Launch of the Feminist Action Lab

The Lab is an online advocacy crash course to support youth-led action on gender equality.

Restless Development is proud to launch the Feminist Action Lab: Building Our Intergenerational Power. It features video dialogues between older and younger feminists on the history of the Beijing+25 process and feminist movements, as well as study guides that unpack some of the big ideas informing global feminist agendas today.

How We Did It.

The Feminist Action Lab is a collaborative project that builds on the collective knowledge and experiences of many. Our study-guides were co-authored by young feminists embedded in movements and advocacy work. Our speakers are active leaders in national and global feminist movements, including in formal spaces such as the Generation Equality Forum.

We worked intentionally with feminist illustrators and video producers to create an inclusive, affirmative and rights-based visual language to ensure the Lab reflects the diversity of gender and sexual rights movements today.

Why This Is Urgent?

25 years ago the Beijing Platform for Action was launched. This shook the world and became an engine for advocacy on gender equality. The world has changed a lot since 1995 and a new generation of activists are shaping advocacy today. This history, successes, failures and learnings from feminist movements are not well known or easily accessible to young people starting their advocacy journey. How we practice advocacy has also changed dramatically thanks to global popular movements like #MeToo, the Climate Strikes, Black Lives Matter and the rise of intersectional feminism.

With the aim of learning from feminist histories and leaders, especially in the Global South, Restless Development sought to create an intergeneration meeting point for young activists to grow their feminist analysis. Particularly with the rise of anti-rights movements in both formal and informal spaces, the need for a youth-led movement that is inclusive, critical and intersectional is more important than ever! 

The Content.

The Lab focuses on thematic study guides that compliment the 6 Action Coalitions from the Generation Equality Forum. A 7th study guide was added to dive deeper into advocacy. The themes include:

  • Feminist Movements
  • Feminist Technology
  • Climate Justice
  • Economic Justice
  • SRHR & Bodily Autonomy
  • Gender-Based Violence
  • Advocacy

For a full list of collaborators, speakers and co-authors visit the Feminist Action Lab website.

Learn More

This project is an ongoing initiative led by Restless Development India, Tanzania and the US. 

 Illustrations by Sonaksha Iyengar.