Partner Organizations from Georgia, Moldova, Belarus, and Armenia Visit MÄN

In 2023, we initiated collaborations with civil society organizations from Armenia, Georgia, Belarus (in exile), and Moldova within the five-year program Redefine – Gender Transformative Work with Men in Eastern Europe and South Caucasus. Throughout the year, these partner organizations, supported by MÄN, have been conducting norm-changing work to engage men and boys in gender equality and violence prevention efforts in the region. The five-year program is managed and coordinated by MÄN’s international team and is funded by Sida.

In mid-June, representatives from the five partner organizations visited Stockholm for knowledge exchange and study visits. The Redefine group visited MÄN’s office in Hammarby Sjöstad and the Museum of Women’s History. The organizations in the project maintain close digital contact, but such meetings cannot fully replace physical ones, says Maria Ristinmaa, project manager at MÄN.
– The physical meetings have been crucial for building a sense of community and support within the partner group, something that everyone considers extremely valuable since they come from countries where these issues are sensitive to work with, she says.

Men is a new target group

Women's Rights Agenda Belarus primarily works against men's violence towards women and human trafficking by providing support to victims of violence and spreading awareness of these issues. Targeting men and boys is new for the organization.
– We believe it is impossible to combat violence against women without working to engage men. Because of this, we have started separatist conversation clubs for men, says the organization’s head of operations, and continues:
– It can be compared to a language course. For many men, it’s like discovering a new language to start talking about feelings, needs, and other topics that don’t feel natural to discuss within the group. Therefore, it is important to have safe spaces to practice.

A personal journey

Inessa Adilkhanyan from the Sexual Assault Crisis Center (SACC) in Armenia explains how the path to working with young men and boys has also been a personal journey based on her own experiences and extensive self-study.
– At a certain point in my life, I realized that I had internalized many values and norms from patriarchal structures. This made me feel angry and frustrated. I was fortunate to have wise people around me who helped me reach this insight and taught me about gender norms and equality, says Inessa and continues.
– I read a lot, including bell hooks, and realized that it is important to engage men and boys in the work of combating harmful gender norms and patriarchal structures, and that I must approach the task with care and love. We have chosen to focus on the younger generation because we believe it is easier to address stereotypes and norms at a young age, says Inessa.
Inessa has also worked on developing a platform with a support chat function, similar to the one we at MÄN run on Killar.se. The anonymous chat is open to all boys and men who, for any reason, seek support.

A regional platform

The purpose of the collaboration is to develop and strengthen initiatives to engage boys and men in issues related to masculinity norms, gender equality, and violence prevention. MÄN does this by building a regional platform together with the involved partner organizations, where we exchange knowledge and experiences and support each other in the development and implementation of each organization’s local projects. The program includes recurring digital meetings and training sessions, as well as physical meetings held in Stockholm and around the region. In addition to the partner organizations' projects, we are also working on developing national and regional research projects on masculinity.

The five partner organizations

The organizations we collaborate with have long been working against violence and for women's rights, but targeted work with men and boys is new for most of them. Since the start of the program, we have devoted much time to exchanging experiences, strengthening the organizations' knowledge, and giving them the opportunity to learn about and develop methods for working with men and boys. While MÄN supports the partner organizations with experiences from our work in Sweden and other countries, we also bring their experiences back to our Swedish operations. Examples of methods and tools from MÄN that have been adapted to the partner organizations' circumstances during 2023-2024 are Lilla rummet, Manslådan, and conversation methods from our work with father groups.