Bridging Positions, Building Trust:  Women Peacebuilders & Security Actors

ICAN, in partnership with the Permanent Missions of Norway, Sweden, and Canada, the United Kingdom Foreign Commonwealth & Development Office (UKFCDO), the Ministry of Gender, Child and Welfare of South Sudan, the Global Partnership for the Prevention of Armed Conflict (GPPAC), and the National Transformational Leadership Institute (NTLI), convened a 1.5-day workshop to discuss how to strengthen community security as a localized, transformative approach for sustainable peace.

Sisters of Peace in Iraq: Diffusing the Timebomb of a Divided Mosul

In the war-torn city of Mosul, Iraq, the scars of conflict run deep. The rise and fall of ISIS left behind a community fractured by violence. ISIS male fighters were killed, captured, or fled, but the women they married, and their children remained. Referred to as “ISIS-associated families”, they are stuck in limbo, without legal status and facing ostracism and isolation.

The challenge of reintegrating these families into society is a daunting task, but the Odessa Organization for Women’s Development (Odessa) – a partner of ICAN and member of WASL- is making significant strides in bridging this divide.

Economic Security of Women Peacebuilders and the Role of the Private Sector in Supporting Them and Their Work

On January 26, 2022, Her Royal Highness The Countess of Wessex joined ICAN and members of WASL for a discussion on the economic security of women peacebuilders and the role of the private sector in supporting their work.

The work of peacebuilding, as evidenced by the poor implementation of Sustainable Development Goal 16 which emphasizes on the promotion of peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, is often perceived as the purview of governments with little to no contribution from the private sector. But peace and security are essential for economic growth including infrastructure, development, and investment in human resources. The nexus of the private and peacebuilding sectors could be strengthened and benefit from a strong partnership.

The Coming of Age of the Women, Peace and Security Agenda: 21 in 2021

Nearly every month through 2021, Sanam Naraghi Anderlini MBE, founder of the International Civil Society Action Network (ICAN) and director of LSE Centre for Women, Peace and Security, hosted conversations with pioneering women peacebuilders from around the world and their allies working internationally on issues of peace and security.

Sanam Naraghi Anderlini Interview on Times Radio

ICAN Founder and CEO, Sanam Naraghi Anderlini, talks to Darryl Morris for Times Radio about the Taliban’s latest directive, restricting Afghan women’s travel without a male relative chaperone, which she describes as “devastating, disappointing but honestly not surprising.”

Queen’s Lecture 2021 by Sanam Naraghi Anderlini, MBE: Blueprint for Peace in C21st

“Those of us who live in peace take it for granted – it’s the invisible canvass upon which we paint and live our lives,” said Sanam Naraghi Anderlini, MBE in her opening remarks for the annual 2021 Queen’s Lecture. “When we put ourselves in the shoes of others – see them as we see ourselves, – we are all the same – regardless of our culture or accident of geography.”

The annual lecture was founded by HM Queen Elizabeth II as a gift to the City of Berlin on the occasion of her state visit in 1965. Each year, a renowned British scientist delivers a lecture on their area of expertise. The Queen’s Lecture is a collaboration between Technical University Berlin, the British Embassy in Germany, and the British Council in Germany.