Feminist Peace Research

February 24 marked the third anniversary of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine. Various options for peace are being debated internationally, often without focusing on Ukrainian perspectives and interests. On the occasion of International Women’s Day, PRIF researcher Clara Perras conducted a written Interview with Olena Zinenko, a Ukrainian feminist peace activist and researcher from Kharkiv who currently lives and works in Bochum. She is lecturer at Karazin Kharkiv National University…

Der Anstieg geschlechtsspezifischer Gewalt und die daraus resultierenden Debatten rücken zunehmend in den Fokus der öffentlichen Wahrnehmung. Fälle wie der Prozess um die Taten gegen Gisèle Pelicot, die Massenvergewaltigung und Ermordung einer indischen Ärztin, der gemeinsame Suizid von Frauen im Sudan zum Schutz vor weiteren Vergewaltigungen, die Ermordung der Olympionikin Rebecca Cheptegei durch ihren Ex-Partner oder das internationale Vergewaltiger-Netzwerk in Telegramgruppen verdeutlichen…

Das Recht auf Selbstbestimmung und Souveränität über den eigenen Körper und die eigene Identität bleiben auch im Bundestagswahlkampf 2025 ein umstrittenes Thema. Die Debatten stehen stellvertretend für die politische Aushandlung zwischen der Aufrechterhaltung rechter und (wert-)konservativer patriarchaler Geschlechterrollen einerseits und progressiven sowie feministischen Positionen andererseits. Mit dem vorzeitigen Ende der Ampel-Regierung kündigt sich ein politischer Wandel an, der sich auch…

World leaders and international civil society will gather in New York on 22-23 September 2024 for the UN Summit of the Future. The Summit is an event where world leaders meet and address current international issues and challenges to find consensus on how to create a better and safer present and future. This blog article takes issue with how the climate-gender-conflict nexus is (not) discussed in the lead-up to the summit. Reviewing the summit documents, I argue that the (draft) Pact for the…

Despite a 2015 ban, Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting (FGM/C) remains practiced in The Gambia. A recent bill to repeal the ban now endangered legislative progress so many Gambian women have been holding onto as well as longstanding efforts of civil society organizations. On 15 July 2024, following extensive community engagement and advocacy, the bill was successfully rejected. In the face of a global backlash against sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR), what can activists worldwide…

June is celebrated as pride month worldwide. It highlights the achievements that have been made regarding the rights of people with diverse sexual orientation, gender identity and expressions, or sex characteristics. It also raises awareness about ongoing structural discrimination, inequality and violence. In peacebuilding contexts, individuals with diverse SOGIESC encounter severe backlash from anti-feminist actors aiming at the reversal of achievements as well as resistance from those trying…

June 19th is the international day for the elimination of sexual violence in conflict. It is a day of silent remembrance, as the crime of conflict-related sexual violence (CRSV) is not a priority on political agendas. Survivors are often too traumatized to report, or experience further criminalization and stigmatization. The recent annual report of the UN Secretary General stresses the continuous prevalence and the global scale of this horrific crime. This blog summarizes its core findings.

In preparation of the UN Climate Change Conference, held in Baku, Azerbaijan, in November of 2024, subsidiary bodies will meet 3-13 June at the Bonn Climate Change Conference to discuss which urgent issues shall be decided in Baku. Compared to the early years of the UN Climate Change Conferences that were established in the 1990s, it is no longer contested to see gender among the focal points. Gender has become an established topic to be addressed, and the necessity is recognized of…

Across North America, May 5 is a day to commemorate the thousands of missing and murdered Indigenous women, girls, two-spirit, and gender diverse people. Beyond giving space for remembrance and mourning, May 5 is connected to the aims of building knowledge, raising public awareness, stimulating solidarity and underlining the need for action to end the disproportionate deadly violence. While politics and the judicial system are reminded on this day to deliver rights and justice, another…

Emerging technologies are transforming foreign and security policy as they challenge traditional understandings of power, influence and security. Developments in artificial intelligence (AI) and the increasing importance of cyberspace are some of the most prominent in this regard. Yet, not only are there repercussions for security when narrowly conceived as state security, but they also affect gender relations and human security more broadly. Gender as an analytical category allows us to shed…