Healthy Masculinity. Gender Equality. These are two concepts that Equimundo has spent over two decades working to advance by building evidence and taking informed, collaborative action.
From Equimundo’s founding in Brazil, to the creation of a Equimundo Global Consortium with additional teams in the United States (US), Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), and Portugal, building healthy masculinity and advancing gender equality – through a lens of feminism and social justice – has become a local, national, and international mission for the organization.
At Equimundo, we envision a world in which men embrace healthy ideas around masculinity: where they are caring and vulnerable, aware of their power and privilege, accountable for their actions, and prepared to take informed action for gender equality. Our work aims for these ideals to be part of not only individual mindsets, but also community norms, workplaces, and governments.
Since 1997, Equimundo has conducted research together with its partners in more than 30 countries to learn what drives our understandings of masculinities and femininities, the realities of what it means to be a man or a woman in a particular context. We have worked with partners around the world to form and support global networks and initiatives – such as MenEngage Alliance and MenCare: A Global Fatherhood Campaign – to advance national and global advocacy across more than 50 countries.
We have partnered in countries from the US, to Rwanda, Lebanon, Mexico, Indonesia, and elsewhere to reach young people, new parents, and those in post-conflict settings with hands-on, evidence-based guidance to question, challenge, and ultimately change harmful ideas around gender in their own lives and in their communities. Combining personal reflection on masculinity, femininity, gender roles, and power with dialogue and action has led to measurable changes in attitudes and behaviors related to using violence; taking care of one’s sexual and reproductive health; and sharing the domestic work and caregiving responsibilities at home.
Creating a world in which ideals of healthy masculinity are embraced by all of us is an important step toward ensuring that all individuals are safe, respected, and have equal access to opportunities in public and private life. It’s a key step toward creating a world in which we will achieve gender equality.