Say NO – UNiTE to End Violence against Women is a global call for action, launched in November 2009, on ending violence against women and girls. It is presented by UNIFEM as a contribution to advance the objectives of UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s campaign UNiTE to End Violence against Women through social mobilisation. UNIFEM Goodwill Ambassador Nicole Kidman is the Spokesperson of Say NO.
Say NO aims to trigger and highlight actions by individuals, governments and civil society partners. Actions that address or prevent violence against women and girls. Every action will be counted to showcase the global groundswell of engagement that exists on the issue and drive the message to governments everywhere that ending violence against women must be a top priority. The initial target is to reach 100,000 actions by March 2010 and 1 million actions in one year.
Say NO builds upon the momentum generated during its first phase when 5,066,549 people signed on to a global call to make ending violence against women a top priority worldwide. Heads of States and Ministers from 69 Governments and more than 600 Parliamentarians have added their names to Say NO since then.
Working through traditional as well as online networks and social media, Say NO will engage participants from all walks of life. A range of web-based and other tools available on saynotoviolence.org will support partners in their advocacy efforts, highlight their work to a global audience and inspire others.
A Call To Men is a leading national men’s organization addressing domestic and sexual violence prevention and the promotion of healthy manhood. We are committed to maintaining strong partnerships with women’s organizations already doing this important work. We help to organize communities in order to raise awareness and get men involved in this effort.
A Call To Men believes that preventing domestic and sexual violence is primarily the responsibility of men. Although historically it has been almost entirely women who have been at the forefront addressing this issue, we think it is essential that men play a primary role in the solution. To do that, well-meaning men…men who, for the most part don’t see themselves as part of the problem…need to get involved.
By strategizing with groups across the United States and abroad, our vision is to shift social norms that define manhood in our culture, and produce a national movement of men dedicated to this cause. A Call To Men is unique in its ability to be affirming and respectful to the experiences of women while expressing genuine care and hope for men. Through seminars, workshops and other educational vehicles, A Call To Men challenges men to reconsider many of the social norms that define manhood, in an effort to create a more just society.
Responsible Men is a collaboration of men and women that challenges all men to examine the roots of our own socialization. It is essential for all men to gain an understanding of the things we must change in ourselves and our world so we can be better partners, fathers and citizens.
Responsible Men believes most men already are “responsible men” at their core. Men already want to be great partners and great dads. However, men’s words and actions often run counter to their feelings because they have been socialized to believe that men are supposed to be strong, tough and in-charge rather than caring, loving and engaged in their relationships, their families and their communities.
Though workshops, social gatherings and social media we inspire men to help rewrite the script of masculinity and be catalysts for social change. Ultimately it is our vision that with a new masculinity in place, our world will be free of discrimination, aggression and violence based on things like gender, race and sexual orientation.
Social Innovation Park Ltd (SIP) is an impartial, not-for-profit organisation based in Singapore that incubates social entrepreneurs and innovators worldwide to bring positive innovations to lives and societies. SIP was founded in 2006 with the vision the platform for the exchange of ideas, network and innovations to build a more inclusive, sustainable and better world.
SIP Educates the people, public and private sectors on the principles of social entrepreneurship and innovation. It Empowers social entrepreneurs and innovators with a shared resource pool and Enhances such set-ups by leveraging on the power of local and international networks to provide access to resources, cutting-edge business ideas and best practices.
SIP has a presence in 6 countries and holds an annual event called the Global Social Innovators Forum (GSIF). GSIF attracted over 500 people and 70 speakers from 30 countries in 2009.
Step Up was created to change the traditional mindset of young adult men to end violence against women. Violence against Women is a men’s issue and we need to make all men realise this. Step Up believes we need to start by creating change in social norms – so we have to change beliefs of men about women. Men are not born violent – they become violent as a result of beliefs and social norms about what it means to be a man!
