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Securing Afghanistan: Women's Vital Contributions

BRATTLEBORO, VT (August 30, 2007) -- Recognizing the continuing need to build effective coalitions and to strengthen the capacity of Afghan women, the Initiative for Inclusive Security, in partnership with the Karuna Center for Peacebuilding, led a training workshop in Kabul, Afghanistan from September 1 - September 6, 2007. The Afghan Women’s Network (AWN), a prominent umbrella organization comprised of more than 90 Afghan NGOs, assisted with implementation of the consultation. Dr. Paula Green, director of Karuna Center and Professor at the School for International Training, will lead the peacebuilding facilitation.

Approximately 25 women participants, all demonstrated leaders from Afghanistan’s government, parliament, private sector, and civil society, will convene for the weeklong program.Through innovative skills-building training, participants will develop a comprehensive advocacy agenda to increase women’s active engagement with security issues.

Initial training sessions by Dr. Green and the team will focus on intensive team building, providing a forum for participants to create a sustainable coalition.  Further sessions led by the Karuna Center for Peacebuilding will introduce participants to multi-sectoral approaches to conflict resolution processes, emphasizing the collective formation of a national civil identity that bridges across ethnic, religious, and regional divides. These exercises will highlight commonalities and cultivate trust among participants so that a unified platform around gender and security can be developed.

"Conditions in Afghanistan are difficult for all residents and most especially for women," said Dr. Green after her recent visit to Kabul." Many educated women, including large numbers returning now after fleeing during the Taliban years, are dedicated to improving political, economic and social conditions in their war-devastated country. Our training program focused on building effective coalitions for women to develop a comprehensive advocacy agenda and a common platform for peace and security."

The primary objectives of the consultation were to:

• Promote, through participatory sessions, the creation of a multi-sectoral coalition of demonstrated Afghan women leaders around security issues;
• Create, through intensive strategic planning sessions, the coalition’s advocacy agenda and outreach strategy;
• Enable participants to present their recommendations to national and international policymakers;
• Advocate for women’s full engagement in security to national and international policymakers in efforts to promote sustainable peace and prosperity in Afghanistan.

Paula Green, EdD, founded and directs the Karuna Center for Peacebuilding and serves on the faculty of the School for International Training, where she developed SIT's programs in conflict transformation. She has extensive international experience in peacebuilding and has taught at several graduate schools, universities, and other educational centers worldwide. As a facilitator in interethnic dialogue and conflict transformation, Green has worked in Bosnia, Israel and Palestine, Rwanda and Eastern Africa, Sri Lanka, Burma, Nepal, and, now, Afghanistan. In addition to consulting and training, Green has been an active board member of several international peace organizations, including the International Fellowship of Reconciliation. The author of numerous internationally published articles and chapters, Green co-edited the textbook,Psychology and Social Responsibility: Facing Global Challenges. For more information on SIT's Conflict Transformation Across Cultures (CONTACT) program, visit our website.