Mission Statement

Mission Statement

The International Fellowship of Reconciliation (IFOR) believes that without peace, development is impossible, and without women, neither peace nor development can take place.

IFOR’s Women Peacemakers Program (WPP) began in 1997 and works to support and strengthen women's peacemaking initiatives. This is accomplished through an annual international training for nonviolence trainers, gender and nonviolence trainings, campaigns such as the annual May 24 International Women's Day for Peace and Disarmament, and through the documentation of women's peace initiatives.

Given that women and girls begin from a disadvantaged position, empowerment is a key step towards gender equality in peacebuilding. While there has been progress towards women’s empowerment, much work still remains.

The WPP believes that programs that specifically empower women peacemakers, and encourage women and girls to become involved in peacebuilding and civil society building, are essential for development.

WPP's objective is to increase the empowerment of women through active nonviolence.

Outcome

WPP’s work has led to an increase in the number of women, and men, involved in peacebuilding.
Participants return to their home countries and form women-led groups for peace; raise awareness of the need for more women to be involved in peacebuilding, and create a climate that opens more space for women, especially young women, to engage in peacebuilding.

It has increased the skill and capacity of women peacebuilders. It has raised awareness of and provided training materials on the need for a gender perspective in peacebuilding. It has further increased the pool of empowered women peacemakers by providing access to training in conflict resolution skills and other technical support, regional and international networking, and important links to decision-makers, resources and campaigns.

The WPP has received recognition from peace researchers and practitioners and has been called a pioneer in the field of gender-sensitive conflict resolution.

The WPP's Training of Trainers Program and International Consultations (2001 - 2005) have had a multiplying effect, and the models and materials developed have been requested and adopted by peace organizations/workers in many different regions.

To read more about WPP trainings, click here >

International Fellowship Of Reconciliation

IFOR was founded in October 1919 during a meeting held in Bilthoven, the Netherlands by Christian pacifists.
IFOR is a registered non-profit organization, with tax deductible status, under Dutch law. Since its continuous existence from 1919 IFOR has grown to some 140,000 members in 62 branches, groups and affiliates, from five continents. In the 1970s, IFOR began to welcome members of other faiths.

The IFOR international secretariat in Alkmaar, the Netherlands, co-ordinates communication among IFOR members, links branches to capacity-building resources (and through the WPP provides training in gender awareness), and helps co-ordinate international campaigns, delegations and urgent actions.
IFOR has extensive working relationships with like-minded non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and civil society initiatives around the world. IFOR’s 90 years of expertise in active nonviolence is recognized and respected by these NGOs and many others.

IFOR has six Nobel Peace Prize Laureates among its former and present members. Jane Addams (1931), Emily Green Balch (1946), Chief Albert Luthuli (1960), Dr. Martin Luther King (1964), Mairead Corrigan-Maguire (1976), Adolfo Perez Esquivel (1980) have all been or are actively contributing to dissemination of the teaching of non-violence.

For more information about IFOR, click here >

For more information about the IFOR nominees for the 1000 Peace Women, click here >