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Under the auspices of ‘national security’, a host of countries are experiencing increased criminalization of dissent, coupled with shrinking spaces for social justice activism and work. For organisations that rely on foreign-sourced funding for their work, the implications are dire.

On 20 July 2015, the international community was shaken by the news of the murder of 31 civil society activists, many of whom were women human rights defenders (WHRDs) in the predominantly Kurdish city of Suruç in Turkey. The activists were on their way to rebuild the war torn Kurdish city of Kobane in Northern Syria, carrying toys and books for orphaned children.  

Following the signing of the Agreement for Peace and Reconciliation in Mali on 20 June 2015, AWID spoke with Bintou Founé Samaké Bouaré and Fatoumata Maiga to learn more about mainstreaming gender into the Mali peace building process and the associated challenges.

The 29th session of the UN Human Rights Council in June 2015 saw the introduction of the second ever Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) report on ‘Discrimination & Violence against Individuals Based on their Sexual Orientation & Gender Identity’. AWID spoke with Cynthia Rothschild, feminist, human rights and sexual rights activist, about the significance of the report and outcomes of the June 2015 Human Rights Council session.

Known for its sun, sea, and sand, The Bahamas has a dirty little secret. Sexism lives and thrives in this chain of islands, supported by the constitution and laws of the land.

WOMANTRA is a Caribbean based feminist organization focused on woman and female centred scholarship, activism and social programs. In 2008, the first incarnation of the ‘Silent Silhouettes’ project was launched by Stephanie Leitch and Michelle Isava to commemorate the lives of women who died as a result of domestic violence.

Four years after the popular uprising that led to the removal of the dictator Zine El Abidine Ben Ali in January 2011, Tunisia held its first free and democratic presidential election in the country's history in December 2014. AWID spoke to Khadija Cherif, one-time contender for the position of Minister of Women, Family and Children to learn about some of the challenges to women’s political participation in the country.

What would a truly inclusive and egalitarian world look like? AWID invited LGBTIQ activists to answer these two questions - What would a queer-positive world be like? What is needed to achieve it?  Read their responses, and tell us what YOU think a queer positive world would look like.

On April 24, 2013, the Rana Plaza, a building housing garment factories, collapsed in Dhaka, killing 1,138 people, mostly women textile workers. Two years later, feminists around the world are organizing "24 Hours of Feminist Solidarity" in memory of the victims of this disaster. 

One of the most profound social transformations of the past century is in the status of women, and importantly, in the worldwide acceptance of the notion of women's rights and gender equality as desirable goals.