International Civil Society Action Network (ICAN)

 

Mission: Formed in 2005, the International Civil Society Action Network’s  (ICAN) aim is to strengthen civil society and women’s participation and influence in conflict prevention, social justice, coexistence, and peacebuilding efforts, in situations of closed political space and conflict affected states.  

ICAN has several program goals:

To bridge the knowledge and information gap between the international policy community and national level developments as they affect women;

To strengthen the capacities of women to engage more effectively in peace-related initiatives and to enhance their interactions with their international counterparts; and

To bridge the resource gap between major donors and women’s peacebuilding initiatives by setting up a fund to administer small and medium grant-making targeting organizations in conflict-affected societies.

The program has three inter-related strands:

Collection and dissemination of objective information on the situation of women in conflict-affected countries to the international policy community.  We will strive to cover the full gendered (men and women) dimensions of security, human rights and governance issues in countries undergoing crisis and change. 

Provision of trainings to locally based organizations in transition and conflict-affected countries.  Trainings will be determined based on the needs of the recipient groups and will include a focus on thematic issues (e.g. security sector reform, constitutional issues, transitional justice), and technical skills (e.g. organizational management, fundraising, consensus building, conflict resolution.)

Provision of concrete recommendations to the international community regarding: practical actions to support women’s inclusion in peacebuilding processes; identification of women-led peace and coexistence organizations in need of technical and financial resources; and establishment of a database of individual women with strong track record in working on peace and security issues.

 

Location: Washington DC, USA

Channel Grant: Channel made a grant to support the 1325 Global Bridges workshops bringing women leaders together to discuss implementation of Security Council Resolution 1325 and to ensure women’s participation in conflict resolution and peacebuilding in conflict zones. (2008)