About Ed

Ed Heisler has extensive experience developing sexual and domestic violence prevention programming and mobilizing and engaging men to reduce the violence and exploitation of women and girls. He accepted his current position in 2012, and has since developed and expanded Men As Peacemakers (MAP) in  Duluth, MN, receiving local and statewide recognition, including multiple recent awards for MAP’s innovative programming.

Men As Peacemakers has grown significantly since its inception in 1996. In the past 3 years the organization has grown from serving 310 people through 5 programs with 7 FTE employees and 50 volunteers each year, to serving over 1,045 people each year through 8 programs with 15 FTE employees and over 200 committed volunteers annually.  Additionally, MAP provides training, presentations, and workshops to over 5,000 people annually.

Ed completed his B.A. , a double major in Peace Studies and English from St. John’s University, drawing from a year of in-depth immersion experiences studying conflict, social change and social equality  in Belfast, Ireland and at the prestigious historically African-American, Morehouse College.
A sought-after speaker and trainer, Ed’s unique background in peacemaking and primary prevention stems from  his work as Community Education Coordinator with Safe Haven Shelter for Battered Women in Duluth, MN, as a former Prevention Specialist and current Co-Coordinator of the  Minnesota Men’s Action Network: Alliance to Prevent Sexual and Domestic Violence (MN-MAN), and as a Core Trainer for A Call To Men.

Additionally, Ed specializes in gender and racial equality, engaging men alongside women, in developing and implementing innovative community-driven violence prevention strategies. His current highlights include the creation and development of the innovative BEST Party Model to prevent sexual violence in the college environment.  Through BEST, he worked with college students to create a peer education program focused on helping students build social environments that provide safety, equality, and respect for women.  Ed is also working with students and community members to develop a replicable BEST Bar Model focused on prevention of sexual violence through the shaping of the bar/club environment.  Utilizing the Spectrum of Prevention, a public health framework, Ed has also created a process for embedding sexual and domestic violence prevention into athletic organizations.

Ed serves on a numbers of local and statewide taskforces, advisory committees, and steering committees related to restorative justice, youth programming, and the prevention of violence against women and children—including trafficking.  His published research culminates around men’s involvement in efforts to prevent violence against women and children, including an article entitled “Male Commitment to Gender Equity and Antiviolence: A National College Study” published in Men’s Lives, 9th edition.

Men As Peacemakers

Men As Peacemakers is an organization that aims to end violence against women and children. Specifically, MAP focuses on preventing sexual assault, dating violence, and domestic violence perpetrated against women, girls, and boys.  MAP engages men, with women, in preventing and repairing the harm predominantly caused by males. Nationally, men perpetrate 92 % of physical assaults against women. Internalizing this fact, Men As Peacemakers engages men in their opportunity, responsibility, and unique potential to prevent violence.  Our education, awareness raising, and training strategies unveil the reality that sexism, violence, and male dominance is embedded in mainstream culture. We are committed to building a new normal in our communities, one where everyday sexism becomes abnormal, leadership is truly diverse, and all people can achieve their full potential.  We envision a community, free from violence against women and children, where everyone, especially men, take responsibility for preventing violence as well as restoring the community after harm.