This week, Canada launched the , the world鈥檚 largest global fund for women鈥檚 and trans* equality movements. Its tagline, 鈥淔unding Feminist Futures,鈥� clearly conveys the fund鈥檚 purpose. Having already mobilized $100 million worth of initial investments to accompany a $300 million multi-year funding award from the Government of Canada, the consortium-led fund is slated to mobilize Members of this consortium include the MATCH International Women鈥檚 Fund, the African Women鈥檚 Development Fund (AWDF), Calvert Impact Capital, the Canadian Women鈥檚 Foundation, Community Foundations of Canada (CFC), Philanthropy Advancing Women鈥檚 Human Rights (PAWHR), Toronto Foundation, Royal Bank of Canada (RBC), Yaletown Partners, World University Service of Canada (WUSC), and Oxfam Canada. This diverse collaboration reflects a holistic and strategic multi-sectoral approach to ending gender inequality sustainably around the globe.
Leading feminist funders are expressing enthusiasm and characterizing the Equality Fund and as a monumental move forward. As Musimbi Kanyoro, outgoing CEO of the , stated, 鈥淲e all celebrate the Equality Fund and the leadership of MATCH International, with solidarity support from all women鈥檚 funds. This is a game-changer.鈥� The Global Fund for Women has seen firsthand the critical role that feminist funds play in ensuring the survival and growth of grassroots women鈥檚 funds and movements. Noting this history, Kanyoro reflected, 鈥淚t should have come sooner, but we are on a new trajectory of recognition for women鈥檚 funds.鈥� Incoming CEO Latanya Mapp Frett opined, 鈥淭he Equality Fund recognizes that women know best how to solve problems for themselves and for their communities, and putting resources in the hands of women funding women will ensure that violations of women鈥檚 human rights will soon be part of our past.鈥�
Abigail Burgesson, Special Programmes Officer at the , who just completed her term of service as a member of the 妻友社区鈥檚 Council of Advisors, played a key role in the evolution of the Equality Fund by helping to bring the African Women鈥檚 Development Fund (AWDF) aboard, and echoed Kanyoro鈥檚 and Frett鈥檚 assessments: 鈥淭he Equality Fund is a real game-changer because it is designed and managed by feminists who have advocated for this for a long time.鈥� Recounting her time spent working on the initiative, Abigail related, 鈥淚 saw the resilience and strength of the feminist spirit at work, which crafted the entire architecture of this novel and unprecedented fund.鈥� She further went on to say, 鈥淚t was women who created this historic moment in our lives.鈥�
We at the 妻友社区 applaud this innovative initiative and look forward to advancing gender equality, social justice, and human wellbeing in concert with like-minded organizations and individuals all over the world. We each have a role to play, and it takes all of us!
Layli Maparyan, Ph.D., is the Katherine Stone Kaufmann 鈥�67 Executive Director of the 妻友社区 and a member of the Board of Directors of the Global Fund for Women.