Women Building Peace Award

Over the past two decades, international organizations and the U.S. government have increasingly recognized the importance of gender equality in creating enduring, peaceful societies. Women’s sustained, meaningful participation in peace processes is vital to the overall success and longevity of peace agreements. When women are included in peace processes, the resulting peace agreement is 35 percent more likely to last at least 15 years—and yet, from 1992–2019, women accounted for, on average, 6 percent of mediators and 6 percent of signatories in major peace process.

USIP has long been engaged in supporting women peacebuilders in countries affected by conflict—including civil society leaders and peace negotiators in Afghanistan, mediators in Colombia, women-led organizations preventing violent extremism in the Horn of Africa and the Sahel, advocates for gender equality in Pakistan, religious leaders across the Middle East advancing the rights of women and girls, and leaders of nonviolent movements around the globe.

The Women Building Peace Award both reflects the Institute’s comprehensive commitment to gender and peacebuilding and demonstrates the important role women play in peacebuilding efforts.

Every nominee must meet all of the five requirements listed below in order to move forward in the nomination application process.

• The nominee must be a woman of at least 18 years of age.
• The nominee must be a non-U.S. citizen.
• The nominee must be working to build peace in a fragile or conflict-affected country or region.
• The nominee cannot be employed by USIP or have been affiliated with USIP as a contractor, grantee, fellow or recipient of the Women Building Peace Award during the 24 months prior to the submission of this nomination application.
• The nominee must not have been nominated for the Women Building Peace Award in the past two years.

The award honors a woman peacebuilder who has made a substantial contribution to the pursuit of peace and security in her community, region, or issue area. The annual award recipient is chosen with the help of the Women Building Peace Council.The Council is a brain trust of distinguished experts and leaders who offer their guidance and support to USIP as we elevate the voices of women peacebuilders. Drawing upon their collective expertise in the fields of gender and peacebuilding, the Council’s core role is to help select the finalists and the awardee of the annual Women Building Peace Award.

Nominees should demonstrate the following four qualities:

1. Commitment to Peace: A woman who shows a commitment to peace through her work to prevent or resolve conflict nonviolently in a fragile or conflict-affected country or region.
2. Exceptional Leadership:A woman who embodies exceptional leadership through her vision and innovation and has earned the respect of others in the pursuit of peace.
3. Outstanding Practitioner: A woman who is a peacebuilding practitioner working with members of local, national or international communities in an inclusive and participatory manner.
4. Substantial Impact: A woman whose peacebuilding work has led to tangible results.

Nomination applications are to be submitted using the FLUXX online portal. Only those nominating applicants for the award must register for an account. The women who are nominated do not register for a FLUXX account.

The nomination application process comprises two steps.

1. FLUXX Account Registration (Account Registration is not the nomination application)
   Nominators must first register for an account in order to gain access to the nomination application.
   • Open the FLUXX registration page at https://usip.fluxx.io/user_sessions/new.
   • Click “Register for an account” on the right side of the page.
   • Select “Women Building Peace Award” as the competition type.
   • Enter the required information in the Primary Contact Information section and click “Submit Request.”
   • Within one business day, nominators will receive a FLUXX confirmation email containing a username and password.
   • All nominators must register for a FLUXX account by 2:00pm EST on Monday, February 7, 2022.
2. Nomination Application Submission
   Once a nominator receives login credentials, they may begin the nomination application.
   • Open the FLUXX application page https://usip.fluxx.io.
   • Enter the username and password sent in the FLUXX confirmation email.
   • Click “Draft Nominations” in the left toolbar to create a blank draft nomination.
   • Begin entering information in the nomination application.
   • Save the nomination application and click “submit” once it is complete.
   • Nominators will receive a confirmation that their nomination has been received.
   • All completed nomination applications must be received by 2:00pm EST on Monday, February 14, 2022.

For additional information on the FLUXX portal, please see the FLUXX Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs). If you are unable to access the online platform for any reason, email womenbuildingpeace@usip.org for assistance. All email requests will receive a response within one business day.

