Findings show that the prevention of violence against women remains on the margins for most local and regional governments. The private nature of woman abuse and sexual violence, and the tendency to blame victims rather than those perpetrating the violence are a significant part of the problem. In response, there has been an attempt to influence local policies and practices, and more specifically, to try to assure gender mainstreaming in the planning, delivery, and evaluation of municipal or regional programs and services. One approach is the emergence of community collaboratives, such as Peel Committee Against Woman Abuse (PCAWA) and Peel Committee on Sexual Assault (PCSA) that bring together agencies and advocates active in the area of violence against women. It is paramount that community collaboratives and their respective memberships work together to develop a shared vision to ensure successful community partnerships, and project successes and credible relationships with funders. The evolution of solid partnerships between local/regional government and community service agencies serves to sustain the collective work of the regional government and the collaboratives. Discussions focused on successes and challenges are detailed, as well as recommendations provided for improving the efficacy and the sustainability of community collaboratives. References