Reflections on 2025: NNEDV’s Year in Review

December 17, 2025

Together with our membership of the 56 state and U.S. territorial coalitions against domestic violence, their 2,000 member programs, and the millions of survivors they support annually, the National Network to End Domestic Violence (NNEDV) is proud to share with you our 2025 Year in Review.

2025 marked NNEDV’s 35^th anniversary, and our work remains as important as ever. We face the future with the same clarity and conviction that our founders did more than three decades ago. While our strategies may change, our vision never wavers: to create a better, safer world where domestic violence no longer exists.

We’re grateful to our network, our Board of Directors, and our generous partners for making this year’s work possible, including this year’s Silver sponsors and above:

Airbnb, Amazon, Apple, Blue Shield of California Foundation, Bread Financial, Element 74, Gilead Sciences, Inc., Google, Kering Foundation, Major League Baseball, Match Group, Meta, National Football League Foundation, Norton, ReloShare, Seedlings Foundation, The Allstate Foundation, Uber, and ViiV Healthcare.

Our work can’t happen without supporters like you. Support NNEDV today and keep reading to see what we’ve accomplished together.

Public Policy

NNEDV’s Public Policy team puts domestic violence at the forefront of the national agenda and amplifies the voices of survivors, advocates, programs, and coalitions on Capitol Hill and with the Administration. We work closely with our members to understand the ongoing and emerging needs of domestic violence victims and advocacy programs and to ensure those needs are heard and understood by policymakers at the national level.

Team NNEDV at the Advocacy Days Congressional Reception (Photo Credit: The Arts by G)

In January, we delivered informational packets to all 63 newly elected 119^th Congressional Member offices, introducing them to NNEDV and ensuring that our work remained a priority as the new Congress began its term.

In June, we joined national partners in organizing a National Day of Action to urge Congress to protect and invest in federal funding for domestic violence and sexual assault services. The day’s events included the release of an advocacy toolkit, a Congressional press conference on Capitol Hill (hosted by the Bipartisan Domestic Violence Working Group), and a roundtable discussion led by the working group co-chairs.

Later in June, we co-hosted Advocacy Days 2025 with the National Alliance to End Sexual Violence (NAESV) in Washington, DC. More than 200 domestic violence and sexual assault coalition members, local programs, and national partners joined us to meet with their Members of Congress and advocate for increased federal funding.

In September, we partnered with Esperanza United, the Tahirih Justice Center, the Asian Pacific Institute on Gender-Based Violence (API-GBV), and ASISTA on a webinar about “Enhanced Safety Planning for Organizations Serving High-Risk Populations.” More than 400 attendees tuned in to learn how they can protect survivors during these unprecedented times.

Throughout the year, our advocacy work focused on rejecting federal grant terminations and federal job cuts, responding to the President’s devastating proposed budget, ending the government shutdown, calling for Congress to pass the bipartisan Crime Victims Fund Stabilization Act, and overall appropriations efforts to support programs and survivors.

Capacity Technical Assistance

NNEDV’s Capacity Technical Assistance team provides comprehensive, specialized consultation, assistance, and training to coalitions, Family Violence Prevention and Services Act (FVPSA) State Administrators, and local programs to best address survivors’ needs.

Team NNEDV at the Coalition Leadership Summit

In June, we hosted our annual Coalition Leadership Summit in Washington, DC, with the theme, “Hope and Solidarity,” and approximately 75 coalition staff joined us. During the Summit reception, we presented the DREAM Award to Francine Garland Stark, Executive Director of the Maine coalition. As Francine shared in her acceptance speech, “All of our change comes on the wings of the people who have told us what’s happening, trusted us to be with them, and muddled through.”

In August, with the National Center on DV, Trauma, and Mental Health, we co-hosted a training on “Addressing the Complex Needs of Survivors,” with more than 70 attendees (including coalition staff, FVPSA State Administrators, and FVPSA Tribal grantees) on learning how to support survivors’ needs regarding mental health, substance use, and other concerns.

