{{Multiple issues|wikify=September 2009|self-published = September 2009}} Women Without Borders (WwB), is an international advocacy, research and lobbying organization for women around the globe.[1] This Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) is based in Vienna, Austria.
Dr. Edit Schlaffer founded WwB in 2002 with the goal of empowering women as agents of change. As an international network, Women without Borders provides a platform to women of substance—from high-ranking officials to grass roots heroines—where their voices can be heard and their concerns made public. Women without Borders encourages women to become active participants in their communities in order to help shape their present and their future. The NGO conducts pilot projects around the world to gather research on effective methods of including women and to measure their impact on politics and civil society.
Projects and Activities
editWomen without Borders has conducted a variety of projects in countries of crisis and transition. In the wake of the December 2004 tsunami in Southeast Asia, Women without Borders set up women’s cooperatives in Kokilimedu and Venpurusam, two villages outside of Chennai in Southeast India. They then expanded the scope of their work to provide empowerment and entrepreneurship workshops for 500 local women, offered a pilot swim training program for women who lived in the tsunami-affected region, and organized an anti-domestic violence “Peace Starts at Home” campaign for men in Chennai and Delhi. Women without Borders documented their work in short films, “Life Beyond Tsunami” and “Different Strokes.” In Afghanistan, Women without Borders set up a women’s shelter in Zaranj (Nimruz Province) to provide local women with computer, English, and health courses, and created the Our Country My Role handbook to prepare Afghani women for the 2004 Afghan elections. Women without Borders developed a training handbook for youth workshops in Iraq using theater techniques and unique exercises. Step by Step into the Future was designed in 2005 to strengthen Iraqi youths’ identity and to give them courage in their fragile society. Women without Borders created Girls’ Parliaments in Latin America, Turkey, Cyprus, Austria, and Rwanda to establish and maintain a process of political education for young women focusing on democracy, participation, civil society and gender training. With funding from the Austrian Science Fund, Women without Borders conducted the “Bridging the Gap” study in Saudi Arabia to determine the young generation’s hopes and dreams. Women without Borders then used the study’s findings to develop “This is me!” workshops for female Saudi students to build their self-confidence and to provide them with self-presentation skills. In summer 2008, the Women without Borders team traveled to Zanzibar to lead “Teamshaping” workshops with university students, to lead health empowerment workshops in conjunction with swim training for local women, and to conduct research on the state of women, health, the environment, and tourism in Zanzibar. Women without Borders worked with German and local film teams to document their work in the short film “Island of Change.” Women without Borders also conducts studies in Austria: in “Learning to Live Together,” Women without Borders documented the daily realities of Austrian students aged 14–18 with migratory Muslim backgrounds to investigate the prejudices they face as well as systematic deficits. In the current “Fair Share” study, Women without Borders is researching how Austrian men and women deal with combining work and family.
Sports for Development and Peace
editWomen without Borders believes that sports are a powerful tool for empowering women in situations of crisis and transition. Through past projects, they have determined that sports give women access to new networks and aid in developing a group identity. Women without Borders has conducted several sports-oriented projects, including: Basketball for girls in two schools in Kabul, Afghanistan. Kicking for Reconciliation! in Kigali, Rwanda - used football as a tool to bring together Hutu and Tutsi girls to overcome trauma, hate and resentment. Women swimming into the Future! in southeast India– promoted and strengthened women in the tsunami-affected region of southeast India. The Island of Change! in Zanzibar – swimming and lifeguard training for women in Zanzibar. Women without Borders also organizes international platforms for dialogue on a regular basis. Under the motto Women Included!, Women without Borders invited 18 women from Iraq, Afghanistan, Iran, South Africa, Israel, Palestine and Senegal to the first WwB conference in 2003. Subsequent conferences featured Shirin Ebadi, the Iranian lawyer and Nobel Peace Prize laureate; Rwandese, Afghan and Iraqi parliamentarians; Indian grassroots heroines; Muslims from Malasyia to the USA; and victims, survivors and targets of violent extremism as well as peace experts.
SAVE campaign
editIn 2008, WwB launched SAVE (Sisters Against Violent Extremism), the first women’s counter terrorism platform. SAVE seeks to include women in the process of combating all forms of violent extremism by engaging in dialogue, conducting practical campaigns, and stressing the need for a global shift toward inclusive security. SAVE’s stated agenda is to create a culture of peace in a climate of fear. SAVE campaigns include Schools Against Violent Extremism, Students Against Violent Extremism, and Mothers Say No to Terrorism! The SAVE kick–off took place from November 28-December 1, 2008, at Palais Schönburg. Women without Borders invited 33 survivors of terrorist attacks, relatives of victims and terrorists, activists, and policy makers from diverse religious, political, and ethnic backgrounds to Vienna to discuss their experiences, strategize methods to combat violent extremism, and to create the SAVE declaration.[1]
Women without Borders has produced several short films on SAVE members’ experiences: "Journeys Through Darkness",[2] "Surviving terror",[3] "Not in Our Name" and "Schools Against Violent Extremism".[4]
References
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