The Global Partnership to End Violence Against Women was launched on March 8, 2010 at a global summit in Washington, DC, with a focus on creating public-private partnerships to end violence against women. The Partnership is itself an example of such a partnership, bringing together the US Department of State, the Avon Foundation and Vital Voices.
The Summit brought together experts from 15 countries representing business, government, law enforcement, the NGO community, media/entertainment, and academia — to strategize about innovative solutions to the global challenge of violence against women, sexual assault (including rape as a weapon of war) and human trafficking.
As part of the summit, an advocacy toolkit was distributed to every participant. This toolkit focused on two things – understanding the issues and strategies for affecting change. The toolkit was authored by Stephenie Foster, Senior Advisor to Vital Voices, and Cindy Dyer, Senior Director for Human Rights at Vital Voices, and brought together international principles and materials, as well as global examples of successful programs and projects.