Osnabrück 2004 conference summary
CAHRV's first annual conference brought to the fore the overwhelming interest in Europe in research on gender-based violence that cuts across disciplines, integrates distinct empirical data sets, and engages parallel theoretical discourses. The opening plenary session as well as the sub-network meetings illustrated CAHRV's capacity to respond to this demand by networking the research community, building interdisciplinary frameworks, and stimulating further thinking on central human rights concerns.
The four plenary speakers, one each from CAHRV's four sub-networks, identified cross-cutting issues that weave together different strands of research central to CAHRV. Presentations addressed the health impact of violence, child maltreatment, masculinity, and evaluation research in the health care system.
The sub-networks met in parallel sessions to tackle the work packages and strengthen collaborative working relationships among CARHV's 22 partner institutions and many more individual researcher-members. Like the opening session, all sub-network meetings were open to the public. This gesture was extremely well received and each sub-network was able to attract additional experts. As a result, the sub-networks established themselves as effective working groups.
Registration for the conference exceeded expectations. Over 230 people attended the plenary session and 170 registered for the sub-network meetings; an additional workshop was arranged at short notice to meet the interest.
The first public release of gender-based violence research by German CAHRV members that preceded the CARHV conference attracted approximately 700 experts from policy, advocacy, practice and science. Combining the CAHRV conference with a major national event proved to be an exciting model for next year's CAHRV conference in Paris as this collaboration connected the European project with national and local interest, while putting national findings into a wider international context.
