On 14 September 2026, the University of Sarajevo presented TPO Foundation with a Certificate of Appreciation for its contribution to the promotion of gender equality in higher education. The certificate was received on behalf of TPO Foundation by its Director, Prof. Dr. Zilka Spahić Šiljak, and presented by the Rector of the University of Sarajevo, Prof. Dr. Tarik Zaimović, and Vice-Rector Prof. Dr. Arma Tanović-Branković.
This recognition acknowledges TPO Foundation’s long-standing and continuous cooperation with the University of Sarajevo, as well as its broader commitment to advancing gender equality, gender-responsive education, and a culture of equality at universities in Bosnia and Herzegovina and across the region.
Over the past twenty years, TPO Foundation has worked intensively with numerous universities, academic staff, researchers, and students. Cooperation with the University of Sarajevo has held a particularly important place within this work, resulting in numerous academic, research, and educational programmes.
This cooperation has included joint programmes in Gender and Religious Studies, activities marking the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence, research projects, publications, conferences, summer and winter schools, as well as a wide range of educational initiatives dedicated to gender equality, violence prevention, and critical reflection on the intersections of gender, religion, society, and education.
A particularly significant period of cooperation was between 2021 and 2025, during the implementation of the UNIGEM – Universities and Gender Mainstreaming programme, through which universities in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the wider region worked systematically to integrate a gender perspective into institutional policies, curricula, research, and everyday academic life. One of the important and sustainable outcomes of this process was the establishment of the University Gender Resource Centre – UNIGeRC, operating within the Human Rights Centre of the University of Sarajevo. UNIGeRC was established as a platform for the development of knowledge, research, education, and institutional policies in the field of gender equality.
The cooperation has also resulted in the translation and publication of several important publications, the implementation of research on gender equality within academia, and the organisation of numerous public lectures, workshops, schools, and other educational programmes.
Another important continuation of this work is the FER School – Feminism and Religion, an online academic programme that brings together participants from Bosnia and Herzegovina and the wider region and provides a space for interdisciplinary and critical reflection on feminism, religion, gender, violence, peace, media, and social change.
The Certificate of Appreciation presented by the University of Sarajevo is therefore not only a recognition of the work accomplished so far, but also a reminder that gender equality in higher education cannot be achieved through individual projects alone. It requires long-term institutional partnerships, continuous education, and a commitment to ensuring that universities remain spaces of freedom, critical thinking, and equal opportunities for all.
