Feminism, Accessibility and the AWID Forum: Reflections from the Accessibility Committee of a 3,000 person global gathering

“We don’t need systems that fix us. We need systems that stand with us — rooted in care, solidarity, and accountability. Because transformation doesn't start in policy rooms. It begins when the most marginalized voices are no longer an afterthought, but as the blueprint!" - Feminist who uses drugs, Indonesia

Accessibility is not simply about helping marginalized communities “fit into” existing systems, but about transforming power, participation, and movement culture itself. For many communities facing criminalization, stigma, surveillance, and structural exclusion, accessibility is fundamentally tied to dignity, autonomy, safety, and the right to fully exist within feminist spaces as part of the foundation. Building accessible feminist convening spaces means reckoning with who has historically been excluded, and choosing to do things differently. 

Unseeded magic is found within some of the most marginalized communities and once seeded, this hope is shared within the walls of spaces where feminists gather and show up for each other. The 15th AWID International Forum held in December 2024 in Bangkok, Thailand was one such space for many feminists, where care was woven into our work, in imperfect, collective, and disability justice-centered ways. While our experiences are not universal, for those who were present,  it was meaningful—and we believe that matters. We also acknowledge that accessibility work is ongoing and imperfect. While many important measures were implemented, not all needs could be fully met, and some participants may still have experienced barriers related to language, sensory access, psychosocial needs, or safety.

The role of the Accessibility Committee 

From June 2023 we started to work as a small group of 12 feminists on the Accessibility Committee. The goal of this committee was to support AWID and make the Forum as accessible and inclusive as possible, deconstructing physical, legal, health, and societal barriers. Together, we centered a disability justice approach, and leaned into the wisdom of communities often targeted by anti-rights actors and punitive laws, such as trans and queer people, people living with HIV, sex workers, disabled people, and people who use drugs. Our committee was composed of and led by people from these communities, with global representation. We want to recognize and value the significant emotional and political labor carried by committee members from impacted communities. Much of this work was grounded in lived experience of stigma, criminalization, ableism, trauma, and exclusion. Our guiding question was: How can we make a feminist space where over 3,000 people from all over the world feel like they were valued and included?

Accessibility measures from start to finish: what this means in practice

Accessibility was approached not only as logistics or infrastructure, but also as dignity, autonomy, safety, and collective care. As the committee, we knew we had a big job to do, and the potential for failure and not quite getting it right for every community was real. We began by collectively putting together an accessibility plan that encompassed Forum participants’ experiences from the time they first registered, through their preparation and travel, their time onsite in Bangkok, and finally, their journey home. We learned from pre-existing tools, especially the Feminist Accessibility Protocol, as our foundation.

In preparation:

• We compiled very detailed information on the Forum venue and all the official Forum hotels to assess them and be able to share accurate information with participants. This process critically included the Committee's site visits and walk-throughs of each of the venues, negotiation to ensure certain options were in place, and providing options, information, and signage for participants.
• We put in place a health protocol that recognized the continued risks related to the Covid-19 pandemic and other airborne illness, especially to those who are already multiply marginalized. We agreed on a series of measures that included venue-wide air filtration, free testing and masks, and isolating when sick.
• Acknowledging that digital accessibility is uneven globally due to internet access, language dominance, and varying familiarity with technology platforms, we used  the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines to create and test the Forum website and registration for accessibility. We used tools designed to ensure that the website worked with screen readers, ensuring mobile accessibility, and focusing on clear language, simple navigation, and limited motion. 
• We developed a Pre-Forum learning journey online series to better support Forum participants to plan for their in-person or virtual attendance at the Forum. The 4-part series included: 
  • Feminist Resistance and Solidarity Across Thailand and Southeast Asia, 
  • Forum Politics: Intersectionality in Practice, 
  • Attending the AWID Forum - Logistics and Accessibility, and 
  • The Hybrid Experience: Virtual Tech Prep. 
• Harm reduction is part of feminist care infrastructure and bodily autonomy, not simply an additional service. Led by the Harm Reduction Task Team, we supported the development of the How to Enjoy a Conference: Harm Reduction Guide. This tool was created with community activists to support people who are often criminalized to have a better Forum experience. This was a meaningful political commitment to inclusion for criminalized communities, including people who use drugs.
• Keeping in mind border inequality, profiling, visa discrimination, and unequal mobility that many Global Majority participants continue to face, we worked with government officials to secure a priority lane at airport immigration. The aim was to enable a more dignified arrival experience for folks for whom it is often a space of anxiety, surveillance, and violence. We also had staff members at the airport to support people, answer questions, and direct them to the shuttle bus. 

