Women’s Empowerment Mainstreaming And Networking (WEMAN) is a global programme of Oxfam Novib for gender justice in economic development. They have produced this manual as part of a series on Gender Action Learning System (GALS) methodology. This manual outlines practical steps for the second stage of the GALS process; community-led action learning for gender justice.
Stage 2 focuses on the underlying idea of the ‘life road journey’ where people develop a vision with Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Time-bound (SMART) ‘milestones’, analyse opportunities and constraints, and track progress over time as an action learning and change process. All the tools used here can be adapted and the analysis can be as simple or as complex as required by the user. Any of the tools can be used as a stand-alone exercise in about 3 hours, but all are most powerful as part of the kind of longer-term integrated process suggested here. This process takes place over 6 to 12 months of integration into other organisational activities, and consists of six steps of in-depth action learning with sequenced tools which: bring about cumulative and significant changes in gender relations; improve analytical and participatory skills; and build networks and peer-learning structures for a sustainable empowerment and action learning process.
Steps one to four progressively build up different elements of a personal empowerment journey. This summarises and anchors the inputs from the other tools, such as the ‘gender justice diamond’ from GALS stage 1. At the end of each session, outputs with action commitments are placed on the draft personal empowerment journey sketched in the first session. This is so that people understand where the different tools and discussions fit into the overall map. The outputs are personal strategic plans, with a SWOT analysis and SMART milestone objectives monitored by individuals over time in personal diaries and/or charts on their walls. Each activity also includes action commitments so that change is constant and cumulative from the very start. Although the vision journey is a personal one, it is also developed through group discussion and by sharing ideas. Each session also gives homework between sessions to reinforce learning, and build the self-reliance of individuals, structures for peer-learning, and mutual support groups.
Steps five to six then aggregate learning from these personal journeys into a revised ‘gender justice diamond’ and a collective vision journey. The gender justice diamond revisits the perceptions and conclusions from the ‘Tree of diamond dreams’ (GALS stage 1) – assessing whether and how the perceptions and visions have changed, and what changes have taken place. This then becomes a tool for monitoring future change in indicators which are important to participants.
[adapted from source]