Gender, Peace and Social Change
The development of a gendered approach to peace building
in Northern Ireland and Border Counties
Monday 5th December, 10:00 – 14:00
The Equality Commission, Equality House 7-9 Shaftsbury Square, Belfast.
This seminar aims to create an opportunity for dialogue on the issues and challenges in
developing a gendered approach to peacebuilding in Northern Ireland and Border Counties
post conflict society. The day brings together key stakeholders in the women’s sector and
the peacebuilding sector to explore current aspects of gendered peacebuilding work being
undertaken in Northern Ireland, the Border Counties and beyond.
Keynote Speaker:
Susan McKay, Chief Executive of the National Women’s Council of Ireland and Journalist
Panel of Speakers includes:
Claire Hackett, Belfast Conflict Resolution Consortium and Hanna’s House
Kate McCullough, NI Women’s European Platform
Susan McEwan, Irish Peace Centre
Lynne Bloomfield, Kilcooley Womens Centre
The seminar will provide an opportunity for participants
 To deepen understandings of the concepts and practices of a gendered approach to
peace building.
 To reflect on the current challenges and opportunities in NI and border counties.
 To consider if and how a gendered approach might offer ways of working at the
level of structural and cultural violence that we seek to transform through peace
programmes.
Themes the seminar will aim to focus on:
 Comparative assessment of models of gendered approach to peacebuilding in other
post conflict societies
 An assessment of the extent to which a gendered approach to peacebuilding has
been adopted in Northern Ireland
 Power, influence and inclusion of women and women’s organisations with
peacebuilding policy, practice and political institutions
 Visualising what peacebuilding in Northern Ireland would look like with a gender
perspective at the heart of policy and practice
 Identify the key priorities to develop a gendered perspective and practice into
peacebuilding work in Northern Ireland as a post conflict society.
Places are limited to 40.
A project supported by the European Union’s PEACE III
Programme managed by the Special EU Programmes Body