At Global Peace Women, we believe that women are a stronghold in every society. However, the women themselves at times fail to recognize their potential as the building blocks of a healthy society. GPW Uruguay created the ‘Women Transforming Women’ project which was carried out a Women's Reclusion Center in Montevideo, Uruguay, with support from The INR (National Institute of Rehabilitation). The aim of the team's project was to uplift the women’s value and dignity, regardless of their situation of being deprived of liberty.
The INR is a Government Directorate that belongs to the Ministry of the Interior; in charge of regulating the Police and penal institutions in Uruguay. The INR helped the GPW Uruguay team in selecting a group of 20 women between the ages of 25 and 55 years, 60% of whom were sentenced for the crime of so-called "retail drug dealing" and the remaining 40% were sentenced for theft and robbery. The project which encompassed six thematic modules took place between May and September 2022 and was supported by GPW International through the GWD grant.
The team was constituted by members of GPW Uruguay namely:
- Lic. NANCY CAPELLI who holds a Degree in Sociology, a Diploma in Organizational Consulting and a Master in Human Resources Management. She is a former coordinator of Graduates of the Faculty of Communication of the ORT Uruguay University, and an entrepreneur.
-Psych. MIRIAM DOS SANTOS CORNELIUS who is a Psychologist and a full member of AUDEPP (Uruguayan Association of Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy). She has been a candidate for the Presidency of the Institution twice and is an enabling Psychologist of AUDEPP. In addition, she is a specialist in Serious Pathologist and a Co-Teacher in Curriculum Seminars on Psychosis at AUDEPP.
-Mrs. SONIA HERGUIZ who is a Technician in Business Administration and the secretary of the Forensic Technical and Chair of the UDELAR Law School.
-Lic. MELISSA PAREDES who holds a Bachelor of Communications and is a specialist in advertising, marketing and graphic design. She is a Personal Brand Advisor and the Director of the MKT Digital Agency- Pisqo Media.
-Psych. NIBIA PIZZO- Psychologist Esp. who is a specialist in serious pathologist and consumption of psychoactive substances. She is a former member of the technical team of the Casa de Gardel Rehabilitation Center-ASSE- a former Professor of Psychoanalytic Services at the Faculty of Psychology UDELAR and advisor to the Vice Presidency of INAU. President of the Uruguayan Chapter of GPW-Global Peace Women.
-Esc. DORA LYLIAM ROBAINA CAMPO who is a Public Notary and graduated from UDELAR. She serves as a Legal Secretary of the Judiciary, a Professional Ontological Coach and graduated from the Christian Coaching Method School (CC Method) USA. She is a teacher and lecturer in various seminars and organizations.
-Dr. MIRTA ZUNINO-Provided functions as Advisor Lawyer for the Central Free Legal Clinic of the UDELAR Law School, working on family conflicts, including intra-family violence, of people from critical contexts. She is a founding member of GPW Uruguay and the President of the Uruguayan Leadership Conference.
The team helped the participants to improve their life planning by developing a personal vision and mission. The women were also taken through goal setting to help them establish values that could help them thrive in life. The participants also benefited from receiving legal guidance, information on how they can prevent illegal use of drugs and how they can build a personal brand.
Moreover, the team gave the women a space to reflect on their needs and how they could build a new life upon completion of their sentence periods. The team and participants explored ways in which the women could live a full, abundant and meaningful life.
“We shared on right decision making, building powerful and lasting relationships and how the women can face and overcome their fear,” one team member shared as she described how they empowered the women to start living their dream life.
By the end of the project, the participants were equipped with greater awareness of their value as women and encouraged to live with dignity, respecting themselves and those around them.
Indeed, uplifting women’s value and dignity is a sure way of creating healthier and more peaceful societies. As Dr. Junsook Moon, Chairwoman of GPW International once said, “Respect can help us to appreciate our true value and the value of each person. Once we understand the value of other people, we naturally treat them with empathy and love. Respecting our family and community members in this way creates the harmonious culture of One Family under God.”