In December, we hosted our Annual Meeting for our coalition membership, with more than 50 attendees joining us to hear mission-critical updates, meet new Executive Directors, and be in community one last time before the year ended.

Throughout the year, we provided more than 500 individual technical assistance sessions, trainings, and meetings for coalitions on a range of issues impacting programs and survivors. We traveled across the world for site visits, conferences, and convenings with our member coalitions in California, the District of Columbia, Guam, Mississippi, New Mexico, the Northern Mariana Islands, Oregon, Wisconsin, Wyoming, and more!

We also convened regular regional and peer-to-peer meetings for coalition staff and leadership, and continued to update resources like Many Voices, Many Traditions: A FVPSA Toolkit for Working with Indigenous Partners.

Domestic Violence Counts

Since 2006, NNEDV’s Domestic Violence Counts team has conducted an annual, unduplicated count of adults and children seeking services from U.S. domestic violence programs during a single 24-hour period. The DV Counts Report informs local and national policy decisions by providing a snapshot of the services people received, requested, and were turned away from due to a lack of resources.

A survivor’s quote from the 19^th Annual Domestic Violence Counts Report

In May, we launched the 19^th Annual Domestic Violence Counts Report during a bipartisan virtual Congressional briefing, held in cooperation with Representatives Debbie Dingell (D-MI), Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA), Gwen Moore (D-WI), and Ann Wagner (R-MO). As the report shows, in just one day in 2024, local programs supported more than 79,000 survivors and their children, but were unable to respond to over 14,000 urgent requests for help due to a lack of resources.

In July, inspired by our advocacy in DV Counts and other initiatives, our partners at ReloShare announced 12 months of free access to The Grove (a real-time shelter availability platform) for every domestic violence, sexual assault, and human trafficking shelter program in the country.

In September, we held the 20^th Annual Domestic Violence Counts survey day, where local programs across the country documented the number of people they served, the types of services requested, the number of requests that they were unable to meet due to a lack of resources, and other critical information. More than 1,700 programs participated in this year’s survey!

Later in September, we attended the 5^th World Conference of Women’s Shelters in Sydney, Australia, and presented a session on “Why We Count: 20 Years of Data on Domestic Violence Survivors and Services in the United States.”

Throughout the year, we continued making the survey process more accessible, including offering Calendly appointments to meet with participating programs, holding our annual informational webinar with a record 977 attendees, and sending all official DV Counts communications in both English and Spanish.

Economic Justice

NNEDV’s Economic Justice team strengthens advocates’ financial expertise to help domestic violence survivors move from short-term safety to long-term security. Through our Independence Program, we provide credit-building microloans to survivors of financial abuse.

Team NNEDV at the Economic Justice Summit

In March, we held our 8^th Annual Economic Justice Summit in Philadelphia, PA, with the theme, “Financial Wellness: Embracing Abundance and Innovation.” More than 200 advocates, allies, and other professionals joined us to share strategies to improve economic security for survivors and enjoyed a full day of wellness and self-care, thanks to the generous support of our longtime partners at The Allstate Foundation. During the Summit, we also launched the newly updated Moving Ahead Workbook to better reflect survivors’ needs.

In August, in partnership with NNEDV, The Allstate Foundation announced the distribution of $2.2 million to 54 coalitions through the annual Economic Empowerment Grant program. Since launching in 2023, the program has provided economic support to an estimated 46,000 survivors.

We launched our Next Step loans in more than 30 states and territories as part of our Independence Program credit-building microloan initiative, helping survivors of financial abuse on the path toward economic stability. Next Step $500 and $1,000 loans are available to successful borrowers of our original $100 First Step loans.

Throughout the year, we disbursed more than 860 Independence Program loans. Our highest credit score increase was 173 points! We also translated the Independence Program application into Mongolian for increased accessibility.

