New learning site to help you prevent sexual misconduct in project partnerships
DUF has launched a new learning site that provides you with knowledge and tools to prevent and act on sexual misconduct. Read along here, go visit the site, and start the conversation!
In international projects it is essential that everyone feels comfortable, safe, and included no matter what social, cultural, or sexual background they might have. Therefore, DUF has a no-tolerance policy for acts of sexual misconduct. However, there is always a possibility for it to happen, and therefore we encourage all international partnerships to equip themselves with knowledge and tools to prevent and act on sexual misconduct.
What does it mean to prevent sexual misconduct?
Preventing sexual misconduct is often referred to as PSHEA, which stands for “Preventing Sexual Harassment, Exploitation and Abuse”. Sexual misconduct can be caused by staff, superiors, but also by volunteers. The three forms of sexual misconduct are briefly explained below:
- Sexual harassment is any improper and unwelcome conduct that might reasonably be expected or be perceived to cause offence or humiliation to another person. Harassment may take the form of words, gestures or actions which tend to annoy, alarm, abuse, demean, intimidate, belittle, humiliate, or embarrass another or which create an intimidating, hostile or offensive environment.
- Sexual exploitation is actual or attempted abuse of a position of vulnerability, power, or trust, for sexual purposes, including, but not limited to, profiting monetarily, socially, or politically from the sexual exploitation of another.
- Sexual abuse is actual or threatened physical intrusion of a sexual nature, whether by force or under unequal or coercive conditions.
In sum, sexual misconduct can take place in a wide range of situations from someone bullying someone else, to someone who misuses her influence and exploit her power, to cases of physical or psychological abuse.
Use DUF’s learning site to work with sexual misconduct
Working with sexual misconduct can be difficult because it can trigger existing power dynamics and can be a very sensitive topic to talk about. To enable a good and safe conversation, DUF has been part in developing a learning site, with the purpose to help you facilitate a conversation in your international partnership about how to prevent and handle possible cases of sexual misconduct.
The learning site provides you with concrete knowledge and tools to prevent sexual misconduct including:
- An introduction to sexual misconduct and how it is linked to issues of power and privilege.
- Five key organizational commitments for your organizations to prevent sexual misconduct and tools to support these commitments.
- A conversation guide to sensitively discuss sexual misconduct.
- Tools to work with preventing sexual misconduct in project planning and monitoring.
- Workshop exercises to discuss prevention of sexual misconduct.
The site and its tools are open and free for everyone to use. All you need is to create an account at fabo.org (follow this link).
When you have created a free account at fabo.org, you can enter the learning site here.
Report irregularities
Even though much can be done to prevent sexual misconduct, there is still a chance it happens. If you have any reasonable suspicion of sexual misconduct – exploitation, harassment, or abuse – in relation to an international project or activity funded by DUF, you can use DUF’s reporting tool to inform us.
The complaint is anonymous and processed by the relevant employee at DUF, and a report is written with recommendations on how to move forward with the case and with clear instructions for all responsible parties.
Find the reporting tool here.
