Our work in Palestine counters the increasing social, political and geographical fragmentation of Palestinian society. It supports Palestinian visions for a feminist future marked by justice. With our project partners, we work to bring together and empower women and queer people affected by violence and gender injustice across fragmented and militarised borders, in order to become more aware of and claim their rights.

Women living in communities close to the contact line are affected by the war between Ukraine and the autonomous Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics in multiple ways. At the Women’s Peace Tables they can both network and freely share their experiences and visions of peace. We interview Board member Margret Kiener Nellen and our project coordinator Annemarie Sancar after their project visit in September

Since the beginning of our programme, and especially since Russia's war of aggression in 2022, we have been building trust with women affected by the war in Ukraine. Our meetings have fostered an environment where women can openly share experiences and talk about their visions for peace – whether they have gone into exile, remained in eastern Ukraine or were displaced to other parts of the country. Following the launch of the redesigned Ukraine programme in the autumn of 2024, we organised a train-the-trainer workshop in Krakow in February for women who play a leading role in their municipalities.

"I had to close my heart and soul to work." Valentina Cherevatenko, Russian PeaceWoman, human rights defender and member of Women's Initiatives for Peace in Donbas(s) describes her despair after the Russian war of aggression began.

Despite a growing awareness that the full, equal, safe and meaningful participation of women leads to more sustainable peace agreements, women remain largely excluded from formal peace negotiations. We strengthen women's participation in peace negotiations by finding creative ways to link formal and informal women's initiatives.