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There is no movement without media: 12 tips for successful engagement

Posted on by Gillian Cooper

Back in the 1990s, when Akhila Sivadas was part of a growing women’s rights movement in India, she and other activists, frustrated with the lack of attention to their cause, recognised that their movement needed effective engagement with the media to grow and succeed.

Akhila now leads the Centre for Advocacy Research in New Delhi, which helps civil society organisations to craft media strategies. They also track and monitor the media on behalf of their stakeholders across India.

‘Akhila reminded civil society partners that they needed to take “media advocacy” as seriously as their policy advocacy goals.’

Akhila, alongside Ambika Raja, a reporter with disabilities at The New Indian Express, led a session on media engagement at a Foundation learning exchange on disability rights. In the presentation, Akhila reminded civil society partners that they needed to take ‘media advocacy’ as seriously as their policy advocacy goals.

Akhila Sivadas (left) and Ambika Raja share their media engagement tips at the disabilities learning exchange in Bengaluru, India

Participants at the exchange expressed scepticism about whether to trust the media, given the current political climate and a tendency toward distortion. There was also understandable confusion over the dizzying array of media channels to choose from.

Here are some of the strategies and tactics that Akhila and Ambika shared in response:

  1. Find kindred spirts in the media. They are certain to exist, but it takes time and research to find the journalists and bloggers who share an interest in your advocacy issue. Interact regularly with reporters whose work you like and understand the kinds of stories they want. This knowledge can be helpful when crafting story ideas.
  2. Clear, confident messaging. A single, compelling idea is more likely to attract attention. Be ready with background information and data to back up your points. Remember that journalists and editors want to get to the heart of the issue, so do not overburden them with all the issues and causes you are working on.
  3. Pique their interest. Remember that media houses have a commercial imperative. They want to feature important stories, but they also want to increase their readership. Prepare your stories and press releases with attention-grabbing titles and clear, well-written messaging. Present an interesting angle to your story—one that discusses not just the issue at hand but also how it might affect the everyday person. Journalists and audiences in particular like ‘human interest stories’: so move beyond events and look for stories.
  4. Track the issues covered in the news. Journalists will be encouraged to write about your issue if you can show evidence that it is under-reported. Providing that evidence takes time and research but it will be worth it.
  5. Social media influences mainstream news. If the mainstream media is ignoring your cause, consider ramping up your social media output, or using alternative media. Journalists are constantly trawling through social media for stories and to identify trends. Create a short video about your cause and tag relevant media and influencers. This may grab the attention of those who can get your story out to a wider audience.
  6. Don’t give up if ‘breaking news’ drowns your story. Let the dust settle on the big story of the day and go back tomorrow—or next week—and try again. Revamp the story, refresh the title, add some new quotes, and continue to nurture your relationships with journalists.
  7. Try newsjacking. If there is a compelling story that has dominated the news, show how the issue you are working on connects to it. For example, if your organisation is working to advance the rights of persons with disabilities and there has been a natural disaster somewhere, build a story on persons with disabilities affected by the disaster, or how you are trying to help them. This is a clever way of amplifying your voice and showing how your issue is relevant to current events.
  8. Choose the best spokesperson for your story. Ensure your spokespeople understand your issue thoroughly and will not distort your message. The best spokespeople are often those with a lived experience of your issue who can articulate it clearly and concisely. Different mediums might require different spokespeople – or a range of different people with different viewpoints.
  9. Data and evidence improve credibility. In the print press, a local story will go to the national bureau and then to the chief editor for final approval. When you pitch your story, include key data and evidence in your pitch. This makes your story more credible and likely to grab the attention of editors. Citizen data from scorecards and audit reports are good sources of local-level data.
  10. Run a fellowship programme for journalists. If there is a lack of sensitivity and awareness of your cause, you need to build the media’s awareness yourself. Consider running a fellowship programme or providing support for young journalists to write about your cause.
  11. Track the work of journalists you like and have worked with already. If a journalist has featured a story on your issue in the past, keep track of their work. You may see the opportunity to interest them in a follow up story to review progress made over the year on your issue.
  12. Use politicians and celebrities to attract newsmakers, but also invite journalists who focus on substance. Inviting Ministers and high profile public figures to your events can attract the mainstream media; however, their presence can eclipse coverage of your issue. The media is likely to be more interested in what the Minister or celebrity has to say than what you have to say. While this is frustrating, civil society can use these events to invite a range of journalists—those focusing on the sound bites as well as those focusing on more in-depth pieces. Both give your issue coverage and reach a range of audiences.

