Between the 18th and the 19th of July 2017, the Foundation participated at a meeting gathering more than 40 experts, practitioners and advocates in peace, security and Prevention of Violent Extremism (PVE). The meeting which was organized, in Barcelona (Spain), by the Union for the Mediterranean Secretariat (UfM), the United Nations Development program (UNDP), and UN Women aimed at assessing existing research and experience on preventing extremism and radicalization with a specific focus on the roles of women and youth as key actors in preventing violent extremism in the Euro-Mediterranean region.

The meeting served as a platform to discuss approaches and lessons learned at the regional and national levels, and to identify key areas for future interventions in the Euro-Mediterranean region such as education, economy, and governance. While participants emphasized the roles of women and youth in countering extremism and radicalization, they’ve also highlighted the need to support and empower women and youth, to address social, economic and political inequalities and marginalization, as well to developed tailored and nuanced PVE strategies depending on the target area, context and culture.

Participants also stressed the importance of fulfilling the gaps in research on gender and PVE, as well as the need to consolidate partnerships among Euro-Mediterranean countries to promote sustainable peace.

In this same context, we would like to invite you to check out this Action Kit on Women Preventing Extremism which we’ve recently uploaded on our Documentation Center. The kit is designed to help and guide activists and practitioners to engage in reflection and dialogue on violent extremism, and to bring awareness to the particular roles of women and women’s organizations in dealing with violent extremist ideologies. The kit includes exercises and experts´ opinions.