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Check the event replay here.
Join us for a film screening and panel discussion online
About this Event
Identifying, Addressing and Mitigating Gender-based Violence (GBV) within the context of COVID-19
Experience from past outbreaks, and also current anecdotal evidence, suggests that measures put in place to help control the COVID-19 pandemic may be exacerbating the risks of gender-based violence (GBV) for women and girls. Social distancing and quarantine measures limit the possibility for survivors to distance themselves from their abusers and also limit access to external support (e.g. social, legal, physical and mental health, etc.). It is crucial that all actors across the COVID-19 response incorporate GBV into their planning and programming. Together, actors can work to identify, address and mitigate GBV, and ensure vulnerable populations have access to information and services. The speakers on this panel will speak about interventions and models to support survivors of GBV across the spectrum of legal and psychosocial services, both in person and remotely.
The evening will commence with the first ever screening of “Eimai” which translates as “I am” from Greek. Eimai is a documentary by Action for Women capturing stories of three women whose journeys are marked by struggle, sacrifice and hope. The screening will be followed by a panel discussion with speakers representing Action for Women , SAHR and Abaad. (Bios below)
The Panel will be moderated by Kelsi Kriitmaa, Executive Director at Philanthropy Advisors in Geneva and a Giving Women member.
PLEASE NOTE: Login details for the webinar will be emailed out to registrants the day of the event.
________________________________________________________________________
OUR PANELISTS
Gabrielle Tay – Founder, Action for Women
Gabrielle founded Action for Women in 2015. She has worked in emergency settings on the Balkan route, Italy and then Greece, where she spent 20 months on the aegean island of Chios. While working in the camps, she observed how women’s voices are unheard and needs specific to the gender are unmet in the biggest humanitarian crisis since World War 2.
She opened the Athena Centre for Women in July 2016 – the first all-women space outside of any official camp structures in Greece. The Athena Centre provided crucial services requested by the vulnerable women residents of the camps, in order to address the gaps in protection and incidents of gender based violence. Her vision to provide safety, support and hope for the women who are able to leave Chios onto the mainland, saw the birth of the Halcyon Days Project in Athens in August 2018.
Gabrielle graduated from the University of Exeter, UK’s law faculty with first class honours and has practiced in the United Kingdom and Singapore as an advocate and solicitor. This passionate advocate for women’s rights has dedicated countless pro-bono hours in various legal aid clinics and women shelters representing the underprivileged and marginalised women in civl and criminal matters.
___
Sara Bergamaschi – Strategic Advocacy for Human Rights, SAHR
As SAHR’s Executive Director, Sara leads SAHR’s advocacy and resource mobilization efforts to bring attention and funds to our sensitive and high-profile legal cases. She applies her unbridled energy and lust for life to ensure SAHR’s financial sustainability and develop long-lasting strategic partnerships. She also has pioneered SAHR’s trademark ‘Tales of Disobedience’, a unique event series at the crossroads of women’s rights and creative ARTivism.
Sara spearheads SAHR’s gender justice efforts with the UN, governments and other organizations. When deployed in complex emergency and forced displacement settings, Sara’s role is to protect the most vulnerable survivors and unlock barriers to justice by leveraging trustworthy relationships both at the local and at the highest levels, in the dance of compromise.
Previously, she worked for the Italian Embassy in Egypt, the German Development Agency (GIZ) in Morocco, the International Rescue Committee (IRC) in Iraq, UNOCHA in New York City and Jordan, as well as, the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) at the Turkish-Syrian border and in Yemen in 2019.
___
Ghida Anani – Director, Abaad
Ghida is an assistant professor in the Faculty of Public Health at the Lebanese University. In 2008, she received the ‘’Excellence in Collaborative Teaching Award’’ from the American University of Beirut. As an expert in Gender-Based Violence and Child Protection, Anani has published a number of studies, articles, training kits and community educational materials on GBV & Child Sexual Abuse in Lebanon and the MENA region.