In summary, Ambika reminded us that journalists are doing their best in a challenging climate and that there are journalists out there dedicated to just causes; it is simply up to us to build a relationship with them. Akhila encouraged participants not to give up: ‘Our issues are a struggle and if you start from that premise, you’ll be reminded to just keep at it until you find success.’

Gillian Cooper is Programme Manager of Knowledge, Learning, and Communications at the Commonwealth Foundation. 

Message from the Directorate

Posted on by Commonwealth Foundation

 

Vijay Krishnarayan

Director-General

Many of the challenges we face today are either too big or too small for individual governments to confront. Whether it’s climate change, rapid urbanisation, food insecurity, water scarcity, or terms of trade, institutions are looking for answers.

There was an assumed consensus that these things were best tackled by states working together on a regional or international basis. Those assumptions are being questioned. This is a moment for institutions to take a good look at the part they must play in delivering a sustainable future.

‘There is a brighter future ahead and we are part of it.’

This is as true for the Commonwealth as it is for any other system in the multilateral world. Shridath Ramphal famously said ‘The Commonwealth cannot negotiate for the world but it can help the world to negotiate.’ With its emphasis on mutuality, collegiality, and diversity—you can see how the Commonwealth can add value to a global system that aspires to work for all.

The Foundation is a cog in the Commonwealth wheel. We were established more than 50 years ago because the Commonwealth is as much an association of peoples as it is of governments. These pages show that premise remains true but they also illustrate how we have applied ourselves in a contemporary context. Since 2012 the Foundation has focussed on strengthening civic participation in governance, which now resonates with the Sustainable Development Goals.

‘The Foundation is a cog in the Commonwealth wheel. We were established more than 50 years ago because the Commonwealth is as much an association of peoples as it is of governments.’

The Foundation is showing that in addition to convening member states, the Commonwealth can bring diverse voices together, particularly the less heard so that better decisions are made. That’s how we contribute to ‘leaving no one behind.’

At a time when citizens are questioning whether institutions can deliver in the face of global challenges the Foundation has lit a candle. With our new publication we show that we are not alone and that the movement for inclusive development continues to grow. There is a brighter future ahead and we are part of it.

Editor’s note: Vijay Krishnarayan finished his second term as Director-General of the Commonwealth Foundation on Friday 28 June 2019. Our current Director-General is Dr Anne Therese Gallagher.

 

Myn Garcia

Deputy Director-General

Over the last seven years, we have consistently reflected on our work, asking ourselves about the value we are adding to governance and development. We are committed to adaptive learning and management and have dedicated ourselves to strengthening civic voices to constructively engage in policy processes and contribute to shaping public discourse.

‘Building trust is imperative in successful engagements and partnerships in governance.’

One of the major learnings from our 2012-2017 strategy was that we must be better at integrating gender in our programme. Under the new strategy we have a stronger focus on gender equality underpinned by the framework of gender and its intersectionality. In keeping with our systems approach, this framework allows for an understanding of the different intersecting systems of oppression and recognises the different ways that gender inequality is shaped by these intersections. The direction, speed and acceptance of change in a complex social and political system are difficult to predict. We have been more mindful that using a longer-term timeframe is critical to the success of the Foundation’s strategic priorities. Strengthening civic voices means change over the long term.

Our planning now factors this in. The highest degree of change can be observed when projects are based on the partners’ own assessment; taking the lead in determining and articulating the change they want to achieve, the capacities they want to strengthen, and the effective approaches to be taken. Customising support and taking into consideration the cultural and political context is fundamental.

‘Under the new strategy we have a stronger focus on gender equality underpinned by the framework of gender and its intersectionality’

There are no short cuts for anchoring the work on local ownership and supporting a process beyond enhancing existing knowledge and skills of individuals whereby civic voices strengthen, create, adapt and maintain their capacity over time and realise their own agency. We accompany partners, acknowledging that one size does not fit all and we facilitate processes in prioritising and planning instead of imposing outside analyses and interests. We have learned that support to civic voices must address individual needs and consider how skills and abilities materialise in organisational and institutional processes. We recognise that structures and processes are influenced by system-wide issues. We have found that initiatives and programmes require a wide range of adult learning approaches that are better adapted than traditional training and workshops. These include learning by doing, peer to peer mentoring and on-site coaching. Combined with these, research, technical assistance, pilot projects, training, and evaluations have proven useful.

