Regional feminist solidarity meeting for activists in Central Asia, Caucasus and Eastern Europe

10-17 November 2014 in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan

Regional feminist solidarity meeting emerged as an idea to bring feminist activists together to discuss and strategize around our security/well-being, solidarity efforts and movement-building. Here “feminist activist” means affiliating oneself with feminism(s) whether one’s activist work and group named feminist or not. As there are very few opportunities for us to support each other, reflect and discuss our needs/issues outside of professional skills-building, networking and collaborating primarily for our communities and our causes as community members, this meeting is an attempt to address our needs collectively as feminist activists and connecting with each other as feminist movement(s).

Participation in the meeting is based on self-nominations by September 30th . In case there is more than one self-nomination from one country/subregion, self-nominated activists can have own decision-making strategy to achieve consensus about participation in the meeting (taking our meeting’s theme and objectives into account) by October 5th. Bishkek team plays role of pre-meeting facilitator providing logistics and administration of costs for the meeting, therefore hosting activists join self-nomination on equal terms. Due to limited funding, we can provide each country with shared travel allowance of USD700, except for Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia (USD350) and 6 nights of accommodation in Bishkek, so in case of self/partial funding, more activists from one country can join us. Meeting can accommodate from 20 feminist activists of all genders (except cisgender men) and is limited to post-soviet Central Asia, Caucasus and Eastern Europe. Working languages are Russian and English. Our meeting is funded by women’s crowdfunding platform Catapult and feminist funds Global Fund for Women and Mama Cash.

We are aware of problematic geopolitical and colonial constructions of the regional divisions and in a long-term committed to larger regional movement-building, inclusive of diasporas and allies, around our shared political causes/solidarity, collective belonging and cultural herstories/legacies in the spatial context of today’s Central Asia, Caucasus and Eastern Europe . If you are an activist from Central Asia, Caucasus and Eastern Europe (by location/cause of your activism, not nationality) who is outside of post-soviet region, please contact us for regional feminist solidarity network collaboration.

Please submit your self-nomination by September 30th and do not hesitate to contact us at feministsolidarity.cacee@gmail.com

Criteria for self-nominations

  • to be local/community organizer or group/organization coordinator;
  • to work and live within your country/subregion working in the past 12 months;
  • to express commitment to work with/in your community/cause for the next 2 years.

APPLICATION FORM

  1. Preferred name
  2. Contact info
  3. Community/group
  4. Country/subregion
  5. Full/partial/self-funded
  6. Can you please share why do you want to participate in the regional feminist solidarity meeting;
  7. Please share what issues you and your fellow activists face as feminist community organizers and/or group coordinators in your country/subregion;
  8. Outline activity based on meeting objectives you would like to organize/facilitate.
  9. Additional comments if any: