Back home after a whirlwind week at the 2022 SVRI Forum. So inspiring to hear about the research and practice that’s happening to prevent and respond to VAW around the world. Equally inspiring to connect with colleagues, friends and mentors. The energy was absolutely electric, and it will keep me going for the next few months! The conversations on the fringes of the presentations are equally as important as the panels. We need to always remember that relationships are one of the foundations of good feminist practice.

A few highlights:

·     Connecting with our team: As a global virtual organization we don’t have the opportunity to spend time together in person very often. These opportunities to share, reflect and laugh together are an important ingredient to keeping us going between meetings.

·     Connecting with our partners: The SVRI Forum is such an important venue to meet our partners in one place and reflect on what’s happening in the field. Our strategic, learning and solidarity partners were all in attendance and we were able to catch up on each other’s work and plan for the future.

·     Connecting with research and practice: So many important insights!!! A few that really stuck with me: Context, organizational capacity and implementation quality are critical to preventing violence; Facilitator selection, training and preparation significantly influences results; Equitable partnership ingredients: clear goals, clarity on each partner’s value addition and intentionally address issues of power.

The opportunity to grow, reflect and share that the SVRI Forum presents was a gift. One that won’t be forgotten anytime soon!

This blog was originally published on LinkedIn.

Written by Kathy Durand, Development professional committed to equality, social justice and inclusion