Contrasting gender violence with Oxfam Italia

Fondazione Giacomo Brodolini, together with Oxfam Italia and Oxfam Italia Intercultura, has just launched the project Connecting spheres: strengthening civil society organisations and networks to protect gender-based violence survivors in all their diversity, aimed at ending gender-based violence against Lgbtqia+ people by providing support to civil society organisations, following an intersectional approach. 

The project is funded by the European Union through the Daphne programme. For the first time, instead of funding actions to contrast gender-based violence, the European Commission's Directorate-General for Justice and Consumers (DG JUST) has decided to entrust the distribution of the funds to local organisations, in order to allocate them among small and medium-sized associations rooted in the territories, committed in contrasting gender-based violence at a local level.  

This is an important recognition of the widespread presence of organisations when it comes to violence.

Inspired by the Istanbul Convention, Connecting spheres aims to overcome discrimination by tackling gender stereotypes, and to strengthen support services aimed at people who have experienced gender-based violence, thanks also to improved legislative frameworks.

The project's main activities include funding of projects for preventing gender-based violence, capacity-building programmes for civil society organisations and dissemination of recommendations. 

The ultimate goal is to create a more inclusive and equal society, where people belonging to the Lgbtqia+ community can live their lives without being afraid of violence, initiating a systemic change and ensuring protection and empowerment.