We continued working with Temple University to evaluate the long-term impact of the Independence Program and to identify contributing factors to domestic violence advocates’ financial well-being. We continued partnerships with Futures Without Violence on workforce development, economic empowerment, and survivors’ access to public benefits, and with the Center for Survivor Agency and Justice on thriving wages.

Throughout the year, we provided webinars and trainings for more than 1,300 advocates about economic justice and financial abuse, to bolster the essential services they provide for survivors.

Housing

NNEDV’s Housing team supports transitional housing programs across the country, provides training and program development, and advocates for improved housing-related policies. We also work with national and federal agency partners to increase awareness, services, and accessibility for survivors.

One attendee’s “why” at the Advanced Voluntary Services training

In March, we hosted our annual New Grantee Orientation in Dallas, TX, supporting the Office on Violence Against Women (OVW)’s relationship with transitional housing grantees. This year, 128 participants joined us to learn more about the requirements and spirit of the OVW transitional housing program.

In June, we hosted a virtual regional gathering – Interpretation and Translation Planning for Survivors of Domestic Violence, Dating Violence, Sexual Assault, and Stalking – in partnership with API-GBV. This two-day gathering helped 30 attendees develop interpretation and translation plans for their services.

In July, we hosted a virtual gathering for rural transitional housing programs, covering topics like landlord confidentiality and self-care for rural advocates.

In August, we hosted our annual Advanced Voluntary Services training in Minneapolis, MN, with the theme, “The Fabric of our ‘Why.’” One hundred attendees joined us to explore the nuances of transitional housing work and the “why” that motivates us to keep going.

Throughout the year, we hosted peer-learning calls, provided technical assistance, presented at conferences, released new episodes of the Transitional Housing Podcast on topics like voluntary services, and uploaded new materials to the Transitional Housing Toolkit.

Positively Safe

NNEDV’s Positively Safe team addresses the intersection of domestic violence and HIV/AIDS by developing and providing toolkits, training, and technical assistance to national, state, and local organizations working to address the unique challenges and barriers faced by domestic violence survivors living with and at risk for HIV/AIDS.

Team NNEDV and colleagues at the 5^th World Conference of Women’s Shelters

Our team was busy with trainings and conferences! Highlights included: “Trauma-Informed Practices for Survivors of IPV Living with HIV” at the National Conference on Social Work and HIV/AIDS, “The Real Deal: Context from Listening Sessions with Black Women Living with HIV” at the Delaware Coalition Against Domestic Violence’s Annual Summit, and presenting and facilitating sessions at the 5^th World Conference of Women’s Shelters.

In September, in partnership with Positive Women’s Network, we co-launched a resource titled “Our Stories, Our Safety,” reviewing key concerns surrounding disclosure for women living with HIV. One of the most powerful excerpts from the resource was: “Our ask is simple, but urgent: walk with us. Understand the risks we carry. Believe in our expertise. Center our safety. And work alongside us to dismantle the legal and systemic violence that keeps us from living freely, openly, and safely. This isn’t just about disclosure, it’s about dignity. It’s about justice. It’s about affirming that our lives are worthy of care, of choice, of safety.”

We continued releasing new and updated resources in our Positively Safe toolkit, including guidance on helping survivors navigate the health care system, tips for advocates working with survivors who want to disclose their HIV status, media guides, and more.

Throughout the year, we presented at additional panels and conferences, developed new materials and resources, and conducted additional webinars and trainings on the intersection of domestic violence and HIV/AIDs for more than 800 attendees.

Safety Net

NNEDV’s Safety Net team focuses on the intersection of technology, privacy, confidentiality, and innovation by educating and training advocates and professionals in the justice system and by working with communities, agencies, and tech companies to respond to tech abuse, support survivors in their use of tech, and harness tech to improve services.

Team NNEDV at Safety Net’s Virtual Tech Summit 2025

In July, we held our Virtual Tech Summit 2025 with the theme, “25 Years of Tech Safety: Reflecting Back and Looking Forward.” More than 470 victim service advocates, legal professionals, and technologists joined us for live and pre-recorded sessions on topics like artificial intelligence, stalkerware, non-consensual intimate image sharing, and more.