We have also seen how individual strengths organised in and working as a part of coalitions or alliances have demonstrated the effectiveness of collective efforts in engaging in policy advocacy and campaigning. One ingredient that features in our work is partnering with effective and strong local resource partners who know the local context and have credibility in-country to deliver the gamut of support. This approach contributes in the long term to strengthening the local enabling environment. And finally, building trust is imperative in successful engagements and partnerships in governance. One way that civil society is able to build trust is to demonstrate its technical capacity and willingness to constructively engage in policy processes in governance.

The pages of our new publication, Stronger civic voices across the Commonwealth, will give you a sense of what these lessons look like. They help us to be defiant in hope in such a time as this.

Dr Anne Therese Gallagher AO appointed as Director-General

Posted on by Commonwealth Foundation

Following a rigorous selection process and approval from its 46 member states, Dr Anne Therese Gallagher AO has been announced as the new Director-General of the Commonwealth Foundation, the Commonwealth’s agency for civil society. Dr Gallagher will assume the role in June 2019 at the Foundation’s offices in Marlborough House, London.

Since its relaunch in 2012, The Foundation has been developing the capacity of civil society to play its part in making policy and institutions more responsive and accountable to people’s needs.

It has done so by providing technical assistance and over £6 million worth of funding for programmes and projects Commonwealth-wide including a range of civil society capacity development initiatives with an explicit focus on governance and gender. In addition, its annual Commonwealth Short Story Prize, delivered through its sub-brand, Commonwealth Writers, now receives over 5000 submissions each year from 50 countries.

Dr Gallagher brings extensive leadership experience to the role. A lawyer, practitioner, teacher and scholar, her long international career has involved specialisation in a wide range of areas including human rights and the administration of criminal justice.

After several years teaching in the law school of the Australian National University, Dr Gallagher was recruited to the United Nations where she served for 12 years, including as special adviser to the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Mary Robinson. From 2003, Anne worked with the Association of South-East Asian Nations and its ten Member States to strengthen legislative and criminal justice responses to human trafficking and related exploitation.

Her recent and current appointments include President of the International Catholic Migration Commission; Co-Chair of the International Bar Association’s Presidential Task Force on Human Trafficking; and member of the Asia Dialogue on Forced Migration.

Dr Gallagher’s work for human rights, justice and equality has been widely recognised, earning her, among other honours, the Australian Freedom Award and the ‘Peace Woman of the Year’ award for the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom. In 2012, she was appointed Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) and named a ‘2012 hero’ by US Secretary of State Hilary Clinton.

On news of her appointment, Dr Gallagher said:

‘As the civil society voice of the Commonwealth, the Foundation has played a vital role in advancing core Commonwealth values of democracy, freedom, human rights and the rule of law.

‘That role will continue to be critical as we move into a future where truly inclusive multilateral cooperation is becoming ever more urgent. I am honoured to take the helm of the Foundation at this exciting, challenging time.’

The current Director-General, Vijay Krishnarayan, who has overseen the implementation of two strategic plans including the Commonwealth Foundation’s 2012 relaunch, said:

‘As I come to the end of my two terms as the Director-General of the Commonwealth Foundation, I reflect on the great distance the organisation has travelled since 2012. Together, our board, civil society stakeholders and staff have dedicated the Foundation to pluralism and inclusion.

‘It has been a great privilege to lead the organisation, which is unique in the way that it combines an intergovernmental mandate, with a civil society mission. I am confident that under Anne’s leadership the Foundation will go from strength to strength as a partner that delivers development for all.’

Vijay Krishnarayan, the Foundation’s current Director-General, is nearing the end of his second term

Chair of the Board of Governors, Ambassador Shree Baboo Chekitan Servansing, said of the appointment:

‘I would like to congratulate Dr Anne Gallagher on her appointment as the new Director-General of the Commonwealth Foundation. I have no doubt that her wide experience and deep involvement with civil society will help to steer the Foundation to the next stage of its development.

