Rally for Women’s Rights Festival

On Saturday November 29th, WO=MEN and members are hosting the Rally for Women’s Rights Festival! Two years after the one and only Feminist Foreign Policy Community Festival we are back with an informal, interactive and inspiring day designed by and for civil society. This edition isall about gender equality and women’s rights. We will celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Beijing Declaration and its Platform for Action.

2025 marks the 30th anniversary of the Fourth World Conference on Women and the adoption of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, also known as ‘Beijing+30’. In light of this celebration, WO=MEN and members have been organising a campaign around this anniversary. More information about the campaign can be found here.

No better way to finish our campaign and celebrate Beijing+30 than a festival! And that on International Women Human Rights Defenders Day,on the 29th of November. 

At the Rally for Women’s Rights Festival, we will be providing space for workshops, dialogues, documentary and film screenings, interactive games, you name it.All under the same roof: at Neude 11 in Utrecht.  

What? Below you’ll find an overview of all festival sessions. Do check back here regularly, for more sessions will follow soon!

 

Manosphere: How to reach out to boys and men. A simple solution, yet by no means easy. Organised by Emancipator. From 09:30-11:00 in room Podium. Language: Dutch.
The boy that is not embraced by the village will burn it down to feel its warmth. This Ubuntu expression will be start of an interactive workshop on how to engage with boys and men, to prevent their radicalisation. Both on an individual level and as a village or society. The radicalisation of boys and men, lead to all sorts of violence and misogyny which gets weaponised to not only attack women's rights, but also all those (x/f/m) that stand up to protect these rights. There really is a simple solution that we will further explore in this session. Sign up for this session (dutch only) through this link.

 

Gender-responsive budgeting is essential for the implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action, as it helps to highlight the impact of government budgets on women, men and non-binary persons. This method is not yet applied in the Netherlands, which contributes to systemic discrimination and human rights violations, as evidenced by the increase in reports to Art. 1. Although the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs has been using this method in development cooperation since the 1990s, domestic budgets remain largely gender-blind. This programme component will conclude with a participatory Brown Paper Session on new perspectives and a call to action.

Join us for an event where we present the latest findings on Child Marriage and the Realities Faced by Girls Worldwide. The report highlights the global context on girls' and women's rights, the deep-rooted causes of child marriage and its profound impact on girls’ education, health, rights, and futures. 

 

Together with two young grassroots activists from Ethiopia and Ghana, we will unpack the data and share regional insights in a plenary moderated part. In an interactive discussion, we will further exploretwo scenarios: 

This interactive format centers girls’ voices and asks: what do girls and young women need from community, national, and global level to protect and empower them? Whether you're a practitioner, advocate, policymaker, or student, your voice matters in shaping the solutions. 

 

Come play the Inclusion game: Stigma and barriers to Disability inclusion in accessing SRHR. Organised by Liliane Fonds. From 11:30-13:00 in room Podium. Language: Dutch/English. 
Using the inclusion game by SeeYou Foundation we will discuss scenarios where three people living with different disabilities are attending a health center pop up in their village and face a slew of obstacles in accessing their healthcare needs. Besides physical access, lack of access can be caused by institutional, communicational or attitudinal aspects. The audience will be welcomed to intervene and solve these challenges. This is relevant for anyone working in the field of SRHR and health care to better understand the complexity of disability inclusion and that just putting up a ramp does not automatically mean that disability inclusion is achieved. Participants will also reflect on ‘quick wins’ and more structural solutions for improved access. Sign up through this link.

 

On screen: International solidarity during the Fourth World Conference on Women in 1995. Organised door Atria. From 11:30-13:00 in room Filmzaal. Language: Dutch. 