A strong nomination application will highlight the nominee’s qualifications for this award. Work closely with your nominee to gather information for the nomination application. Below are some guidelines to help you when you are answering questions for the nomination application.

Address each criterion for the award and answer all questions asked.

• Before drafting your response, carefully review the four nomination application criteria and questions listed to understand what is being asked.
• Use specific examples to describe how your nominee meets the criteria such as, “the nominee demonstrated leadership by organizing a women’s advocacy group in her community,” or, “the nominee’s leadership qualities include the following (list specific examples).”
• Avoid generalities like “she’s a hard worker,” “she goes above and beyond her duties.”

Use clear and descriptive language.

• Explain how the nominee’s contribution/achievement is significant and deserving of recognition.
• Include how her work goes beyond normal requirements.
• Value quality over quantity and make every sentence count; remove unnecessary words.
• Use bullet points to emphasize accomplishments.

Describe the nominee’s accomplishments and explain how she completed them.

• List projects and/or activities above and beyond job descriptions.
• List challenges encountered and overcome.
• Use examples to help the award committee understand your nominee’s attributes and contributions.
• Address specific skills that the nominee has in connection to the award.
• Give specific examples of how the nominee achieved her goals.
• Include verifiable and measurable results, where applicable, and report numbers as accurately as possible rather than providing estimations.

Nomination Process Timeline

• The nomination process opens on Wednesday, December 1, 2021.
• All nominators must register for a FLUXX account by 2:00pm EST on Monday, February 7, 2022.
• All completed nomination applications must be received by 2:00pm EST on Monday, February 14, 2022.
• Late nomination applications will not be accepted.
• 10 Finalists will be selected for the award, one of whom will be the award recipient.
• Finalists for the 2022 Women Building Peace Award will be notified in Summer 2022 and publicly announced shortly thereafter.
• Finalists and the awardee for the 2022 Women Building Peace Award will be announced in Fall 2022.

For additional information on the award, please see the Women Building Peace Award Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs).

Who can submit nominations?
While all Women Building Peace Award nominees must be women, both men and women can act as nominators. Nominators should be familiar with the nominee’s peacebuilding work and be able to speak specifically to ways in which the nominee meets the selection criteria.

Can I nominate more than one person?
No. Nominators may not nominate more than one woman.

Does the woman I am nominating need to know I have nominated her?
Yes. Nomination applications should be completed in consultation with the nominee. Nominators should be certain that their nominee is willing and able to travel to the United States and speak publicly about her work.

Can more than one person nominate the same individual?
No. Only one nomination application will be accepted for each woman peacebuilder. If more than one nomination is received for a nominee, the first nomination submitted will be considered for the award.

Can I nominate myself for the award?
No. Self-nominations are not accepted. We encourage you to find a colleague or another individual who is willing to nominate you for the award.

Are transgender women eligible to be nominated for this award?
Yes. Transgender women are eligible to be nominated for the Women Building Peace Award.

Can an individual be nominated posthumously?
No. The Women Building Peace Award does not accept posthumous nominations.

What happens to a nomination application if the nominee does not meet the Eligibility Requirements for the award?
All nomination applications are reviewed to ensure that the nominee meets the Eligibility Requirements. If a nominee does not meet the Eligibility Requirements, the nomination application will not be accepted.

Will the nominee be notified once the nominator has submitted the nomination application?
No. Only the nominator is notified once an application is submitted. It is the responsibility of the nominator to inform the woman peacebuilder that she was nominated for the award.

If the nominee is not chosen as a Finalist for the Women Building Peace Award, is she eligible to apply for another USIP grant or fellowship competition?
Yes. A nominee may apply for a USIP grant or fellowship opportunity. However, nominees must wait 24 months before they can be nominated again for the Women Building Peace Award.

What is a fragile or conflict-affected country or region?
A fragile or conflict-affected country or region is a place where the social compact between people and the state is weak or absent and where violent conflict is ongoing or recently subsided.

