Inter Pares is based in Ottawa, Canada (unceded Algonquin territory)
Tell us about your work on WPS
Inter Pares’ work on women, peace and security includes advocacy, networking, coalition-building, resourcing WPS programming and organizations, and public engagement. Thematically, we work internationally on issues such as women’s political participation, peace building, supporting women’s human rights defenders, inclusion of LGBTIQ+ issues within the WPS agenda, fostering learning, as well as advocating for a Canadian feminist foreign policy. Geographically, our work is wide-ranging, and includes Burma, Colombia, and Sudan, for example, where the WPS agenda is particularly critical.
Share a highlight of your work on WPS issues
Sudan is currently in a pivotal transitional moment, where women and youth led the revolution to overthrow a 30-year dictatorship. Inter Pares is supporting women and youth to politically engage in this transitional moment in order to dismantle legal and social patriarchal structures. It is an immense task. In the following photo essay (Women of Sudan: Sparking Revolution, Creating Change), we showcased the inspirational courage young women in particular demonstrated in order to arrive at the present transitional moment: https://interpares.exposure.co/women-of-sudan
Additionally, Inter Pares is working with LGBTIQ+ activists and organizations in Colombia to expose both the impact of armed conflict on LGBTIQ+ persons and communities as well as the contributions of the sexual and gender diverse community in peacebuilding. As part of this, we are organizing the webinar “Peacebuilding & LGBTIQA2S Communities” on July 27, 2021 as part of the 2021 Vancouver Pride celebrations. Canada’s Ambassador on Women, Peace and Security will moderate the discussion which will highlight the experiences of counterparts from Colombia, Guatemala and Sudan and underscore the intersection between the WPS agenda and LGBTIQ+ rights.
Who do you admire in the WPS field?
We work with so many activists around the world who we admire for their courage, commitment and resilience in the face of conflict and misogyny.
What have you read recently that you would like to recommend to Network members?
If you could make one recommendation on WPS issues to Prime Minister Trudeau, what would it be?
Create and implement a Canadian Feminist Foreign Policy
What is your dream for the WPS agenda?
That it continues to evolve and expand, ensuring relevance for those who rely on it as a tool for change in some of the world’s most difficult circumstances.
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