Training on Safeguarding and Gender-Based Violence Prevention : Serenas

Context

Civil society organizations working with youth and climate justice play a key role in advancing human rights, especially in contexts of high vulnerability. However, this field of work can also be marked by power imbalances, which put girls, women, and other individuals at risk — even within spaces that are otherwise committed to human rights. For this reason, it is essential that these organizations are prepared to prevent and respond to situations of abuse, exploitation, and harassment, by adopting effective safeguarding policies.

With this in mind, in 2024, Hivos partnered with Serenas to support its network of partner organizations — both in Brazil and globally — in building and implementing safeguarding policies and providing training on genderbased violence prevention.

Our work

Serenas delivered two online training sessions for Hivos’ partner organizations: (1) Training on Hivos’ Global Safeguarding Policy and (2) Training on Gender Based Violence Prevention. Both sessions were delivered using accessible language and a practical approach, aiming to strengthen participants’ understanding of key concepts such as abuse, exploitation, and sexual harassment, as well as institutional strategies for prevention and response.

In 2025, this partnership will continue with the launch of a guide for social organizations on how to build and implement safeguarding policies and prevent harassment, abuse, and sexual exploitation

Impact

46

participants from both Brazil and other countries attended the trainings

80,8%

of participants reported that, prior to the training, they felt the need for more support to handle cases
of violence.

100%

of participants, both Brazilian and international, rated the training sessions as very good or excellent.

Related Materials

Guia Construindo Ambientes Seguros

Practical Resource

Serenas Team

The full project credits are available in the "Construindo Ambientes Seguros - Guia para Construção e Implementação de Políticas de Salvaguarda para Meninas e Mulheres"