Gender and Mediation

The document outlines the structural, sociocultural, and physical risks women face when participating in peace mediation, arguing that traditional security frameworks often overlook these gender-specific vulnerabilities. It highlights risks ranging from exclusion in pre-negotiations and reputational attacks to digital divide issues and psychological trauma. The briefing concludes that meaningful inclusion requires gender-sensitive security provisions, early involvement of women, and the recognition of informal mediation contributions.

• Women are frequently excluded from the pre-negotiation stage of peace processes, which limits their ability to set the agenda and increases the requirements for their later entry into formal talks.
• Participation in peace processes can lead to disproportionate risks for women, including physical and reputational harm resulting from the breach of restrictive gender norms.
• Women's mediation efforts, particularly at the informal level, are often undervalued or co-opted by more powerful actors due to narrow definitions of mediation.
• Digital technology introduces new risks for women mediators, including the 'digital divide' regarding access and literacy, as well as increased vulnerability to online intimidation and harassment.
• Women in mediation face significant psychological burdens, including the risk of re-traumatisation from recounting conflict-induced violence and burnout from balancing mediation with domestic responsibilities.
• The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated existing security risks for women peacebuilders, increased domestic violence, and disrupted the implementation of peace agreements through funding cuts.

APA

Smith, C. S., & Tank, P. (2022). Gender and Mediation. Peace Research Institute Oslo. https://cdn.cloud.prio.org/files/1e8f3fa6-afdb-4173-a6db-b151e74fd67f/Gender related risk in Mediation.pdf?inline=true

Chicago

Smith, Carina Strøm, and Pinar Tank. Gender and Mediation. Peace Research Institute Oslo, 2022. https://cdn.cloud.prio.org/files/1e8f3fa6-afdb-4173-a6db-b151e74fd67f/Gender related risk in Mediation.pdf?inline=true.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Smith |first1=Carina Strøm |last2=Tank |first2=Pinar |title=Gender and Mediation |publisher=Peace Research Institute Oslo |date=20 April 2022 |url=https://cdn.cloud.prio.org/files/1e8f3fa6-afdb-4173-a6db-b151e74fd67f/Gender related risk in Mediation.pdf?inline=true |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{smith2022gender, author = {Smith, Carina Strøm and Tank, Pinar}, title = {{Gender and Mediation}}, institution = {Peace Research Institute Oslo}, year = {2022}, month = apr, url = {https://cdn.cloud.prio.org/files/1e8f3fa6-afdb-4173-a6db-b151e74fd67f/Gender related risk in Mediation.pdf?inline=true}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }