Introduction: some reflections in these promising and challenging times

This introduction discusses the context and contours of some of the recent and emerging debates on gender based violence (GBV) in university communities. It begins by defining GBV as ‘behaviour or attitudes underpinned by inequitable power relations that hurt, threaten or undermine people because of their (perceived) gender or sexuality’. GBV encompasses a continuum of behaviours and attitudes such as domestic violence, sexual violence, and expressions on social media which normalise sexism and sexual objectification. This introduction explains the nature of the problem associated with GBV, how to understand and respond to the possibilities and challenges that it presents, and how gender as a lens is increasingly becoming obscured when considering the causes and consequences of GBV. It also argues that we need to rethink the punitive responses, service provision and prevention education used to address GBV in universities. Finally, it provides an overview of the chapters that follow.