Engaging men in promotion of gender equality in focus of OSCE-organized conference

Identifying new ways to engage men in working towards gender equality was the focus of a conference organized by the OSCE WIN and CHANGE projects on 5 and 6 December in Warsaw.

The innovative two-day conference brought together 75 representatives of democratic institutions and religious communities, human rights defenders, members of academia, experts and practitioners to discuss successful approaches, lessons learned and new initiatives to engage men in promoting gender equality.

Engaging men in gender equality work is still a challenge, and gender equality is often regarded as a women’s issue. Participants stressed the importance of partnership and co-operation to achieve progress on gender equality.

“Ending gender-based violence and achieving gender equality is not just a women’s fight – it is a collective fight for a just and an equitable world,” said Dr Lara Scarpitta, OSCE Senior Adviser on Gender Issues. “We will not succeed if 50% of the population – the male population – does not support women and women’s rights!”

“Despite some positive policy developments, there are still too few tangible improvements to gender equality across the OSCE region,” said ODIHR First Deputy Director Tea Jaliashvili. “We need deeper and more far-reaching changes in society, and these will only succeed if both women and men are engaged, on the understanding that gender equality ultimately benefits all of us.”  

Several innovative and transformative initiatives were presented during the conference, including an art exhibition by Serbian artist Marija Milanković. The WIN Project presented an overview of existing OSCE activities and networks of men that aim to promote gender equality in the OSCE region. These good practices were used to develop the OSCE Toolkit to Engage Men in Gender Equality published in 2022. The OSCE network of Men for Gender Equality also presented their work and initiatives to promote the topic in their own workplaces.

As part of the overall efforts to engage new allies, contribute innovative approaches and support the leadership needed to make a real difference, the CHANGE project designed a training course to empower male networks in the public sector, civil society, and religious and traditional communities. This aims to contribute to gender equality and women’s empowerment, as well as combating violence against women and girls.