We deploy multi-faceted approaches to promote women’s participation in governance, sustainable development, and in pursuit of their rights. These include intersectional grassroots activism, capacity building, and leadership development. Our grassroots activism interventions promote increased civic engagement and grow demand for accountability and responsiveness on issues at the intersection of rights, governance, and development. Through activism, capacity, and leadership development, we turn progressive ideas into action, increase women’s inclusion, power and influence in the family, community, at the local and the national levels. We work through strategic partnerships, build alliances, mobilize resources, and provide leadership. We also identify, mentor, and nurture the next generation of women leaders in civil society, business and government. Above all, we believe women’s economic empowerment is central to their ability to engage, influence decisions and realize their rights. Women’s economic empowerment is thus a cross-cutting, mobilizing, and catalytic component of our rights, governance, and sustainable development interventions.

Our strategies address both the practical and the strategic needs of women. On the practical side, we connect women to resources and opportunities that address their material conditions–how women can access better services, improve their living conditions, and increase infrastructure for their communities. On the strategic side, we seek to ensure that grassroots women meaningfully engage and are seen as agents of change by themselves, their communities and the state. We believe that engagements between women, authorities, the corporate sector, and other strategic partners should be grounded in the local realities of women. First, to bring to the surface their priorities as specific, concrete issues that affect their neighborhoods, families, and communities. Secondly, to connect these issues to national discourses that influence public narrative, policy, and practice around realization of their rights, their contribution to accountable governance, sustainable development, and social justice.

We are guided by our values of diversity, solidarity, communication, responsibility, honesty, and respect.