Broadening the Circle

Broadening the Circle was initiated by Queer Yukon Society in January 2022 due to concerns on the accessibility of services for women and gender-diverse people experiencing Gender-based Violence. The scope of the research was to better understand and alleviate the factors that put women and gender-diverse people at risk of Gender-based Violence, and to investigate how the crisis of the COVID-19 pandemic may amplify risks. In conjunction with this vision, Broadening the Circle aims to expand the capacity and increase service safety to ensure no further harm is caused to community members.

The recommendations presented in this report are based on lived and living experiences of community members who participated in Broadening the Circle research. These recommendations are for immediate action and are addressed to territorial service providers to mitigate further harm and fatalities related to Gender-based Violence. We hope these recommendations may inform further sovereign actions and decisions taken by Yukon First Nations Governments and Service Providers, according to their own interests and priorities concerning self-governance and self-determination.