Deadline: 13-Feb-2024
The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) is seeking applications to promote, expand and protect civic space across all domains, including online, to support the efforts of women to eliminate barriers to feminist action in all its diversity.
Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) is organizing a four day-long self-advocacy training for 15-20 Roma women and feminist activists from Ukraine with the objectives to:
- Increase the meaningful participation, leadership and decision-making power of Roma women and feminist activists through building self-advocacy skills and improving awareness of their own and group needs and interests to be equally involved in public life and decision-making.
- Build capacities of Roma women for dialogue with governments and share effective and innovative strategies to address gender stereotypes.
- Enhance the capacities and empower Roma women in mainstreaming gender equality within their communities and beyond.
The event will be conducted in Ukrainian and English, with simultaneous interpretation.
The training programme was developed within ODIHR’s project “Capitalizing on the Human Dimension Mandate to Advance Gender Equality” (CHANGE). This activity is part of the project “Advancing the Human Dimension of Security in Ukraine”.
The training seeks to reflect on and analyse the obstacles, needs, and current challenges that young Roma women face in their communities and in the broader society. The training programme is aimed to empower Ukrainian Roma women to stay firm by their voice and engage in self-advocacy for their rights. Participating women will learn self-advocacy skills as a tool to secure more control over issues that affect their lives and strengthen participation in decision-making on these issues. In this context, self-advocacy is a woman’s ability to speak up for herself and for other women facing similar issues that are not visible enough or not urgent enough for policy- and decision-makers. In this way, this training will contribute to diversifying and strengthening Roma women’s leadership in Ukraine.
The training will cover following topics over the course of four days:
- Power, specifically how it can be used positively to bring change for the participants, members of their communities and society.
- How to undertake self-advocacy, on smaller or larger scale, by focusing on planning.
- Self-advocates’ leadership characteristics and how they can be used to greatest effect.
- Ways to engage allies and passive opponents of the self-advocacy work.
Eligibility Criteria
- Young Roma women and gender activists from Ukraine are invited to apply. Eligibility requirements include:
- Roma women and feminist activists who are working and/or volunteering in formal or non-formal civil society entities.
- Young gender activists who are interested to enhance their skills on gender equality.
- Motivated and showing willingness to initiate follow-up activities in their communities and organizations.
- Aged between 18 and 35 years old.
- Able to attend the training for its full duration.
- It is essential that prospective participants secure their in-person presence for the indicated dates.
For more information, visit OSCE.