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International Association for Feminist Economists Annual Conference

International Association for Feminist Economists Annual Conference

GI-ESCR brings Chilean experience of feminist resistance to the International Association for Feminist Economists Annual Conference

 

On 25 June 2021, GI-ESCR’s Executive Director Magdalena Sepúlveda, participated in the closing panel of the 2021 Annual Conference of the International Congress of Feminist Economics organised by the International Association for Feminist Economics (IAFFE), bringing the Chilean experience of feminist resistance to the conference, from the experience of an acknowledged key actor in the field. The topic of this year’s IAFFE Annual Conference was Sustaining Life: Challenges of Multidimensional Crises.

GI-ESCR's presentation focused on the organising experience in Chile that led to the constituent process, with special emphasis on the relationship between feminist resistance and economic justice.

SUSTAINING LIFE

For the IAFFE, sustaining life requires the confluence of inclusive and resilient economic and political systems, as well as environmental sustainability. This vision builds on a diagnosis that evidences the resurgence of reactionary governments, with economic and political systems failing to meet human needs and to address the fragility of ecosystems, along with societies increasingly characterised by tensions of race, ethnicity, religion, nationality, gender and sexual identity that foster divisions.

The IAFFE therefore seeks a more integrated understanding of well-being, in which the productive and reproductive spheres are made visible and valued, incorporating perspectives from other disciplines into this thinking.

In this context, the collaboration of GI-ESCR, working with global feminist organisations and with a well-rooted experience in feminist resistance, has been key to understanding the impacts of the economy on the lives of women in the global south from a social rights framework.

GI-ESCR’S INPUT ON THE CONSTITUENT PROCESS AND SOCIAL RIGHTS

In her intervention, Magdalena highlighted the key role that feminist movements have historically played in the recognition and expansion of social, political and economic rights, also acknowledging the common origin of citizen movements demanding social rights and contemporary feminist movements in Chile.

Our Director traced the public relevance of social rights in Chilean social discourse to episodes such as the student marches of 2006 and 2011, the protests for better pensions, and the movements against dam construction and environmental protection. All of which were articulated in the language of rights in the constitutional discussion process triggered by Michelle Bachelet's government in 2017.

The GI-ESCR representative also highlighted that, currently, the central axis of all these movements is the rejection of the Pinochet Constitution and of neoliberalism as the country's economic model, the end of which brings hopes and expectations of putting an end to the rampant inequalities that have been experienced since then.

FEMINIST RESISTANCE: THE CHILEAN EXPERIENCE

In particular, Magdalena traced the emergence of feminist movements in Chile to the 1930s, re-emerging strongly in specific periods such as the passing of the divorce law and the sexual harassment law.

However, she identified two historical events that marked the origins of a broader and more organised feminist resistance: the election of the country's first woman president and the articulation of social movements around economic, social, cultural and environmental rights. As the first expression of this autonomous feminist resistance, Magdalena referred to the marches for sexual and reproductive rights that intertwined both gender equality and social rights.

Since then, she noted that:

Feminist movements have only grown, taking on new dimensions and even articulating international feminist solidarity movements, through the occupation of public space, the use of public campaigns and artistic language to interpret the feelings of women in Chile and other countries and advocate for the protection of their rights.

The Executive Director highlighted that one of the greatest triumphs of this resistance has been the incorporation of parity in the election of those who will represent Chile in the Constitutional Convention that begins its activities on 4 July.

Magdalena ended her presentation by stressing that:

The work of this organisation involves important issues, such as the transformation of the economic and social system, the visibility of women's contribution to the economic and productive sectors, and the mainstreaming of the gender perspective in economic, social, cultural and environmental rights. These challenges demonstrate Chile's relevance as a pivotal country for the region and the global south in relation to both the recognition and regulation of care and domestic work, and the protection of nature from the unbridled extractivism that it has been experiencing in recent decades.

IAFFE 2021 ANNUAL CONFERENCE: “SUSTAINING LIFE: CHALLENGES OF MULTIDIMENSIONAL CRISES”

Sustaining life requires inclusive and resilient economic and political systems and the sustainability of our environment.  Feminist economics continues to offer a vital set of intellectual perspectives and methodologies with which to analyze these issues. Our economic and political systems are failing to address human needs and ecological fragility, particularly with the growing rise of illiberal democracies. Our societies face pressures to divide along lines of race, religion, nationality, gender, and sexual identity.  Borders are increasingly shutting people out and walls are being built. Globally, women face threats to their jobs, their livelihoods and their bodily integrity. The global pandemic has exacerbated all of these challenges. 

Against this backdrop, new economic visions and tools are needed and feminist approaches are essential. Feminist economics has long looked beyond the simplifications that are embedded in the categories, methods, and models of mainstream economics and welcomes insights from other disciplines. Our approaches look at activities within the socially constructed categories of households, firms, communities, and the state; we consider economic activity both inside and outside markets; and we seek a more integrated understanding of human well-being in which productive and reproductive activities are valued.

The IAFFE 2021 Conference provide a forum for scholarship and inquiry that recognizes the methodological pluralism of our field. We define our field broadly and welcome research that brings a feminist lens to topics both micro and macro, local and global. We invite you to join us for this virtual conference, hosted by the Quito Local Committee.

For more information on the Congress, visit the website of the International Association for Feminist Economics.

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Climate and Environmental Justice

We have advanced rights-based and gender-transformative transition frameworks through research that centres the lived experiences of women and marginalised communities on the frontlines of extractive energy policies, promoting climate and energy frameworks attentive to the social and care-related impacts of transition pathways. We have developed a clear vision for a gender-just transition, firmly rooted in gender and human rights norms, establishing both the legal basis and the direction for the transformative changes our planet and societies urgently need. In particular, the ‘Guiding Principles for Gender Equality and Human Rights in the Energy Transition’, a collective effort built through online consultations, an in-person workshop and multiple rounds of revision with activists, practitioners and experts from around the world, outline a transformative vision for reshaping global energy systems through a human rights and gender equality lens.

Our work recognises that the climate emergency is both an existential threat and an opportunity to reimagine societies built on social, gender, economic and environmental justice. We ground our advocacy in feminist and intersectional principles, prioritising the agency and perspectives of communities in the Global South who have contributed the least to the climate emergency yet face its most devastating consequences. Central to our approach is the understanding that energy is not merely a commodity but a fundamental human right; essential for dignity, health, education, work and the realisation of countless other rights. We challenge approaches to the energy transition that risk replicating the harmful patterns of fossil fuel extraction and, instead, advocate for transformative policies that ensure human rights and gender equality as central to building climate-resilient societies rooted in dignity, justice and planetary well-being.

What's next?

We will continue to challenge approaches that treat energy transition as merely a technical shift, instead positioning it as an opportunity to reimagine economies and societies rooted in dignity for all, with particular attention to communities in the Global South who have contributed least to the climate emergency yet are most exposed to its worst effects.

We will connect community-level evidence and the lived experiences of those on the frontlines of extractive policies to national reform and global norm-setting, breaking down silos between human rights, gender, and climate movements, and advancing a shared vision that recognises just transitions as not only fundamental to achieving climate-resilient and sustainable societies, but as transformative pathways that advance social and gender equality, redistribute power and resources equitably, and ensure that energy systems serve the public good rather than profit.

We will mainstream rights-based and genderjust transition priorities in key multilateral spaces (particularly, within the Just Transition Work Programme and the to-be-developed Just Transition Mechanism, within the UNFCCC) to guarantee that just transitions are advanced at all levels.

We will also translate our work, through strategic advocacy, into at least two concrete policy wins, whether promoted, adopted, implemented, or scaled, in priority countries (Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Mexico, Colombia, South Africa, or Kenya), ensuring these policies align with human rights standards, centre gender equality, and reflect the needs and views of affected communities.

We will build momentum for the progressive recognition of the right to sustainable energy to shift dominant narratives away from purely extractive solutions that sideline gendered impacts, community participation, and Global South perspectives.

Economic Justice and Climate Finance

Our work has transformed the global discussion on fiscal policy in a more just, emancipatory and sustainable direction. Our approach has combined both high-level, expert contributions within decisionmaking circles, with bold, impactful work on narrative change with the general public.

We have been instrumental in the inclusion of human rights as a guiding principle of the future United Nations Framework Convention on International Tax Cooperation, a multilateral instrument with the potential of raising approx. USD 492 billion per year in public revenues currently foregone to global tax abuse. In the process leading to the ‘Compromiso de Sevilla’ decided at FfD4, we proposed and succeeded in creating a specific human rights workstream within the Civil Society Financing for Development Mechanism, which was critical to ensure that explicit commitments on the matter were included in the negotiating outcome. In a context of cutbacks in multilateral institutions, we have amplified the capacities of technical experts, providing rigorous technical support and leveraging our influence to ensure the enactments of groundbreaking standard-setting instruments, such as the 2025 UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights Statement on Fiscal Policy and Human Rights, and the first ex oficio hearing on the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights on Fiscal and Economic Policies to Address Poverty and Structural Inequality, leading to an upcoming thematic resolution on the matter. We have also bridged the silos between multilateral tax discussions and climate finance debates, promoting ambitious financing commitments to increase international and domestic resource mobilisation during COP 28, 29 and 30.

At the regional level, our engagement with fiscal cooperation platforms such as the Platform for Fiscal Cooperation of Latin America and the Caribbean (PTLAC), where we are member of its Civil Society Consultative Council, and the African Anti-IFFs Policy Tracker, for which we participated in the pilot mission in Ivory Coast together with Tax Justice Network Africa (TJNA), have been critical in cementing a growing engagement between tax administrations and ministries of finance with international legal experts, exploring actionable and transformative initiatives, such as the taxation of high-net-worth individuals, beneficial ownership registries and corporate countryby-country reports, to be implemented at the international level.

At the local level, our interventions in fiscal reform debates in Chile, Brazil, Colombia and Nigeria have contributed to shaping legislative outcomes in a more progressive, rights-compliant direction.

As for our leadership in narrative change, we have a measurable track record in delivering tailored, innovative campaigns which have decisively expanded economic justice constituencies by appealing to a broader tent. In Latin America and the Caribbean, we created the ‘Date Cuenta’ campaign, coordinating over 40 organisations across civil society to deliver plain language, innovative messaging connecting progressive fiscal reforms to the financing of health, education and social protection. ‘Date Cuenta’ generated over 55 original campaign messages that were tailored to the realities of seven priority countries (Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, Paraguay, Peru and Honduras) and disseminated in Spanish, Portuguese and English. In doing so, we convened more than 65 online co-creation workshops with partners, coordinating a unified communications strategy which combined digital outreach, press and media coverage, and collaboration with influencers. Ultimately, ‘Date Cuenta’ resulted in more than 60,000 interactions on social media, coverage in major regional and international media outlets, including El País, Deutsche Welle, Bloomberg and France 24, and the participation of at least 63 social media influencers through 58 dedicated publications. In collaboration with Fundación Gabo and the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung, we also organised a two-day workshop in Bogota with 20 journalists from 13 countries, building a regional network trained in a human rights-based approach to fiscal policy that has since generated published media coverage on outlets such as La Diaria, Ciper, El Diario Ar and Milenio. Through ‘Date Cuenta’ and our regional advocacy, we strengthened civil society engagement in key processes, including the Financing for Development track and FfD4, co-organised highlevel dialogues with states and civil society from Latin America and Africa.

What's next?

We will shape the UN Tax Convention and its Protocols so they embed human rights principles, and we will stay engaged through follow-up processes (including the expected Conference of the Parties) to support effective implementation. We will keep linking tax and climate finance so that new resources mobilised through fiscal cooperation are channelled to adaptation, mitigation, and loss and damage, in line with UNFCCC commitments.

Public Services for Care Societies

We have translated participatory research into accountability and policy outcomes.

In Ivory Coast, our work with Mouvement Ivoirien des Droits Humains and affected communities since 2023 exposed how privatisation and lack of accountability restrict access to quality healthcare. It contributed to the closure of 1,022 illegal private health centres, an executive instrument strengthening the regulation of private hospitals across the country, and the creation of a permanent complaints management committee in healthcare through a bylaw issued by the prefect of Gagnoa. Partners engaged through this process also advanced concrete improvements at facility level: members of the Gagnoa Midwives Association who took part in the participatory action research pooled resources to renovate the neonatal unit of the Regional Hospital, and the Director of the Gagnoa General Hospital launched an action plan to expand services and improve patient reception, with the facility receiving the award for best hospital in the country in 2025.

In Kenya, our research with the Mathare Education Taskforce documented the absence of public schools and the expansion of private provision, evidencing impacts on households and caregivers and strengthening demands for free, quality public education. This work contributed to stronger community agency and collective organisation, alongside ongoing strategies ranging from communications to litigation to secure a public school in the area, some involving GI-ESCR and others led independently.

Across Africa, this work is complemented by a multi-country study examining the human rights implications of austerity in education and health, including how regressive fiscal policies, rising debt burdens and persistent underinvestment undermine the financing and delivery of public services.

In Latin America, from 29 November to 2 December 2021, over a thousand representatives from over one hundred countries, from grassroots movements, advocacy, human rights, and development organisations, feminist movements, trade unions, and other civil society organisations, met in Santiago, Chile, and virtually, to discuss the critical role of public services for our future. Following the meeting, the Santiago Declaration on Public Services was adopted to demand universal access to quality, gender-transformative and equitable public services as the foundation of a fair and just society.

We are currently advancing work on care systems, linking public services and fiscal justice through integrated research, advocacy and communications, including a regional campaign framing care as a collective responsibility requiring sustained public investment.

What's next?

In Ivory Coast, we will evaluate and strengthen the complaints management committee and position it as a replicable model for other health facilities. In Kenya, we will support the Mathare community to co-design a model public school for Mabatini and Ngei wards, grounded in human rights standards. Building on our multi-country austerity study, we will drive national advocacy on financing for education and health: advancing reforms in Ghana; launching a fiscal policy and public services financing agenda in Kenya through the CESCR process and targeted coalition work; and, in Nigeria, using the new tax acts in force since 1 January 2026 to catalyse a national accountability campaign for adequately funded, quality public services. In Latin America, we will amplify locally led care pilots across 8 countries and turn lessons into influence—advancing care policies that strengthen care organisations, protect care workers’ rights, support unpaid caregivers, include disability and family networks, and redistribute care more equitably.