The Relationship Things community resource aims to prevent sexual assault and gender-based violence, by empowering young people to develop and maintain safe and respectful relationships.
Relationship Things is part of the broader work YWCA Canberra does around primary prevention of violence against women and children, which also includes our program Respect, Communicate, Choose. Our focus on primary violence prevention work is in response to our strategic direction, ‘Communities that are safe and connected’.
The Relationship Things community resources are underpinned by two key theories that inform our violence prevention work: a gender analysis which acknowledges that violence against women is caused by gender inequalities, and primary prevention which aims to prevent violence before it occurs. Understanding the relationship between gender inequalities and violence against women is essential to preventing violence against women.
Relationship Things challenges stereotypes that support the gender inequality that leads to violence against women. They are designed to prevent violence by supporting young people to develop safe, respectful and consensual relationships.
In 2014, Relationship Things was the recipient of an ACT Office for Women Partners in Prevention Award, in the ‘Community’ category.
In August 2015, YWCA Canberra launched Relationship Things Online, an online resource that captures some of the key information from the program for young people to access independently.