Avila Kilmurray

Avila Kilmurray is a community activist and peacebuilder in Northern Ireland, with a career spanning five decades in social justice, conflict transformation, and philanthropy. Kilmurray began her work on cross-community projects in Northern Ireland after completing a master's degree in international relations and affairs in Australia. Initially planning a temporary commitment, she remained in Derry to support inter-community work, where she became involved at the community level and helped establish Derry Women's Aid, the first refuge in the area for victims of domestic violence. She also served as the first coordinator of the Northern Ireland Women's Aid Federation and worked in the CARE (Community Action Research & Education) project at Magee College.

After moving to Belfast, Kilmurray became development officer for the Northern Ireland Council of Voluntary Action. During this period, she was a founder member of the Northern Ireland Poverty Lobby and Ulster People's College, and was active in the Northern Ireland Women's Rights Movement. She was appointed the first women's officer for the Amalgamated Transport & General Workers' Union, serving on the Northern Ireland Committee of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions and its executive council. Kilmurray was also a founder member of the Northern Ireland Women's Coalition and participated in its negotiation team for the Good Friday Agreement.

Kilmurray served as director of the Community Foundation for Northern Ireland, which prioritized support for community action and peacebuilding. The foundation managed EU PEACE Programme measures for the reintegration of politically motivated ex-prisoners and support for victims and survivors of violence, as well as locally based activism around community issues and social need. As director, Kilmurray became the first recipient of the Raymond Georis Prize for Innovative Philanthropy in Europe for the foundation's contribution to peacebuilding in Northern Ireland. She also co-founded the Foundations for Peace Network, a peer-to-peer support group for locally based philanthropy in divided societies.

Kilmurray has written extensively on women's issues, community development, and peacebuilding, including the book "Community Activism in a Contested Society: The Story of Northern Ireland" and co-edited "Peacebuilding, Conflict and Community Development" with John Eversley and Sinead Gormally. She has been appointed honorary professor of practice to the Senator George J. Mitchell Institute for Global Peace, Security and Justice at Queen's University Belfast. Kilmurray also serves as program director with the Social Change Initiative and is chairperson of the Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust Peace & Security Grantmaking Committee. Her experience has contributed to discussions on UN Security Council Resolution 1325, on Women, Peace and Security, particularly as it applies to work in Northern Ireland, establishing her as a recognized voice on conflict transformation, philanthropy, and community-led change.