On July 7-8, 2010, the World Faiths Development Dialogue, the Berkley Center for Religion, Peace and World Affairs, and United States Institute of Peace convened over thirty development practitioners, scholars, and policymakers met in Washington, DC to initiate a conversation about the ways in which women inspired by or linked to religion create and maintain peace.
Convened by the World Faiths Development Dialogue (WFDD), the Berkley Center for Religion, Peace and World Affairs, and United States Institute of Peace (USIP), the symposium addressed the critical, if often unrecognized, roles religious women play in peacebuilding. The symposium concluded with a session open to the public, held at Georgetown University, where the participants reflected upon the previous days' discussions.
While approximately 70 percent of casualties of conflict are civilians—and most of these are women and children—only about 2 percent of signatories to peace agreements are women, noted Kathleen Kuenhast, Gender Adviser to USIP.
But throughout the two-day symposium, participants told stories of women around the world taking transformative actions to counter the forces of violence and conflict, often in ways far removed from the negotiation table and the formal religious institutions.
Virginia Bouvier, Senior Program Officer at the Center for Mediation and Conflict Resolution, recalled the community members of a shantytown in Latin America pointing to a community center and telling her, "This is what we are doing for building peace: creating spaces where people can come together."
"Through the many stories we have heard," said Katherine Marshall, executive director of WFDD and a moderator of the discussion, "a common theme is women who take a view of peace that is about justice, about human rights, about sustainability, and that is thus far broader than just the absence of war."
Participants noted the distinct contributions that women can make in areas of conflict, particularly in shaping attitudes and reaching across cultural divides, even when they lack formal leadership roles within their religious institutions.
"Women do have authority within religious traditions," noted Susan Hayward, Program Officer in the Religion and Peacemaking Center of Innovation at USIP and one of the meeting's moderators. "They shape religious motivations and interpret religious traditions, and shape attitudes and narratives that influence conflict in communities."
The participants—who included representatives from a wide range of organizations, including the State Department, USAID, Catholic Relief Services, the Tanenbaum Center for Interreligious Understanding, and the Federation of Muslim Women's Associations in Nigeria—agreed that we need more documentation and "mapping" of the existing grassroots work of women in peacebuilding, pointing out the different ways that female efforts fly under the radar.
Though this "invisibility" is sometimes by choice, it also presents barriers to the funding, resources, and recognition that initiatives need. The discussion pointed to the need for a better understanding of existing resources, initiatives, best practices and actors in the field. "Instead of romanticizing women of faith, we must bring them to the table alongside other actors," said Jacqueline Ogega, Director of the Womenâ's Program at the World Conference of Religions for Peace.
The discussion also touched upon issues surrounding gender-based and sexual violence, which constitutes a significant aspect of armed conflict. The symposium ended with a discussion of policy recommendations and research objectives, with participants highlighting the important place of networks to provide support, resources, and inspiration for grassroots female peacebuilders.
"This meeting revealed both the innovative and inspiring ways religious women are working to bring about peace and healing, and the tremendous work that still needs to be done to fully bring women to the table," said Marshall.
