Strengthening Infrastructures of Feminist Collective Care

Day 2 3pm 2 hours English

What does it take to create feminist collective care infrastructures that meet the diverse needs of activists that continue to hold the line for human rights and democracy even in the face of compounding multiple crises? Across the Asia-Pacific regions, women, trans and gender non binary human rights activists are routinely exposed to traumatic events, dangers, and threats to their lives. The environment in which human rights defense work and activism are carried our is increasingly becoming riskier and unpredictable.

Psychological, physical, and financial stress levels are high. Burn out and exhaustion are real. The need for individual and community, collective infrastructure for safety, care and well-being is never more pressing that now.

For UAF A&P, Collective care, is the strategy that enable activists and their communities to imagine and implement sustainable and effective structures of protection and care. Collective care structures strengthens activists and their movements to be resilient in the face of oppressive systems and allow them space to be regenerative. How care is experienced and practices is individual, contextual and political.

The ways any individual or a community of activists can feel safer and cared for are varied. What are the transformative and regenerative forms of care, healing and protection women, trans and non-binary activists and defender are able to access, create, practice and offer? What forms of collective care structure exists at community, national or regional levels in Asia and Pacific regions that responds to these varied needs for safety, care and protection? What are the challenges for sustaining the safety, care and protection needs for women, trans and non-binary activists and defenders?

The workshop will explore these questions to lift indigenous practices of collective care in Asia and Pacific regions that are accessed by women, trans and non-binary activists and their communities. The Session will be divided in two parts. – Moderated talk show/ panel on sharing stories and experiences of creating activists-led collective care spaces