In June 2011, she founded and continues to manage ABAAD – Resource Centre for Gender Equality, which was awarded the Womanity Award. In 2014, Anani received the Women Leadership Achievement Award by The World Women Leadership Congress. She has led a number of public opinion campaigns, notably the latest #Undress522 which resulted in a historical parliamentary vote, repealing article 522 from the Lebanese Penal Code. The campaign received the “Women Rights Award” from the Beirut Bar Association and Avenir Liban and an honoring Award by the Lebanese Canadian University in March 2017. In 2019, the campaign received the first prize “UN SDG Action Award” for the most impactful campaign globally.
In 2018, Anani has been honored as part of the program “Icon of Pioneering” & “Leaders from the land of Cedars” beside a number of Lebanese leaders innovative in different sectors. She was also listed by the World Bank as one of 10 Inspiring Women Entrepreneurs Making a Difference across MENA and was featured in the Pioneers & Leaders HUB, launched by the Women as Partners in Progress (WPP) Project within the Gibran Chair for Values and Peace at the University of Maryland. Anani was among the handful of women leaders selected from the MENA region to participate in the Female Leadership Programme by the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs. In 2019, she was also selected by the UN Solutions Summit organizers as one of the 10 extraordinary solution makers across the globe advancing the SDGs.
___
Esha Meher – Legal Associate, SAHR
Esha joined SAHR in 2020 and is our legal associate, working on the frontlines for our cases in Asia, Pacific and MENA region, supporting the Legal Director on advancing justice and accountability for survivors through strategic litigation. She is also an enthusiastic voice on the campaign-advocacy front and sometimes yields her pen for SAHR’s creative team.
A people’s person at heart, Esha is most comfortable making conversations with strangers across all ages on the most unrelated topics; her interests range from a critique of comedy in Iranian cinema to cat-sitting techniques and hacks. An avid reader and a struggling painter, she enjoys listening to Rostropovich’s cello on Friday evenings.
Besides appearing and assisting in multiple cases of constitutional importance in India, Esha has also been a regular part of teaching and civilian advocacy initiatives. She heads the legal team of the Gender Security Project (India), serves as the Founding director of Project DARYA, a London based storytelling initiative, and presides over a Massachusetts-based non-profit.
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Add to Calendar
Check the event replay here.
Join us for a film screening and panel discussion online
About this Event
Identifying, Addressing and Mitigating Gender-based Violence (GBV) within the context of COVID-19
Experience from past outbreaks, and also current anecdotal evidence, suggests that measures put in place to help control the COVID-19 pandemic may be exacerbating the risks of gender-based violence (GBV) for women and girls. Social distancing and quarantine measures limit the possibility for survivors to distance themselves from their abusers and also limit access to external support (e.g. social, legal, physical and mental health, etc.). It is crucial that all actors across the COVID-19 response incorporate GBV into their planning and programming. Together, actors can work to identify, address and mitigate GBV, and ensure vulnerable populations have access to information and services. The speakers on this panel will speak about interventions and models to support survivors of GBV across the spectrum of legal and psychosocial services, both in person and remotely.
The evening will commence with the first ever screening of “Eimai” which translates as “I am” from Greek. Eimai is a documentary by Action for Women capturing stories of three women whose journeys are marked by struggle, sacrifice and hope. The screening will be followed by a panel discussion with speakers representing Action for Women , SAHR and Abaad. (Bios below)
The Panel will be moderated by Kelsi Kriitmaa, Executive Director at Philanthropy Advisors in Geneva and a Giving Women member.
PLEASE NOTE: Login details for the webinar will be emailed out to registrants the day of the event.
________________________________________________________________________
OUR PANELISTS
Gabrielle Tay – Founder, Action for Women
Gabrielle founded Action for Women in 2015. She has worked in emergency settings on the Balkan route, Italy and then Greece, where she spent 20 months on the aegean island of Chios. While working in the camps, she observed how women’s voices are unheard and needs specific to the gender are unmet in the biggest humanitarian crisis since World War 2.
She opened the Athena Centre for Women in July 2016 – the first all-women space outside of any official camp structures in Greece. The Athena Centre provided crucial services requested by the vulnerable women residents of the camps, in order to address the gaps in protection and incidents of gender based violence. Her vision to provide safety, support and hope for the women who are able to leave Chios onto the mainland, saw the birth of the Halcyon Days Project in Athens in August 2018.
