Who we are

Differenza Donna was founded in Rome on 6th March 1989 with the goal of exposing, combating, preventing and overcoming gender-based violence. Since the beginning, the Association has held the view that discrimination, marginalization and oppression of women are a widespread, complex and serious social phenomenon that can be effectively fought through specific competences only.

Over the years, Differenza Donna’s projects have been praised, supported and funded at both national and international levels. Several bodies and institutions have recognized the Association’s professionalism and expertise, among which, at national level: the Ministry of Social Affairs, the Ministry of Labor, the Department for Equal Opportunities – Presidency of the Council of Ministers, La Sapienza University (Rome), Roma Tre University (Rome), Lazio Regional Government, Tuscany Regional Government, Calabria Regional Government, the Council of Rome, the Province of Rome, and a number of local health authorities. At the international level, our work has been recognized by the European Union, the Italian Development Cooperation, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Difference Donna is a founding member of the National Association D.I.Re. – Donne in Rete contro la violenza, the national network of anti-violence centers and women’s houses, of which it was a member until 2019. Since 2015 to 2023 it has been part of PICUM – the Platform for International Cooperation on Undocumented Migrants as an expert NGO. In the same year, it was admitted to the Association of Italian International Cooperation and Solidarity Organizations – AOI. In 2016 Differenza Donna obtained consultative status at ECOSOC – United Nations Economic and Social Council. Since 2020, it has been a member of European network WAVE – Women Against Violence Europe.

Today, Differenza Donna is a great Association, with hundreds of members and a wide range of initiatives aimed at changing the traditional cultural perception of the female gender and seeking effective forms of interventions to overcome the most common difficulties among women. It carries out a vast number of activities thanks to the presence of a large variety of professionals: psychologists, psychotherapists, social workers, doctors, educators, lawyers, journalists, sociologists, IT experts, anthropologists, and others. All of them take part in the Association’s overall project.

The Association has the following structure: President – Board of Directors – Board of Guarantors – Assembly of Members. Members can be active in Differenza Donna’s projects or support the Association’s activities after attending a specialized theoretical and practical course.

During 2018 Differenza Donna continued its commitment to the prevention and combat of gender-based violence thanks to the support of local and national public bodies and organizations (Lazio Region, Campania Region, Municipality of Rome, Municipality of Tivoli, ASL, Department for equal opportunities of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers), as well as that of the European Union.

Below you can download the prospectus of the Contributions received in 2018 broken down according to the funding body:

PUBLIC CONTRIBUTIONS YEAR 2020

Every year Differenza Donna publishes its balance sheet. It is possible to download the Financial Statements, Management Reports, and Reports of the Statutory Auditor of the last years shown below.