5WCWS Logo

5th World Conference of Women's Shelters
15-18 Sept 2025

Sydney, Australia

About the hosts

Meet the people who are hosting the event.

Wesnet Logo

Wesnet

Wesnet (the Women’s Services Network) Inc. provides relief and support to women and children experiencing domestic and family violence, intimate partner violence and other forms of gender-based violence. A national network, our members are the specialist domestic and family violence services across Australia.

Wesnet is also the leading non-profit organisation in Australia working on the intersection of technology and violence against women. We work to ensure that women can remain connected through technology, that people who choose to misuse technology for abusive purposes are disrupted and held to account, and to educate and support individuals, organisations and broader society to end technology facilitated abuse.

GNWS Logo

Global Network of Women’s Shelters (GNWS)

The GNWS was born at the 1st World Conference of Women’s Shelters in Edmonton, Canada, in 2008 and founded in 2009 by a globally diverse group of national networks and shelters from around the world. It has networks in Africa, America, Asia, Europe, the Middle East & North Africa, and Oceania, working to: ensure global awareness of violence against women and their children; support and strengthen the women’s shelter movement; promote effective policies and their implementation in order to prevent violence and to protect and empower women and their children; and promote social change that ends violence and oppression against women.

Key dates

Women Gathering Elements

Express your interest

Conference starts in

51
weeks
03
days
20
hours
34
minutes

Acknowledgement of country

We acknowledge the Traditional Owners of the lands and waters throughout Australia and pay respect to the Elders past, present and emerging. We recognise the importance of connection to culture, land, kinship and community to the health and wellbeing of Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander families. We acknowledge the cultural practices and traditions still carried out today and being passed down to future generations.

Indigenous Flag
Torres Stait Flag

WESNET and GNWS are committed to UN Sustainable Development Goal no. 5:

Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls

The 17 GOALS of Sustainable Development sdgs.un.org/goals
Gender Equality logo