Feminist Disarmament
On March 10th, at the UN Church Centre, floor 10, a critical side event titled “Disarmament Education as a Women Peace and Security Solution for the Climate and Gender Nexus” took place. Facilitated by Alley McDonald, National Coordinator of Canadian Voice for Peace, Linda Kalafatidis, Board Director, and Lia Holla, Executive Director of International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War Canada, the event aimed to equip attendees with practical tools for integrating gender-sensitive disarmament education within local and national frameworks.
The workshop brought out critical intersections between climate change, nuclear disarmament, and gender equality, underscoring the importance of feminist disarmament. Feminist disarmament specifically advocates for dismantling patriarchal structures and militarised mindsets, promoting human security, and emphasizing non-violent conflict resolution strategies. It critically examines and opposes militaristic and patriarchal frameworks that perpetuate violence and conflict.
Tsitsi from Rural Women’s Assembly (RWA), reflecting on her participation, remarked, “Feminist disarmament is crucial for peacebuilding, as it prioritises human security and well-being over national security interests, especially in conflict-affected regions in Africa like the Democratic Republic of Congo and Sudan, where prolonged wars have devastated communities and disproportionately affected women and girls. It challenges entrenched cultures of militarism and patriarchy, advocating for shifting global priorities from warfare to investing in human dignity and sustainable peace.”
The workshop underscored the stark contrast between the enormous funding allocated to nuclear weapons—running into trillions of dollars—and the dire humanitarian crises affecting millions globally. By prioritizing feminist disarmament education, the initiative seeks to redirect global attention and resources from military escalation toward human security, gender equity, and ecological sustainability. The impactful event emphasised the essential role education, policy reform, and advocacy play in creating peaceful and equitable societies, offering a transformative roadmap at the nexus of gender justice, climate resilience, and disarmament.
