Professionals committed to ending sexual violence have developed a number of approaches to decrease its incidence and limit its consequences to victims. Offender treatment specialists and the victim advocacy community have worked independently and often at odds with each other to address the issues involved. After many years of responding individually to the problem of sexual violence, members of these two key groups have realized that to establish a more effective response to the problem, a collaborative model is essential. Collaboration is defined as "a mutually beneficial and well-defined relationship entered into by two or more organizations to achieve common goals." This relationship includes a commitment to a shared definition of mutual relationships and goals, a jointly developed structure and shared responsibility, mutual authority and accountability for success, and shared resources and rewards. This article discusses the Connecticut collaborative model, along with the necessary components to develop a successful collaborative response, the typical problems likely to be encountered, and strategies to overcome these problems. The central thesis of the article is that a collaborative response is critical to combating sexual violence effectively. 8 references