VOICES it is a project – financed by the Erasmus+ programme means the Italian Youth Agency – which D.i.Re – Women in Network against violence is developing in collaboration with the Icelandic association Stígamót, engaged for years in the prevention and fight against sexual violence.
Specifically, VOICES aims to prevent sexual violence among young people and improve support for survivors.
There are three macro-areas of intervention:
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- Prevention:
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VOICES involves young people between 18 and 25 years old in activities of comparison, listening and creation of concrete tools to recognize, avoid and Save combat sexual violence.
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- Training:
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Through international training, VOICES strengthens the skills of the operators of the Anti-Violence Centers, improving the response to the needs of young women survivors.
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- Support and research:
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Collection and analysis of international best practices to improve interventions supporting young survivors of sexual violence.
The goal is to build a network of educational practices, local actions and shared campaigns that can be adapted to different European contexts, always putting at the center the voices of the girls and boys, theirs right to healthy relationships and the experiences of survivors.
"The first action of the VOICES project saw the participation of a delegation from the Network D.i.Re together with activists and experts from the partner organization Stígamót, on the occasion of a particularly inspiring joint staff meeting.” Declares the project manager Margherita Apone “The exchange allowed us to deepen our knowledge of the Icelandic experience in preventing sexual violence, highlighting the effectiveness of an integrated system involving strategic partners and actors in daily contact with young people, such as the VA Youth Centers.. "
In Iceland, Stígamót's work is fully recognized by both the public and institutions. Its activities are based on targeted policies and supported by ongoing data collection, with widespread interventions throughout the country.