
implemented, WICI
provided more targeted training to the groups on
such topics as organizing
press conferences, building local partnerships,
and presenting their
recommendations.
The four groups then
implemented three women’s safety audits walks in
their respective cities
and worked to raise awareness about the project
and about the use of
safety approaches for women-led community
improvements. Specific
complementary activities included the organiza -
tion of workshops with
women, press conferences, meetings with local
stakeholders, poster
campaigns, and community forums. The groups were
also given the
opportunity to meet with one another at least once a year.
The peer learning allowed
the women to exchange ideas and to be
inspired by the
experiences of the others. This was particularly important
when discussing the
challenges the various groups have faced and how
they had worked to overcome
them. Knowing that the project is pan-
Canadian and that they
are not alone always helped to reinvigorate the
process and instill a
sense of resolve among participants.