Gabrielle graduated from the University of Exeter, UK’s law faculty with first class honours and has practiced in the United Kingdom and Singapore as an advocate and solicitor. This passionate advocate for women’s rights has dedicated countless pro-bono hours in various legal aid clinics and women shelters representing the underprivileged and marginalised women in civl and criminal matters.
___
Sara Bergamaschi – Strategic Advocacy for Human Rights, SAHR
As SAHR’s Executive Director, Sara leads SAHR’s advocacy and resource mobilization efforts to bring attention and funds to our sensitive and high-profile legal cases. She applies her unbridled energy and lust for life to ensure SAHR’s financial sustainability and develop long-lasting strategic partnerships. She also has pioneered SAHR’s trademark ‘Tales of Disobedience’, a unique event series at the crossroads of women’s rights and creative ARTivism.
Sara spearheads SAHR’s gender justice efforts with the UN, governments and other organizations. When deployed in complex emergency and forced displacement settings, Sara’s role is to protect the most vulnerable survivors and unlock barriers to justice by leveraging trustworthy relationships both at the local and at the highest levels, in the dance of compromise.
Previously, she worked for the Italian Embassy in Egypt, the German Development Agency (GIZ) in Morocco, the International Rescue Committee (IRC) in Iraq, UNOCHA in New York City and Jordan, as well as, the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) at the Turkish-Syrian border and in Yemen in 2019.
___
Ghida Anani – Director, Abaad
Ghida is an assistant professor in the Faculty of Public Health at the Lebanese University. In 2008, she received the ‘’Excellence in Collaborative Teaching Award’’ from the American University of Beirut. As an expert in Gender-Based Violence and Child Protection, Anani has published a number of studies, articles, training kits and community educational materials on GBV & Child Sexual Abuse in Lebanon and the MENA region.
In June 2011, she founded and continues to manage ABAAD – Resource Centre for Gender Equality, which was awarded the Womanity Award. In 2014, Anani received the Women Leadership Achievement Award by The World Women Leadership Congress. She has led a number of public opinion campaigns, notably the latest #Undress522 which resulted in a historical parliamentary vote, repealing article 522 from the Lebanese Penal Code. The campaign received the “Women Rights Award” from the Beirut Bar Association and Avenir Liban and an honoring Award by the Lebanese Canadian University in March 2017. In 2019, the campaign received the first prize “UN SDG Action Award” for the most impactful campaign globally.
In 2018, Anani has been honored as part of the program “Icon of Pioneering” & “Leaders from the land of Cedars” beside a number of Lebanese leaders innovative in different sectors. She was also listed by the World Bank as one of 10 Inspiring Women Entrepreneurs Making a Difference across MENA and was featured in the Pioneers & Leaders HUB, launched by the Women as Partners in Progress (WPP) Project within the Gibran Chair for Values and Peace at the University of Maryland. Anani was among the handful of women leaders selected from the MENA region to participate in the Female Leadership Programme by the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs. In 2019, she was also selected by the UN Solutions Summit organizers as one of the 10 extraordinary solution makers across the globe advancing the SDGs.
___
Esha Meher – Legal Associate, SAHR
Esha joined SAHR in 2020 and is our legal associate, working on the frontlines for our cases in Asia, Pacific and MENA region, supporting the Legal Director on advancing justice and accountability for survivors through strategic litigation. She is also an enthusiastic voice on the campaign-advocacy front and sometimes yields her pen for SAHR’s creative team.
A people’s person at heart, Esha is most comfortable making conversations with strangers across all ages on the most unrelated topics; her interests range from a critique of comedy in Iranian cinema to cat-sitting techniques and hacks. An avid reader and a struggling painter, she enjoys listening to Rostropovich’s cello on Friday evenings.
Besides appearing and assisting in multiple cases of constitutional importance in India, Esha has also been a regular part of teaching and civilian advocacy initiatives. She heads the legal team of the Gender Security Project (India), serves as the Founding director of Project DARYA, a London based storytelling initiative, and presides over a Massachusetts-based non-profit.