June 24 – July 12, 2024

Applications for this program have closed.

Co-facilitators: Julien Landry, Sarika Sinha

As people across the globe experience dispossession from resources, capabilities, and agency, achieving justice requires systemic and equitable change in the policies, decisions, and discourses that affect the lives and the rights of people of all genders. When underpinned by a strong feminist approach, advocacy – a planned action directed at influencing positive change in our communities and societies – can serve a powerful driver to amplify people’s voices and build agency towards social, economic and ecological justice.

With pillars on feminism and advocacy, this three-week Certificate course will help participants deepen their understanding of feminism(s) and address issues of power, gender, and intersecting inequalities to plan and implement effective advocacy that strengthens community agency, participation, and voice. Using a decolonization lens, the course is designed to consider multiple perspectives (in the intimate, private, and public domains) in advancing feminist justice. It aims to build knowledge and skills through active experience sharing, and to explore opportunities for ongoing learning and collective action around issues of common concern. Building on experiences and literature in the areas of advocacy, feminist theory, communication, human rights, popular education, and social change, this course seeks to inspire and empower people of all genders to engage in purposeful and justice-oriented feminist advocacy. It is designed to equip participants with a rights-based and strategic framework to analyze past advocacy and to plan future or ongoing advocacy initiatives through a feminist lens.

Benefits and Learning Objectives

By the end of this course, you should be able to:

• Define advocacy and explain the different types and approaches used by advocates;
• Define feminism and key concepts (e.g., sex, gender, intersectionality, patriarchy), and contemporary feminist thoughts;
• Explain how the principles, practices, and aims of feminism can strengthen people-centered advocacy;
• Apply an intersectional power analysis to advocacy issues in the context of your own work;
• Describe key steps in applying a strategic planning framework for feminist advocacy;
• Analyze a variety of advocacy strategies, tactics, and tools used to enhance agency, equity, and justice;
• Assess your organizational readiness for feminist advocacy, including your own role as an advocate within intimate, private, and public realms; and,
• Produce a learning project to support advocacy planning in your own work towards feminist justice.

 By attending this course your organization will be able to:

• Grow its networks and learn alongside an inspired and diverse group of practitioners, advocates, and activists working to advance feminist justice globally;
• Navigate challenges and emerging opportunities to use feminist advocacy to support people’s struggles towards a just world; and,
• Harness the leadership of women, youth, trans, Indigenous people, and other historically under-represented groups in your strategies for community-centered advocacy in response to the opportunities and challenges they face.

Methods

Experiential learner-centered methods will be used throughout the course. The workshop format will emphasize active participation and exchange among the participants and facilitators within a collaborative learning environment. The course will draw on the experiences and stories of participants, and will include interactive mini-lectures, small group discussions, analysis of video case studies, field visits, and a variety of skill-building exercises. Participants will work in issue-based groups to apply the advocacy planning process into their work throughout the course.

Learning Assessment

Assessment of participant learning will be based on active participation and the completion of an individual learning project focused on applying their knowledge and skills to an advocacy issue of their choosing.

Participants

This course designed for advocates and activists, members of organizations and social movements, and allies with the public and private sector who have at least 2 years of experience working towards equitable social change, and who are currently involved in advocacy. Participants should be motivated to participate actively, learn how feminist advocacy could strengthen their work and its impact, and strive to apply their learning into action after the course.

Fees

Coady Institute ensures that participants working with marginalized communities around the world have access to its courses. This is made possible through the provision of bursaries that are funded by many individual and institutional donors. After bursary, the remaining cost of the program is $2,000 CAD. Accepted participants will be responsible for paying the balance of $2,000 CAD before the designated deadline. This includes room and board for the 3-week residency at Coady Institute on the campus of St. Francis Xavier University, Antigonish, Nova Scotia.

All travel related expenses including airfare and visa fees are the responsibility of the participant. Coady Institute will arrange and cover ground transportation costs between Halifax Stanfield International Airport and the Coady Institute.