At the Forum:

• We ensured accessible transfers and shuttle services from the airport and hotels.
• We had language accessibility for both in-person and virtual participants, which included a mix of international sign language, Wordly AI interpretation providing audio and transcription in 60 languages, and human interpretation. Various combinations were available in different clearly marked spaces. While the multilingual support and AI interpretation tools were incredibly valuable, we acknowledge that language justice remains an ongoing challenge, especially for participants who do not converse in languages that are accessible through these tools. 
• There was an Accessibility Desk for wheelchair rentals, large print materials, shuttle bus services.  It was staffed by the Accessibility Coordinator and volunteers throughout the duration of the Forum. 
• Safety and accessibility are deeply interconnected for trans, nonbinary, and gender-diverse participants. We ensured that there were gender neutral bathrooms within the Forum space by changing the men’s bathroom signage. 
• We ensured reserved spaces for those who use mobility devices in the session rooms, and provided lowered buffet tables for those who were approaching in a wheelchair to be able to serve themselves. 
• People who use drugs are part of feminist movements and deserve safety, dignity, and non-judgmental support within movement spaces, not only outside them. We partnered with a local organization who provided harm reduction services, in addition to HIV testing, condoms, information, and counselling to those who wanted them. 
• We had a low-sensory zone where participants could take a break in a less-stimulating environment, as well as psycho-social counselors onsite for any participant to access for free. 
• We ensured that designated charging stations were available for those who use battery-powered accessibility devices.
• We budgeted for participants with disabilities to bring their personal support worker to the Forum. 

“I celebrate having been there, being able to bring an assistant, getting to experience the AWID Forum, because I always saw the AWID event as something very distant to which I was not going to have access, not because I was being pessimistic, but because I did not have the money to get there, and having been there was very nice.”  - Feminist with a disability, Argentina

When it came down to it, what we overwhelmingly heard from participants was that they felt treated with dignity; that their experience was thought about, and not only in the final moments of planning. Seemingly small details - from the height of the lunch buffet so wheelchair users could select their own meals, the low-sensory zone to rest, accessible seating in the sessions and gala, to a space where LGBTQ folks and people who use drugs could connect with local services and get supplies - transformed people’s experiences. We also recognize that efforts to ensure accessibility are always evolving and incomplete, and we see this as meaningful progress towards this larger goal. 

Ten Takeaways for Accessible Feminist Convenings

1. Accessibility means different things to different people. Use an intersectional, feminist, disability justice framework of accessibility, and define it before you start. 
2. Do your due diligence in terms of researching the event location – not all countries have great laws and policies for all feminists. Consider the safety amongst your participants, especially in places that criminalize LGBTQ communities, sex workers, and people who use drugs. Is there a history of racist visa restrictions or strict border controls? Make sure you are aware of who could be left behind. 
3. Do a walkthrough of the venue and an accessibility audit. Check things like:
   1. Are there ways to make the physical space more accessible? Are there stages that need ramps? 
   2. Wheelchair seating? 
   3. Gender neutral bathrooms? 
   4. Can the lights dim? 
   5. Are there spaces for folks to rest and take a break? 
      
      Doing this in person, with a group of people with diverse needs, will always be more effective than only reading the venue specifications.
4. It is not only accessible, but also cost-effective to fund a person with a disability AND their personal support worker attend together. This way all participants can select their own sessions and navigate the space with ease. 
5. Consider language justice and how to navigate this in space. AI tools can support accessibility, but they should not entirely replace community-led interpretation and contextual understanding, especially in political or culturally nuanced discussions. Ask questions like:
   1. What are the different ways to ease the flow of information so that not only colonial languages are used? 
   2. What are safe(r) AI tools, and how could they support it if you cannot afford interpretation for all sessions?
6. People who use drugs are already part of our movements and gatherings; harm reduction tools and stigma-free support should be integrated into event planning. 
7. If possible, offer a selection of food that accommodates various dietary restrictions. Label everything clearly. Provide a variety of seating options and table heights to accommodate people with disabilities. 
8. It is important to clearly communicate what accessibility measures will be incorporated in your event. If there are limitations that cannot be avoided, letting participants know the specifics is essential so they are able to make an informed decision on how and whether they will participate in the event. It is awful to show up somewhere that has steps to get in the entrance, or is only in a language that you do not speak.
9. Have a point person that is working on accessibility at the event. Accessibility coordination requires adequate staffing, budgeting, and institutional support. Not only individual commitment or volunteer labor. Ideally, hire a coordinator (as far in advance as possible). If this is not possible, make sure that there is someone who has their eye on the moving accessibility pieces so they are not lost in the implementation. Having an external reference group of accessibility experts with lived experience is very helpful. 
10. Know that this is a journey and will take time to build this muscle. Make sure to incorporate accessibility in the earliest planning phases, not as an afterthought. 

For AWID, we know that this will be an ongoing process to always improve accessibility, and just as we are proud of our achievements, we are also taking away plenty of constructive feedback and learnings for next time. But as one of our Forum participants said: “The bar has been raised and things have changed. All large feminist convenings have a new standard that we cannot go back from.” Finally, accessibility should extend beyond convenings themselves into: funding structures, leadership, participation, and whose expertise is valued within feminist movements overall.