Step Up tackles underlying issues such as objectification, language, and bystander roles. We also want to teach men not only to be responsible, but that it’s crucial for them to be accountable for not only themselves, but ALL men! Not all men are the problem, but all men can be part of the solution.
Our target audience are high school and college-age males, but that doesn’t exclude younger boys or older men. We believe it’s imperative to raise awareness to men about women and equality to bring an understanding and create change – to help resolve violence against women.
Survivors Connect is an organization working to empower and enhance the anti-slavery movement through the use of interactive media and connective technologies. Our goal is to enhance channels of information and services to victims and survivors, as well as their stories and voice in the broader movement against slavery.
We are a global group of technology experts, researchers, activists, survivors and organizations working to develop a holistic understanding and response to modern-day slavery and human trafficking. Our team researches the latest tools in social networking, mobile and web technology and innovations in campaigns and uses them to strengthen anti-trafficking efforts, networks, build community resilience against slavery and improve our responses to combating slavery. With new, free and open source technologies emerging globally, we work together to find ways these can be used to reduce trafficking, support anti-trafficking efforts and empower survivors and activists to advocate.
Survivors Connect works with governments, universities, international and domestic organizations, community groups and individuals around the world. Together we work to identify innovative research, best practices in anti-trafficking and apply new technologies that can enhance programs for survivors, campaigns and collaborative action.
TakingITGlobal envisions youth everywhere actively engaged and connected in shaping a more inclusive, peaceful and sustainable world.
Headquartered in Toronto, Canada, this international charitable organisation enables a collaborative learning community which provides youth with access to global opportunities, cross-cultural connections and meaningful participation in decision-making.
TakingITGlobal harnesses internet technologies to cultivate youth leadership and engagement in social issues, bridging the continuity gap that causes fragmentation between and within generations of youth movements and championing the role of young people as key stakeholders in all aspects of society.
We serve youth primarily between the ages of 13 to 30 through an online community and initiatives that focus on enabling actively engaged youth (TIGweb) and education programmes geared towards middle and high school students (TIGed).
The Sisterhood is Global Institute (SIGI) was founded 26 years ago on the understanding that women are the long-ignored lynchpin to solving the world’s many critical issues; from inequality to environmental degradation, from poverty and hunger to conflict and violence, it is women who hold the keys to building enduring change locally and globally.
For the last quarter century visionary feminist leaders from around the world have been working with SIGI to establish an accessible movement supporting and connecting women and women’s groups, encouraging collaboration within and across sectors. SIGI seeks to build a critical mass of grassroots support to address the challenges facing women in their daily lives, regardless of time or place. SIGI has also been a strong advocate for women internationally and has consultative status with the U.N.
In November 2009, SIGI took the next critical step and launched GlobalSister.org, an “always on” organizational social networking platform to enable individuals and civil society groups from diverse backgrounds and diverse missions to come together to build a unified global Women’s Movement.
GlobalSister.org is a virtual space where women’s organizations can connect and collaborate, share experiences and knowledge, gain valuable resources and insights, mobilize and organize activists, and build individual and organizational capacity.
Join GlobalSister.org and make history!
Inspired by the old saying, “You can’t really understand another person’s experience until you’ve walked a mile in their shoes,” men literally walk one mile in women’s high heeled shoes to protest sexualised violence, educate their communities about prevention and recovery resources and to raise funds to support local rape crisis centres, domestic violence shelters and other sexualised violence prevention programmes.
In 1991, a handful of men in Canada decided they had a responsibility to urge men to speak out about violence against women. Wearing a white ribbon would be a symbol of men’s opposition to violence against women.
The White Ribbon Campaign (WRC) is now the largest effort in the world of men working to end violence against women (VAW). In over fifty-five countries, campaigns are led by both men and women, even though the focus is on educating men and boys. In some countries it is a general public education effort focused on ending violence against women.
Wearing a white ribbon is a personal pledge to never commit, condone or remain silent about violence against women and girls. Wearing a white ribbon is a way of saying, “Our future has no violence against women.”
