Through Our Eyes
Addressing gender-based violence through community video

Gender-based violence affects millions of women and girls whose lives have been uprooted by conflict and displacement. Rape is used as a weapon of war; women and girls seeking refuge are often coerced into sex in exchange for food or safe passage. The effects of poverty, stress, and the breakdown of social networks can also contribute to domestic violence and other forms of abuse.

Under the “Through Our Eyes” project, members of conflict-affected communities use participatory video to combat gender-based violence and address related issues, including HIV/AIDS, harmful practices, and women and girls’ welfare. Undertaken as a partnership between the American Refugee Committee (ARC) and C4C, the project was initiated in Guinea and Liberia in early 2006. Since then, “Through Our Eyes” teams have also been established in southern Sudan, Rwanda, northern Uganda, and Thailand. Trained in participatory approaches, these teams collaborate with community members to create dramas and documentaries that communicate critical information and present positive models of change.

Because media channels are often scarce in humanitarian settings, locally-made video can be especially compelling for community members. “Through Our Eyes” teams in Liberia, southern Sudan, and Rwanda have found that audiences become immediately and deeply involved in stories that reflect their daily reality. This engagement helps spark dialogue and exchange on issues that are rarely addressed in other contexts. Further, the medium of video is accessible to everyone, regardless of educational level—a vital consideration in areas where illiteracy rates are high.

A corollary aim of “Through Our Eyes” is to build participatory communication skills at regional as well as local levels, and to promote the sharing of these skills across national borders. To this end, the project has enabled an exchange of videos across sites, country-to-country technical support calls, and numerous cross-training visits: Liberian team members co-facilitated trainings in Rwanda and Sudan; Sudanese team members co-facilitated training in Uganda; and a Ugandan team member co-facilitated the first project workshop in Thailand. It is hoped that this cross-national sharing of experience will help foster a network of community video activists in conflict-affected areas.

Anticipated future activities include participatory assessment of project outcomes and a gathering of participants from diverse sites to exchange experiences and identify "best practices" in the use of community media for outreach on gender violence and related issues.

“Through Our Eyes” activities in Liberia, Rwanda, Uganda, Thailand, and southern Sudan are supported by the Women in Development Office of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID/WID). Other funders of project-related activities have included the Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration (BPRM), the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), and Art Action (formerly Art Venture).

For more information on the “Through Our Eyes” project, please contact:
Lauren Goodsmith
Program Director, Communication for Change
Email: lauren.goodsmith@gmail.com
Tel: (410) 235-2465
or
Chelsea Cooper
Social & Behavior Change Program Officer
American Refugee Committee (ARC)
Email: chelseac@archq.org
Tel: (612) 636-3992

©Communication for Change, Inc. 2003-2010. All rights reserved.