X-MEN will contribute to preventing gender-based violence

X-MEN – Masculinities, Empathy, Nonviolence promotes non-violent and equitable masculinities and the development of strategies that break the cycles of violence, including gender-based violence (GBV). The project will be implemented in 3 European countries – Portugal, Spain and Croatia.

During adolescence and early adulthood, gendered behaviours and attitudes are often influenced (and might be exacerbated) by the institutional contexts where the risk of being exposed to symbolic and actual violence is considerably higher, such as juvenile detention centres and refugee camps. Most of these contexts are hierarchical institutions ‘sealed off’ from the outside world, and present challenges to promoting empathy and equitable gender relations.