JERUSALEM CENTER FOR WOMEN
VISION
We envision an empowered Palestinian society where women are standing strong and united, able to develop their potentials and contribute to a free and egalitarian Palestinian society alongside men.
MISSION
Jerusalem Center for Women aims to empower marginalized women in Jerusalem. Our mission is to create a community of Palestinian women who are resilient change makers, through providing them with the needed resources and developing their own potential and that of their families and communities.
Goals
- To protect Palestinian women’s rights and status.
- To Empower Palestinian women and enhance their participation in community activism and politics.
- Strengthening the role of women and youth to become positive change makers.
What we do
Capacity Building & Empowerment Program
JCW strongly believes in the importance of women’s role in developing communities, therefore we equip women with education, training, and practice to sharpen their skills set and practice critical thinking assists women to become effective leaders who can bring sustained structural change and influence their families, organizations, and communities. For this purpose, JCW's Capacity Building and Empowerment Program work to:
- Empower women to participate in the workforce, public forums, and civil society.
- Increase women's skills and confidence to prepare them to become agents of change, and powerful advocates for their community.
- Train a new generation of young leaders dedicated to advancing women's rights and creating a culture of human rights and democracy in Palestine.
Advocacy & Human Rights Program
The Advocacy and Human Rights Program aims to monitor the implementation of international law standards in a local context, and to educate women of East Jerusalem and the West Bank about their rights to change policies that undermine human rights and work towards rights-based alternatives.
On that account, JCW has established a human rights and democracy education project that works in tandem with our Legal Aid and Counseling Unit, to raise women's awareness to their rights, educate women about International Law, and provide women with legal aid and counseling on a wide range of issues, including preparing marriage contracts, property and inheritance rights, home demolition and eviction, domestic abuse, divorce, and custodial law. In the same context, JCW works to defend human rights, and prevent Human Rights violations by raising national, regional, and international awareness to violations of Palestinian women's rights by using varied advocacy techniques, including the use of new media, social networking, lobbying, researching, documenting, and disseminating information to key outlets and decision makers.
Peace Building & Conflict Resolution Program
In a time of heightened violence and insecurity for all Palestinians, JCW believes that women are key agents to achieve peace, social cohesion, and political legitimacy. Therefore, promoting women’s role in peace-building and conflict resolution was a founding concept of JCW. Although the peace process is stagnant, JCW still provides advanced training on conflict management and negotiation to equip women with innovative approaches to peacemaking, such as non-violence communication skills, change management, and inclusive dialogue techniques to secure effective participation of women at all levels of conflict resolution, and to achieve gender-responsive outcomes.
JCW works in partnership with civil society organizations, social activities, and private sector, among others, to increase women’s participation in peace-building through providing expertise to support gender mainstreaming across decision making bodies; and supporting the development of women local networks of leaders and activists. In addition, JCW serves as a platform where women's experiences, challenges, contributions and efforts to promote peace can be highlighted.
Partners
- European Union
- Christlicher Friedensdienst (CFD)
- Norwegian Church Aid (NCA)
- Kvinna till Kvinna
- Women World Day of Prayer
- KAIROS Canada
- National Endowment for Democracy (NED)
- Associazione Orlando
- Olof Palme International Center
- Tides Foundation
- Global Fund for Women
- United Church of Canada
- Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA)
Photo Gallary
Beit Hanina
Jerusalem
Palestinian Territories