In August, we submitted a comment to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) regarding the petition to vacate its 2021 order against stalkerware app company Support King, LLC. This order was a landmark safeguard against invasive surveillance tools designed to secretly monitor individuals’ devices (and routinely weaponized by abusers), and our comments urged the FTC to uphold its original order. Excitedly, in early December, the FTC denied the request to vacate the order, quoting NNEDV’s comments throughout the decision.

In September, we attended the 5^th World Conference of Women’s Shelters in Sydney, Australia, and presented three sessions on encryption, tech safety, and the impact of AI on women’s safety.

In September, in partnership with Ring, we completed the third year of our Ring Donation Program for Domestic Violence Survivors. In December, we announced the fourth year of the program, with Ring generously providing an additional 10,000 devices to eligible organizations supporting survivors who use these tools as part of their safety plans.

Throughout the year, we held webinars and trainings on tech-related topics, reaching more than 6,000 people. We continued providing advisory expertise to tech companies and released many new and updated resources on topics like safer dating, co-parenting apps, AI chatbots, Zoom security, and more on TechSafety.org.

WomensLaw

NNEDV’s WomensLaw team provides free, individualized, and confidential legal information and support in English and Spanish for survivors, their advocates, and their loved ones through the WomensLaw Email Hotline and state- and territory-specific, plain-language legal information and resources on WomensLaw.org.

Quote from a WomensLaw Email Hotline user about the impact of our services

In February, we celebrated 25 years of serving survivors and launched an anniversary celebration page where we shared our project’s timeline!

In June, we created three new Quick Guides to help survivors navigate divorce and criminal processes they might be involved in as a result of the abuse. We also translated these Quick Guides into Spanish and Korean.

In July and August, in collaboration with the National Domestic Violence Hotline, we helped conduct a survey to learn about victims’ and survivors’ experiences with online abuse and harassment, also known as tech-facilitated abuse.

In September, we completed the translation of our Hawai‘i content into Spanish. Hawai‘i was our 42^nd translated state, following our 41^st (Kentucky) in August.

Also in September, we completed three major grant partnerships with Esperanza United, the King Baudouin Foundation, and the National Domestic Violence Hotline. Over several years, these grants enabled us to answer more than 8,700 Email Hotline conversations, create or update more than 3,000 pieces of content, and translate more than 1,600 pages into Spanish.

We helped more than 4,500 people in English and Spanish on the WomensLaw Email Hotline. This free resource provides individualized, confidential legal information for survivors, their advocates, and their loved ones in both English and Spanish.

Throughout the year, we continued hosting webinars, translating content into Spanish, and revising content about abuse using technology, state-specific gun laws, immigration, emotional abuse, and more. We also signed on to amicus briefs for cases impacting survivors, including defamation, birthright citizenship, and the First and Second Amendments.

Communications

Team NNEDV celebrates Purple Thursday, an awareness day during Domestic Violence Awareness Month

In October, in partnership with the Pennsylvania Coalition Against Domestic Violence, we launched the fifth year of the #Every1KnowsSome1 Domestic Violence Awareness Month campaign and the #GiveForDV campaign for GivingTuesday and end-of-year fundraising. Participating organizations have raised more than $12,000 to date.

Throughout the year, our social media content generated more than 3.3 million total impressions and more than 128,000 total engagements, and our emails reached more than 20,000 subscribers. (Follow us on X/Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn, and sign up for our emails here!)

More than 10.1 million people visited our websites (NNEDV.org, TechSafety.org, and WomensLaw.org) to learn about our work and find valuable resources.

We were mentioned in more than 1,400 unique press pieces, with more than 8.5 billion total impressions, at a total advertising value equivalency of more than $78.7 million. Media highlights during the year included:

NNEDV is grateful to the supporters and partners who make this work possible, and we look forward to another impactful year ahead.

We invite you to support our work to create a world where domestic violence no longer exists.