The chapter offers a variety of frameworks for understanding gender, different types of violence against women and women’s capacities and roles as peacebuilders, drawing on the fields of biology, sociology and political theory and the practice of peacebuilding. Examples from around the world provide snapshots of the complex dynamics of gender, violence and peacebuilding. A gender-sensitive lens on peacebuilding highlights the urgent need to broaden programming to include the empowerment of women and attention to violence against women in both private and public settings.