Frequently Asked Questions

What is “gender equality”?

Gender equality means that people of all genders enjoy the same rights, responsibilities, and opportunities in every sphere of life. It is not only about treating women and men the same, but about dismantling the structural barriers, stereotypes, and discriminatory practices that prevent women, girls, and gender-diverse people from exercising their full rights. For FAR, gender equality must be substantive—going beyond legal guarantees to ensure real, lived equality in practice.  

What is “feminist governance”?

Feminist governance refers to ways of organizing power and decision-making that challenge patriarchy and other systems of domination. It emphasizes “power with” instead of hierarchical “power over,” and seeks to redistribute authority to uphold justice, accountability, and collective well-being.
This approach asks where power lies, how it is exercised, and whether decision-making is participatory, accountable, and inclusive of those most affected. For FAR, feminist governance means building transnational alliances where women and girls—particularly from the global south and marginalized communities—shape laws, policies, and governance structures at every level.

What does it mean to take a feminist approach to human rights?

A feminist approach to human rights makes women’s lived experiences central to how rights are understood and put into practice. It builds on the universal human rights framework while asking harder questions about power, discrimination, and justice.

This approach means:

  • Recognizing women and girls as leaders and rights-holders, not just as victims.
  • Confronting discrimination at its roots, including harmful stereotypes, unequal laws, and structural inequalities (CEDAW General Recommendation No. 28).
  • Ensuring participation and accountability, so women can influence decisions that affect their lives (CEDAW General Recommendation No. 33).
  • Eliminating gender-based violence, recognizing it as a form of discrimination that violates women’s rights to equality, dignity, and security (CEDAW General Recommendation No. 35).
  • Protecting civic space and feminist movements, which are essential to defending human rights everywhere (Beijing Platform for Action, 1995).
What is “intersectionality”?

Intersectionality describes how different forms of discrimination—such as sexism, racism, ableism, xenophobia, and classism—overlap and reinforce each other. A woman’s experience of inequality is not shaped by gender alone, but also by her race, migration status, disability, sexuality, age, or economic situation.

Tackling discrimination requires understanding these multiple and intersecting identities, because women from marginalized communities often face compounded barriers to justice and equality. Intersectionality helps ensure that human rights protections are inclusive of all women and girls.

How are labor rights feminist issues?

Labor rights are feminist issues because women’s economic lives have always been shaped by inequality and discrimination. Globally, women are more likely to work in informal, insecure, and low-paid jobs, to face harassment and violence at work, and to carry the unequal burden of unpaid care.

The right to just and favorable conditions of work applies equally to women and men. Closing pay gaps, ending workplace discrimination, and ensuring safe working conditions are not only essential to women’s empowerment, but also to achieving gender equality and sustainable development.