ABOUT WOMEN’S REGIONAL NETWORK (WRN)

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Founded in 2011, the WRN is a network of women civil society leaders working together to advance women’s rights and regional peace in Afghanistan, India and Pakistan. WRN amplifies the voices of conflict-affected women in order to address the interlinked issues of peace and justice, governance and security, within the context of growing militarization in South Asia.

 

ABOUT THE COURSE

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In 2017, Women’s Regional Network (WRN) had identified gaps in understanding of issues related to women, peace and security (WPS); and the need for information dissemination and perspective building among students and civil society actors in South Asia.

 

The WPS course has been a flagship course of WRN where the selected participants have the opportunity to interact with and be mentored by women peace practitioners, feminist law professionals and eminent activists not only from South Asia but also from other regions of the world. The course will provide a platform for participants from diverse South Asian backgrounds to interact with each other, thereby enriching and deepening their understanding of the issues discussed in the course. WRN is confident that this course will inspire and provide directions to the participants to continue their engagement in the field of women, peace and security.

 

Over 110 participants from Afghanistan, India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka have actively participated in the intense and insightful sessions in the last three cycles of the course held in 2018, 2019 and 2021. In the current cycle which is scheduled for July 2023, we aim to select 50 participants from among the applicants, based on the quality of their applications. This is with the objective of ensuring deeper  interactions during the sessions of the course. 

 

Some of the topics that will be covered in the course are:

 

●     Gender inclusive understanding of peacebuilding and peacekeeping: South Asian perspectives;

●    Mapping conflicts and gender: case studies from South Asia:

●    Feminist perspectives on justice and reparations:

●    State security & human security; and

●    Feminist Insights: Women leaders in peace movements and their agenda.

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COURSE AIMS

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The objectives of the course are:

 

●    To introduce the concepts of women, peace, security, justice and accountability to the participants;

●    To ensure the concepts are applied and analysed within the local, national and South Asian contexts;

●    To understand and use a feminist lens for discourses and deliberations on women, peace, security and justice in the context of conflicts and displacement; and

●    To introduce participants to various movements, campaigns and initiatives that contribute to the discourse.

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CRITERIA FOR APPLICANTS

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●    Recent graduates*, masters students, research scholars from social sciences and humanities, conflict & peace studies, women & gender studies, law, international relations or other relevant disciplines; OR

●    Professionals** including activists, members of nonprofit organisations, community leaders or those working in related fields;

 

*Final year undergraduate students will be considered in exceptional circumstances!

**No age restrictions are applicable!

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COURSE PARTICIPATION FEE

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No participation fee for participants.

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COURSE REQUIREMENTS

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●    Regular attendance

●    Active participation in the sessions

●    Preparation for each session through assigned readings

●    Prompt completion of assignment for each session

●    As the course will be conducted in English, a working proficiency of the same is required

 

Note: Course completion certificates will be awarded at the end of the course - subject to satisfactory meeting of the above requirements.

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COURSE DURATION AND TIMES

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The course commences on 8 July and ends on 29 July 2023. The sessions will be held on Saturdays and Sundays, with two consecutive sessions on each day with a 20 minute break in between. We advise the participants to take this schedule in consideration while applying.

 

8th, 15th, 22nd & 29th July 2023 (Saturdays)

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Afghanistan: 3:30 pm - 8 pm

Pakistan: 4 pm - 8:30 pm

India & Sri Lanka: 4:30 pm - 9 pm

 

9th, 16th & 23rd July 2023 (Sundays)

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Afghanistan: 10:30 am - 3:30 pm

Pakistan: 11 am - 4 pm

India & Sri Lanka: 11:30 am - 4:30 pm