What is peacebuilding?
Peacebuilding involves a transformation toward more manageable, peaceful relationships and governance structures. It is the long-term process of addressing root causes and effects, reconciling differences, normalizing relations, and building institutions that can manage conflict without resorting to violence.

Who do I contact if I have additional questions about the award?
If you have questions about the Women Building Peace Award, please send an email to womenbuildingpeace@usip.org. All email queries will receive a response within one business day.

What is the USIP FLUXX Award Nomination Portal?
FLUXX is the online database USIP uses to manage nominations for the Women Building Peace Award. All nomination applications and documents related to this competition will be entered and stored in the FLUXX secure online portal.

Which web browser should be used to access FLUXX in order to submit a nomination?
FLUXX works best when using Google Chrome on a desktop or laptop. FLUXX does not work well on a tablet or mobile device.

Who must register for a FLUXX account?
Only the individual nominating a woman peacebuilder must register for an account. The woman who is nominated does not register for a FLUXX account.

Is there a word-count limit for the nomination application?
Yes. The word-count limits for sections are listed within the nomination application. If the word limit is exceeded, the nomination will not be accepted, and you will need to edit your response to meet the word limit requirements.

Will my nomination application be automatically saved in the FLUXX system?
No, the FLUXX program does not autosave. Save the nomination application frequently by clicking the “Save” button at the bottom right of the page. Do not close the nomination application page or the FLUXX program without clicking “Save.” Updates will be lost if the program is closed without saving. Once the nomination application is saved, it can be accessed again at any time.

If the nomination application will not save, copy and paste the nomination information into a Word.doc and email womenbuildingpeace@usip.org to inform the FLUXX administrator of the issue. All email requests will receive a response within one business day.

Is it possible to edit a nomination application that has not been submitted?
Yes. Open the FLUXX program and go to the toolbar on the left page. Under “Draft Nominations”, select the nomination application to be edited. Click “Edit” in the right corner and continue to enter information in the nomination application. Save the nomination application before closing the page.

How do I submit a completed nomination application?
Once the nomination application is complete, click “Save,” and then click “Submit Nomination”. The FLUXX page will automatically update when a nomination is submitted. In order to view the submitted nomination, click “Submitted Nominations” in the toolbar on the left side of the page. Within one business day nominators will receive an email confirmation that their nomination application was submitted.

Is it possible to withdraw a submitted nomination?
Yes. To withdraw a nomination application, send an email to womenbuildingpeace@usip.org and a FLUXX administrator will withdraw the nomination application. Nominators will be notified once the nomination application has been withdrawn.

Are incomplete nominations applications considered for the award?
No. Incomplete nomination applications will not be accepted. Completed nomination applications must be submitted into the FLUXX system by 2:00pm EST on Monday, February 14, 2022.

If a nomination application is unintentionally submitted before completion, is it possible to have it returned to my Draft Nomination box?
Yes. If an incomplete nomination application is unintentionally submitted before the February 14, 2022 deadline, it can be returned to the nominator for completion. Please email womenbuildingpeace@usip.org informing the FLUXX administrators of the situation and the nomination application will be returned to your “Draft Nominations” list.

Who do I contact if I have questions about FLUXX or if I experience FLUXX technical difficulties?
If you have any FLUXX questions or experience technical difficulties with the FLUXX system, please email womenbuildingpeace@usip.org. All email queries will receive a response within one business day.

• The nomination process opens on Wednesday, December 1, 2021.
• All nominators must register for a FLUXX account by 2:00pm EST on Monday, February 7, 2022.
• All completed nomination applications must be received by 2:00pm EST on Monday, February 14,2022.Late nomination applications will not be considered.
• The 10 finalists for the 2022 Women Building Peace Award will be announced in Summer 2022.
• The finalists and the awardee for the 2022 Women Building Peace Award will be announced and recognized at a ceremony organized by USIP in Fall 2022.