Working Together with Men (WTWM) supports and mobilises men in Brimbank, Victoria, to take primary prevention actions to prevent violence against women. It supports men through a process of education and capacity-building to develop and lead activities and programs that increase safety for women in Brimbank.
About Working Together with Men
Men from diverse ethnic backgrounds, participated in awareness raising sessions, training, ideas generation events, and upskilling workshops. Seven men were selected to form the Men of Brimbank group to lead place-based primary prevention actions identified by the local community to address drivers of violence against women in their community. WTWM is designed as a flagship project that can be repeated in the future in other settings. Please contact Dr Cuong La if you would like him to share about the project model and findings of the evaluation impact of this project.
Project highlights
The experience of the project confirms that interventions such as this:
- Can get men ‘in the door’, recruiting men successfully from communities to contribute to violence prevention efforts;
- Can, through focused, participatory education, build men’s non-violent and gender-equitable understandings;
- Can foster sustained groups and networks of male advocates; and
- Can build men’s skills and capacity in violence prevention.
Find out more in the impact evaluation (summary report) conducted by Dr Michael Flood from the Queensland University of Technology after the project’s completion in November 2017. Access the full report here.
Read Dr Cuong La’s presentation given at the Working with Men to End Family Violence: ensuring the safety of women & children Conference – 13-14 February, Sydney.
Watch The Men of Brimbank in Action!
A documentary film was made following the seven participants of this project. Journey with the Men of Brimbank as they explore ways to make their community safer for women and children.
What motivation did these men have to take up this role?
What had they learned?
How has it impacted on them as individuals, as family members, with peers and their community?
Watch the longer version here
Working Together With Men is one of the initiatives among many across Australia. To learn more about other strategies to prevent violence against women within different populations and settings, read this 2017 report by ANROWS, co-authored by Elizabeth Orr, Corina Backhouse and Dr Cuong La.
To support the Men of Brimbank, take the first action by signing in this pledge.
Inspired? Get in touch with Dr Cuong La
Contact
Cuong La, PhD
Working Together With Men – Project Manager
03 9248 9657
cuong.la@healthwest.org.au