1.9 Preventing Sexual Violence

All parts of society must work together to end sexual violence.

Individuals, families and communities from numerous sectors have a role to play, including education, the media, public health, criminal justice and social services.

Strategies and approaches to prevent sexual violence include:

1. Promoting social norms that protect against violence (e.g. bystander approaches or mobilizing men and boys as allies),

2. Teaching skills to prevent sexual violence (e.g. teaching healthy/safe dating and intimate relationship skills to adolescents, promoting healthy sexuality, or empowerment training),

3. Providing opportunities to empower and support women and girls (e.g. strengthening economic support for women and families or strengthening leadership opportunities for girls),

4. Creating protective environments (e.g. improving safety and monitoring in schools, establishing and consistently applying workplace policies, or addressing community-level risks in the environment), and

5. Supporting survivors to lessen harm (e.g. providing survivor-centered services, treating survivors of sexual violence, or treating at-risk children and families to prevent problem behavior, including sex offending).