‘An intergovernmental organisation straddling the delicate path of interacting with civil society to promote inclusive governance, this unique Commonwealth institution has to always reinvent itself to maintain its legitimacy and relevance to deliver on its mission in an ever challenging global environment.

‘Dr Gallagher has the intellectual competence and diplomatic skills to deliver on this mission. I wish to welcome her to the Commonwealth Foundation and wish her all the best in her new assignment.’

For more information

For further information about the Commonwealth Foundation, further comments, or photo requests, please contact Leo Kiss, Communications Officer, on l.kiss@commonwealth.int.

Notes

  • The Commonwealth Foundation is one of the Commonwealth’s three intergovernmental agencies alongside the Commonwealth Secretariat and the Commonwealth of Learning.
  • The Director-General is responsible for all activities of the Commonwealth Foundation and reports to the Chair of the Board.
  • Annual priorities of the Commonwealth Foundation are determined by a Board of Governors, comprising representatives of Commonwealth governments and High Commissioners based in London, civil society representatives, and the Commonwealth Secretary-General. The Chair of the Foundation is a distinguished private citizen of a Commonwealth country appointed by Heads of Government.
  • The Commonwealth Short Story Prize is an annual competition which is free to enter for Commonwealth citizens.

Just because they care: developing the capacity of family carers to advocate for their rights

Posted on by Victoria Nicholson

Family carers are an invisible force who care day in, day out for sick or disabled loved ones, without receiving payment and with little chance of respite. The effects of caring on the physical and mental health of carers can be devastating. Carers often face loss of employment, missed education opportunities, and social isolation due to their caring responsibilities.

Carers’ needs have traditionally been neglected by Governments, NGOs and other agencies in low and middle income countries. Since 2012 we have been working in The Global South to improve the lives of carers and to advocate for official recognition of the important role they play in society. Our vision is a world in which the needs of every carer – physical, emotional, economic and social – are routinely met. We want to achieve this through building strong partnerships with our carers, their families and wider communities, as well as with local, national and international NGOs, Governments and academics.

‘Our holistic “Carers Worldwide Model” […] is designed to create systemic changes for carers’

In 2014 we received funding from the Commonwealth Foundation to implement a three year project promoting the recognition and inclusion of carers in three states of India: Jharkhand, Andhra Pradesh, and Karnataka. Working with three local partners in India, this project focused on developing the capacity of carers and ensuring carer-specific services were developed to lessen the burden of caring. This involved disseminating our holistic ‘Carers Worldwide Model’ which is designed to create systemic changes for carers. The model comprises carers’ support groups; access to health services; respite and short breaks; access to employment, training and education; and advocacy activities. Our model is successful because it addresses the needs of carers at all levels – emotionally, physically, mentally and economically and encourages carers to advocate for themselves.

The results of the project exceeded expectations. A total of 1,963 carers as well as 2,012 care recipients and approximately 9,800 additional family members benefited. The benefits obtained by the carers included the establishment of new livelihood activities, access to medical and counselling services, and being provided with respite breaks. As a result of their advocacy activities, 90% of the carers involved in the project are now also accessing government or other NGO programmes and schemes. Such schemes include the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act – an employment guarantee scheme for the rural poor from which carers were previously excluded. As a result of the project 431 carers are now accessing employment through this Act.

Caregiver support groups To reduce loneliness and isolation, create social networks and support emotional wellbeing
Health services To provide access to physical and mental health services, including locally available counselling services
Respite and short breaks To offer a break from caring responsibilities along with the development of alternative high-quality care options such as day care centres
Employment, training and education To facilitate access to employment, training or education, tailored as appropriate to co-exist with caring responsibilities
Recognition To strengthen the collective voice of caregivers to advocate for their needs and the provision they require at community, regional and national level, leading to changes in policy and practice

To increase impact at a district level, 148 village level carers groups were federated into three Carers Associations, one in each of the three project states. Each Carers Association is comprised of carer representatives who have been elected by the village level carers groups. The Associations meet quarterly to formulate responses to issues raised in the village groups, plan engagement with government officials and other stakeholders, and to organise events at district level. Government officials are now recognising the individual and collective needs of carers. For example, the Commissioner of Disability for the Government of Karnataka announced in 2018 a 100% commitment to supporting carers and scaling-up the work of our project across the state.

