Women in Conflict Fellowship Program 1325

The Women in Conflict Fellowship Program 1325 is based on the principles of UN Security Council Resolution 1325, which “reaffirms the important role of women in preventing and resolving conflicts and in peacebuilding”, preservation, humanitarian response and post-conflict reconstruction, and “stresses the importance of their equal contribution and their full participation in all efforts. Aimed at maintaining and strengthening peace and security.

In 2020/21, due to the implications of COVID-19, the Fellowship Program will take place remotely through use of a video conferencing platform and online resources.

Bringing together peacemakers and activists in this field from a spectrum of conflict-affected countries, the Fellowship provides expert guidance and capacity-building training on topics such as mediation, peacemaking, and dialogue methodologies, with an emphasis on inclusiveness and sustainability of conflict resolution. The program also includes sessions on self-care strategy for women residing in conflict areas or working in the field of conflict resolution.

The fellowship program was held three times a year in Edinburgh, and to date it has included more than 200 women from: Jordan, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Turkey, Tunisia, Maldives, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Syria, Iraq, Palestine, Kashmir, Lebanon, Libya. , Morocco, Myanmar, Nepal, India, Yemen.

The Fellowship Programme aims to:

• provide a platform enabling the sharing of experiences in relation to UNSCR1325 and the global Women, Peace, and Security agenda; women’s roles in peace building and conflict resolution; and gender equality;

• explore the equal and meaningful participation of women in peace processes, peace building, and more widely in society, including identifying challenges and entry points;

• facilitate a network of women engaged in an on-going learning and experiencesharing process, building a sustainable and evolving alumnae community; 

• provide guidance on topics including: mediation; reconciliation; political participation; transitional justice; constitution building; gender equality; policy advocacy; and self-care strategies, among others.

The programme facilitates peer to peer learning providing a safe space for fellows to learn from each other through sharing experiences, ideas and challenges faced in their different contexts. The connections established during programmes continue to be crucial in the implementation of future fellowship programmes, and the Fellowship continues to build sustainable networks of fellows from the MENA and South Asia regions and facilitates local and inter-regional networks and collaboration.

Programme Format 

• This programme will take place remotely over six weeks, and will include a combination of live sessions using a video-conferencing platform and self-paced work made available online. This will include reading materials, videos, infographics, worksheets, and topics for group discussion;

• Precise dates will be confirmed, but the live programme sessions will likely begin on November 1st and end on December 6th at the very latest - some course materials will be made available, and introductory activities will take place in advance of the start date; 

• The anticipated likely time commitment per week is two 3-hour video conferencing sessions (6 hours in total) plus a maximum of 4 hours of self-paced work;

• Simultaneous Arabic-English interpretation will be available for all video conferencing sessions, and course materials will all be available in Arabic and English

Eligibility Criteria

This programme is open to women from the Middle East, North Africa, and South Asia, who:

• Are working in fields such as:

  • Mediation and dialogue; 

  • Women’s rights and/or empowerment & advocacy;

  • Reconciliation; 

  • Cultural dialogue; 

  • Issues relating to gender-based violence; 

  • Issues relating to refugees or displaced people;

  • Human Rights; 

  • Humanitarian assistance;

  • Transitional Justice; 

  • Disarmament, demobilisation and reintegration 

• Are available from November 1st to December 6th and are able to manage the time commitment (see above) of 6 hours of live sessions per week, plus self-paced work between sessions;

• Are fluent in Arabic and/or English

Deadline: Sep 4, 2020

Donor: Beyond Borders Scotland

Category: Fellowship

Focus areas of interest: Peace and Conflict Resolution, Women and Gender

For more information, visit Beyond Borders Scotland.