[APFF Echoes] Yvonne Tan, Malaysia

_{By: Yvonne Tan, @sejarahmitoslaku, Malaysia}

The APFF was an incredibly enriching experience for me. As someone who works as a social policy researcher as her day job, at times I’ve often felt that conferences and dialogues have their limitations in furthering action on an issue. Sometimes I have attributed this to  their lack of specificity, a failure to incorporate a sensitive gender approach, or the influence of particular sponsor agendas. However, at APFF, I felt invigorated being in such a transformative and solidarity-driven environment. It was inspiring to connect and be deeply aligned with communities and their struggles, from Palestine to Papua. It wasn’t just about networking but about authentic support and shared commitment to building a feminist, just future within our own communities. The conference truly created space for people from all walks of life and causes. My only regret was not being able to attend all the incredible workshops offered.

During my own workshop “Politicising Everyday Life: A Zine-Making Workshop”, while many participants already had a strong grasp of the zine-making process, the dynamic, stories and concerns between the participants reminded me that activism is not only about large-scale demands for justice but also about the small, personal interventions that shape our everyday lives. Throughout the conference, there was a strong emphasis on the importance of care—while tackling major issues like militarisation and corporate capture as feminist concerns, APFF also placed emphasis in fostering safety, collective well-being, and the everyday acts of care that sustain us. This focus on care is such an important step toward imagining and building the feminist future we are all striving for, and it was powerful to experience a taste of that vision during the conference.