A district level carer group meet in Jharkhand

Last year we received further funding from the Commonwealth Foundation to develop a new project that will upscale and complement the previously funded project in India. We intend to make use of existing partnership operations, carers groups, and Carers Association networks and increase the reach we have in India. Key priorities include:

  • Implementing services at a local level that directly support carers, and ensuring the services become enshrined in policy
  • Designing an approach to engagement that is capable of influencing local, state and national level policy, immediately enriching our plans not only for our work in India but also further afield in Bangladesh, and informing our longer-term South Asia strategy

Leveraging the infrastructure and capacity created by our work to date, we feel that the project is positioned to capture and capitalise on the momentum already created at village and district level, and achieve significant steps towards establishing a robust civil society movement, able to petition for the recognition of the human rights of Indian carers. Through increasing momentum, we intend that this project will enhance the capacity of the Carers Associations and help sustain the representation of the population of carers overtime. Ultimately, we anticipate that this new funding will support the project’s transition from a grassroots carers initiative, to a robust movement of civic society poised to achieve the aims of a global strategy to reach 100,000 carers and their family members by the end of 2019.

To find out more about this current project and to learn about our other work, please visit our website and our Facebook page today.

Victoria Nicholson is a Communications Officer at Carers Worldwide.

Defining the agender: West African feminism

Posted on by Malou Schueller

The Commonwealth Foundation’s Participatory Governance and Gender Programme focusses on developing the capacities of civic voices to constructively engage with institutions, with each other, and with policy-makers to get their voices heard and ultimately influence policy.

‘Civic voices’ in this context is a broad concept, which does not only include civil society organisations but also individuals such as writers and filmmakers, who have a public voice and can influence public discourse towards policy change. The Foundation recognises that there are voices in the margins, voices who are more excluded than others, because they may not only be female, but female and from a poor rural background, or female and disabled, or young in societies where older people are more likely to be respected and listened to. Therefore, an intersectional analysis lies at the heart of our work.

‘local ownership is critical and movements need to identify their own agendas and solve their own problems’

In line with this broader understanding of civic voices, the programme worked with the West African Civil Society Institute in Ghana to organise a three-day dialogue in Accra.  A diverse group of women’s rights activists, networks, journalists and writers from five West African countries, both young and older, were invited to the conversation to explore strategies to amplify their voice, advance the women’s rights agenda across the region, and identify challenges to the women’s movement. In the spirit of South to South learning, women’s rights networks from Southern and East Africa were also invited to share their learning on monitoring the gender commitments of their governments.

Movement-building is critical to strengthening the collective voice of women. The added value of the Foundation is to facilitate processes that enable women from across the Commonwealth to come together to learn from each other and strategise together. This is part of the Foundation’s capacity development approach, which is a holistic process of change whereby people and institutions develop their abilities to do what they already do even better, to help them solve problems, and set and achieve their goals. This also means that local ownership is critical and movements need to identify their own agendas and solve their own problems. The conversation in Accra was organised on this basis; there was an explicit acknowledgment of this from participants: ‘[we need to] redefine feminism for ourselves, set our own agenda and harness our own resources and inspiration.’

‘In the spirit of South to South learning, women’s rights networks from Southern and East Africa were also invited to share their learning on monitoring the gender commitments of their governments.’

A key result of the dialogue was an in depth analysis of the main challenges facing the West African women’s movement. There was agreement that the women’s movement had been fragmented and was characterised by numerous cleavages, especially along intergenerational and class lines.

‘It is imperative to start a serious intergenerational dialogue, so the next generation of young women will get to understand what we have fought for and the need to continue the fight if the gains are to be sustained.’

The discussion therefore focussed on developing strategies to bridge these gaps–between women of different ages who had a different understanding of feminism and experiences of being a woman; the gap and mistrust between female politicians and women’s rights activists; the gap between rural and urban, rich and poor women – in order to effectively mobilise women to develop an inclusive agenda that all could support. Therefore, engaging more with younger women and expanding the dialogue on equalities-taking into consideration the various diversities-was seen to be critical to furthering the agenda.

Ultimately, the dialogue created the space for a renewed commitment to the women’s movement at national and regional levels, which enabled each country to develop a road map to strengthen its women’s movement. The Foundation is currently supporting some countries to develop these plans further into proposals that can be supported over the medium-term.

Malou Schueller is a Senior Programme Officer for  the Partipatory Governance and Gender team at the Commonwealth Foundation. 

Confronting assumptions: gender equality

Posted on by Heather Cole

I was recently asked to provide input and expertise around ‘gender’ in a workshop for Commonwealth Foundation grant partners; the Foundation has identified this as an area of work in the 2017-2021 strategic plan and recognises the deep connections between gender inequality and the SDGs.

One participant pulled me aside before the workshop and said ‘Before we start, I have to tell you that I really don’t know anything about gender’. My immediate response was: ‘You know everything you need to know, what we need to do is make it visible’.

Their question reminded me of why it can be so hard to talk about ‘gender’ in our programme design; we all live with, and participate in, inequalities around gender, and it can be destabilising and threatening to talk about. Sometimes, it can feel as if we are supposed to ‘know’ what it means and how we want to engage with it. Thinking about how gender inequality operates in practice, and how what we do can contribute to it, as well as concrete ways to challenge it, often generates feelings of apprehension and even defensiveness.

‘Gender equality’ is a concept that most of us agree with in principle – it is hard to find anyone working in development, for example, who would suggest that women should be discriminated against. At the same time, it is also not easy to define what we mean by ‘gender equality’ or to articulate what this might look like in the everyday lives of women and men. It is also not always easy to look at the ways that we participate in and tolerate inequalities in our own lives.

‘Talking about what “should” happen as well as what happens in practice helped us to think about our own assumptions, and about the realities of the contexts we’re working in, and being honest about the realities and needs of women and girls.’

As we worked through the analysis tools in the workshop, and pulled on the threads of how gender inequality is sustained, the conversations moved to the participant’s specific programmes and contexts. We started to dig deep into the ways in which the lives of women and girls can be so different to those of men and boys. There was so much intuitive good practice informing the programme design without necessarily an articulation of the underpinning theory of change. The questions asked reflected the apprehension; is it ok to have programming for women only, or should it be 50-50? What does ‘gender equality’ look like? How do we focus on supporting women and girls without creating additional risks in their lives? How will we know whether our work has made a difference and what kind of difference it has made?

Posing these questions led us to the conclusion that women and girls need specific programming because of long-term, structural disadvantages and marginalisation. We also identified that having 50-50 programming often means that men and boys dominate, and the voices and perspectives of women and girls get lost again as patriarchal dynamics are replicated. This is especially important when we are working at the intersections; men and women with disabilities, for example, will have some experiences in common and at the same time, women will face additional issues that may not be visible or important to men in a mixed group. These might include a significantly higher chance of exposure to sexual violence, responsibility for the care of others, including children, reduced control of resources, and no potential to rely on women in their families to provide care for them. All of these issues matter a great deal to women and have a significant impact on their lives; it is critical for women and girls to have a safe space to work on these together.

‘It takes courage to confront our own assumptions and […] to design programmes that are innovative and take us into new territory.’

A significant part of our discussion revolved around outcomes and indicators, and the importance of disaggregating data so we can see clearly what change our work has made. We looked at the difference between long-term strategic changes, and the importance of not losing sight of the immediate gender needs of women and girls. We also looked at the ways that some of the most important changes and benefits are difficult to measure, and the ways in which we can capture these deep changes more creatively and representatively.

As we worked through the theories of change for each new grant project we considered targeted advocacy and engagement to open up spaces for women to represent their own interests, and the need to build solidarity for women within the public arena. We challenged some of the taken-for-granted assumptions, and looked at what programming might look like if we started from the realities of women’s lives.

Talking about what ‘should’ happen as well as what happens in practice helped us to think about our own assumptions, and about the realities of the contexts we’re working in, and being honest about the realities and needs of women and girls. For example, in contexts where care for children with disabilities is undertaken primarily by women, should we be programming to encourage greater involvement of fathers (because we have an ideal about family life that is shaping our intended outcomes), or should we recognise that the social supports and core relationships of mothers are also often with their sisters, friends and aunties, and work to strengthen these? These kinds of questions are challenging but are essential to our work, and asking them ensures we are in a better position to give women more control over their lives, more opportunity to fulfil their potential and participate in social decision-making.

