Feminism

Can digital activism replace the power of in-person protests? In North Macedonia, dwindling protest numbers and rising anti-gender movements challenge the fight for gender equality. Activist Sara Milenkovska's insights on the urgent need for solidarity.

Julia Mickiewicz switched from journalism to politics and then to NGOs. She is the co-founder of the feminist organisation FemGroup Belarus. Today, she lives in exile – still she continues in her unwavering struggle for gender equality, diversity, and social justice.

Gender equity is Irina Alkhovka’s personal and professional passion. In 2021, the human rights campaigner had to leave her home country, Belarus, where she was being prosecuted for her political activism.

Darya Afanasyeva is a Belarusian activist and feminist blogger who campaigns for the protection of women's rights and democratic change in Belarus. After more than two years in prison, she continues to blog on feminist issues.

Irina Alkhovka is a Belarusian women's and human rights activist and founder of the NGO Gender Perspectives. She is committed to combating trafficking of women and protecting victims of gender-based violence. 

Julia Mickiewicz is a Belarusian journalist, feminist activist, politician and co-founder of the NGO FemGroup Belarus. She is committed to the political participation of women, gender equality and gender mainstreaming. 

In 2023, Germany’s Federal Foreign Office and its Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development published guidelines for a feminist foreign and development policy. Political headwinds, however, are jeopardising the implementation of the concepts.

The current humanitarian system is failing. This system excludes, overlooks, and underfunds those on the frontlines — local feminist and Women’s Rights Organizations. It’s time to shift power and invest in a feminist humanitarian system.

It is impossible to imagine a just, sustainable, and diverse future that does not include women, and especially rural women, as they are the ones leading the transformation of the agrifood system in Latin America. 

Presidents’ column: Pregnancy termination is still a criminal offence in Germany under section 218 of the Criminal Code, with serious consequences for access to abortion and women’s right to self-determination. There can only be one answer to this.