In 1995, 17.000 delegates and 30.000 activists from around the world gathered in Beijing for the Fourth World Conference on Women. Dutch women's organisations from all around our country also traveled to Beijing. Thirty years after this historic conference, Atria and Vertelburo are recording the stories of eight remarkable Dutch women who were there. Why did they decide to travel Beijing? What dreams did they have for the future of women? What was it like to be there and how do they look back on it now? Oral history brings the experiences of these women to life and shows the impact of their work. We are showing a teaser of the oral history interviews and are offering a unique digital glimpse into Atria's archive regarding the conference in Beijing. Come and see for yourself the collective power and international solidarity of the Fourth World Women's Conference! Duration: every 15 minutes! No need to sign up, you can just walk in.

Feminist Advocacy in Action: tackling the triple planetary crisis one negotiation at a time. Organised by Women Engage for a Common Future (WECF). From 11:30-13:00 in room Collegezaal. Language: English.
Join us for an interactive World Café experience that brings the urgency of the triple planetary crisis—climate change, biodiversity loss, and pollution— to life. During this event we are unpacking the UN from a feminist perspective. You will get the latest insights about the gender negotiations during COP 30, fresh updates on UN biodiversity and the most recent state of affairs of the preparations for the Seventh session of the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA-7). Through role-play and dialogue, we will navigate the power dynamics and alliances that shape international agreements. We approach these negotiations through a feminist lens, asking how gender justice and inclusivity can reshape the way we respond to our planet’s most pressing crises. Sign up through this link.

 

Co-creating a more intersectional climate action space. Organised by New Women Connectors. From 11:30-13:00 in room Postzaal 2+3. Language: English. 
Anila Noor, founder and managing Director of New Women Connectors will share about the lack of inclusivity and intersectionality in climate action spaces, including some reflections from COP30. COP30 takes place from 10-21 November. In breakout discussions, the participants will discuss problems and solutions based on shared experiences. This is practicaland useful exercise to bring together organizations working on different focus areas, united by gender issues. After the breakouts, the findings will be discussed in plenary to identify notable gaps in the Dutch climate action spaces and to see how other organisations within the WO=MEN network can help bridge these gaps. Sign up through this link.

 

Take concrete steps against further militarisation! Step into the shoes of young boys in conflict areas around the world. Organised by PAX, ABAAD and CARE Netherlands. From 14:00-15:30 in room Theater. Language: English.

Step into the shoes of young boys in conflict areas around the world and consider the pull and push factors they experience. Never before has so much money been invested in building armies, and at the same time we are seeing a peak in armed conflict. How are dominant masculinity norms and processes of militarisation related? What concrete steps can we take to involve men and boys as accountable allies in feminist peace efforts? Learn more about processes of militarisation and how we can work together to change militarised masculinity norms. We will use a recently published Militarism & Masculinities toolkit that ABAAD and PAX have published together, and also link to what dominant masculinity norms mean for militarisation in the Netherlands and Dutch foreign policy. Sign up through this link.

 

Artivism (art & activism) is the practice of using creativity and art forms to achieve activist goals. This free space will provide plenty of materials and examples to get your creativity flowing. Put your favorite activist slogan on a button, make poetry or design protest signs. Add colour to feminist drawings, contribute to our banner, or create something for yourself. Come for a bit, or stay all day. Whatever you do – make it feminist and get inspired! No need to sign up - we will see you there!

Women’s Rights Rally. Organised by WO=MEN. From 9:00-16:00 at the Tribune. Language: Dutch/English.
Race in mini cars on a playful track full of obstacles and accelerators with the Women's Rights Rally, the race for women's rights! A fun and symbolic race, full of obstacles and accelerators; this is how you experience the barriers that stand in the way of equal rights. Will you make it to the finish line? Who or what will give you that extra push? The winner will, of course, have their photo taken with the trophy! The Women's Rights Rally is part of the "Full Force Ahead for Women's Rights” campaign by WO=MEN Dutch Gender Platform, Politica and member organisations to raise awareness of the need for gender equality and women's rights in the Netherlands. No need to sign up – we will see you there!