It takes courage to confront our own assumptions and hopes about gender equality and more to design programmes that are innovative and take us into new territory. This as a process of learning and evolution is meant to bring depth to our analysis and bring us closer to the communities we serve. It is a step toward better programming and stronger outcomes for women and girls. The participant that had approached me with trepidation at the beginning of the workshop took me aside when it had finished: ‘I just didn’t know what I was looking at. My eyes are open and I see it’. The journey has just begun.

Heather Cole is a Gender technical consultant and Doctoral Candidate researching violence against women activism in humanitarian spaces at De Montfort University.

Trade 2030: questions on gender and technology

Posted on by Myn Garcia

‘Economic policies impact different segments of the population, including men and women, in different ways. In turn, gender inequalities impact on trade policy outcomes and economic growth. Taking into account gender perspectives in macro-economic policy, including trade policy, is essential to pursuing inclusive and sustainable development and to achieving fairer and beneficial outcomes for all.’-  United Nations Conference on Trade and Development’ (UNCTAD)

The recent public forum of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) in October 2018 with the theme Trade 2030 addressed the issues of sustainable trade, technology-enabled trade, and a more inclusive trading system.

The inclusion of civic voices in the forum was important. Coalitions and organisations such as Third World Network, Our World is Not for Sale, Women at the Table and Consumer Unity and Trust Society International curated and facilitated important sessions debating the intersection and implications of trade justice (or lack thereof) on: human rights gender, agriculture, food security, and climate justice, among others.

Two issues that stood out for me were ‘gender-responsive trade policies’ and the notion of technology as an enabler of trade.

Trade experts from around the world presented on options for sustainable trade

In 2017, the Ministerial of the WTO in Buenos Aires endorsed the Buenos Aires Declaration on Trade and Women’s Economic Empowerment. The views on the Declaration were contrasting. One argument asserted that the Declaration does not need to assess the negative gendered impacts of trade liberalisation in multiple sectors such as agriculture, industries, service and garment sectors, among others. However, Ranja Sengupta of Third World Network in her paper, Addressing Gender and Trade Issues in Trade Agreements: Creating more problems than solutions? suggests the need to explore the question as to which space is best suited for achieving gender equality or readjustment to address the adverse impacts of trade policy and liberalisation.  She posed the question: ‘Is it [gender equality] in trade agreements or should it be done in other enabling spaces such as through human rights mechanisms or should it be done through domestic policy…?’

‘Women entrepreneurs and producers not only benefit less proportionately from trade liberalisation but also bear a much higher share of the adverse impacts.’

In the current climate of ‘hyperglobalisation’ where trade negotiations are driven strongly by large and complex corporate and commercial interests, there are indeed serious questions that persist: what policies are likely to have an effect on gender equality and how can such policies be influenced? How can civic voices and development workers advocate for gender equality and better support women’s access to the benefits of trade?  And how robust is the process of identifying and addressing gender-based constraints that impede inclusive development?

The dominance of neo-liberalism, which is focused on creating a set of rules, arguably works against women’s rights and equality and excludes women. The questions that resonate are: how can the rules be rigged to make the system more inclusive? How can women in the global south and in the margins of developed countries in the north truly benefit from inclusive and enabling trade policy? What does this look like and what will it take to make this happen? And is the claim that countries should and will be enabled to ‘trade their way out of poverty’ viable?

Over 1500 participants attend the forum each year

Trade 2030 also highlighted technology as a driver of innovation for development. But civic voices said this cannot come at the expense of other imperatives such as social justice and environmental protection, which must also be considered when industrial policy is being formulated. While there is healthy scepticism about technology as a panacea, it would be wrong to discount the potential for technology to enable inclusion. For example, women entrepreneurs and producers use technology as part of their business solutions. But even as this is the case, access to technology is differentiated and the result is often making the gulf between haves and have-nots even greater – in an already divided and polarised world. For instance, women entrepreneurs and producers not only benefit less proportionately from trade liberalisation but also bear a much higher share of the adverse impacts due to their unequal access to resources and their location in the power structure. And at the macro level, economic empowerment of women in developing countries must be analysed within the broad context of development in these countries. How can a global ‘free’ trade agreement benefit women if their countries are not able to realise their domestic economic, social and human development plans and outcomes?

The answers to these questions can begin to rebuild trust in institutions- but only if voices less heard in trade debates are listened to.

Myn Garcia is Deputy Director-General at the Commonwealth Foundation. Image credit: WTO

One foot taller

Posted on by Jenny Bennett-Tuionetoa

Jenny Bennett-Tuionetoa on how being a regional winner of the Commonwealth Short Story Prize developed her confidence and transformed her worldview.

Personal growth is something which, for me at least, does not occur gradually or steadily. Rather, it happens in fits and starts during significant moments in my life; moments which are so pivotal to my journey as a human being that they permanently alter the way I see myself and the world.

The short week I spent in Nicosia for the 2018 Commonwealth Short Story Prize can definitely be counted among those rare defining moments. If personal growth could be measured in inches, then I’m sure I grew a foot taller during the last week of July.

Having travelled the twelve thousand eight hundred miles from Samoa to Cyprus, I arrived red-eyed and exhausted in Nicosia after more than thirty hours without sleep. Not the most promising start for a highly anxious introvert! But the efforts of the hard-working Commonwealth Writers team made everything run so smoothly that my many anxieties evaporated and I was able to enjoy every moment of the experience, in spite of myself.

Above: Jenny shares writing experiences at a Q&A session following the Commonwealth Short Story Prize Award Ceremony 2018 in Nicosia, Cyprus

Coming from the Pacific, whose literature is still relatively young, and in particular from a very small island nation which can only boast a handful of authors, meeting people who share my passion for story-telling is a rare privilege. To meet and connect with the four writers whose work outshone the other five thousand entries for this year’s prize was beyond amazing. Socialising is often quite difficult for me, and at home I am something of a recluse, but with Efua, Kevin, Lynda and Sagnik the connection was instantaneous.  Not only was the presence of these writers pleasantly energising, I also learnt a great deal from each of them: from the variety of techniques, the diversity of backgrounds, the multiplicity of experiences and the beauty of their unique personalities.

‘Not only was the presence of these writers pleasantly energising, I also learnt a great deal from each of them: from the variety of techniques, the diversity of backgrounds, the multiplicity of experiences and the beauty of their unique personalities.’

While every day of the trip provided new insights and memorable experiences, the highlight was of course the Short Story Prize announcement ceremony on 25 July. The open-air, rooftop setting at the Centre of Visual Arts and Research, overlooking a quiet street in old Nicosia, could not have been more ideal. The mood which the setting sun and darkening skies had helped to create was enhanced by the poignant songs of Cypriot artist Vasiliki Anastasiou which threaded together the stories that were read that night. So touched was I by the atmosphere which both the music and surroundings had created that I shed my nerves, which for me is no mean feat, and read from my heart; unafraid to reveal my soul to the world.  I am indebted especially to Janet Steel from the Commonwealth Foundation, who not only ensured that the evening was a success for all of us with her creative direction but whose support and encouragement gave me the courage to grow.

This growth I keep mentioning is impossible to measure and very difficult to describe, but it manifests itself in subtle changes in perception and visible differences in outward behavior. I find myself beginning to redefine who I am and to rethink some long-held preconceptions about the world. For one, I have become far more optimistic about the future of human rights in the Pacific Islands, having discovered that other Commonwealth countries which faced very similar challenges have begun to overcome them. More importantly, the Commonwealth Short Story Prize has taught me that no matter how small and isolated our islands are, our voices matter and we deserve to be heard. I am now also confident that there is a place for people like me in the world; something that I have struggled to affirm for many years.

Above: Regional winners of the Commonwealth Short Story Prize 2018

It was in Nicosia, among my fellow writers and new-found friends that I was able to, for the very first time, speak publicly about my gender identity: something I have always shrunk from mentioning despite being an LGBTQIA rights advocate. The people around me and the exposure to a new, diverse world finally made it possible for me to unlock the closet door, twelve thousand miles away from home. Never before had I said the words ‘I am non-binary’ out loud and I have never felt so liberated! This personal liberation has been mirrored by the freeing of inner voices and the unlocking of inner stories which will shortly find their way onto paper and eventually out into the world.  Winning the Regional Prize has thus not only provided validation, exposure and a platform for my advocacy, it has also been a significant step in my personal journey towards growth, self-acceptance and freedom, all of which will undoubtedly make me a better writer.

Jenny Bennett-Tuionetoa is a Samoan writer.