WATCH: MONEY TROUBLES – RESOURCING UNREGISTERED FEMINIST COLLECTIVES
In an ecosystem where less than 1% of all gender-focused aid goes to women’s rights organisations, one thing many groups within feminist movements have in common is their chronic underfunding and lack of sustained resourcing. For many, securing funding for essential programs and advocacy work can be a daily struggle despite their established networks and organisational set-up.
But what if the work you’re trying to do does not even exist within this system?
In the third installment of IWDA’s Troublemakers: Courageous Conversations with Fiery Feminists, we were joined by researcher, facilitator and practitioner from Maraa Collective Angarika Guha and the Association for Women’s Rights in Development’s Manager of the Resourcing Feminist Movements initiatives and current interim Deputy Director of Programs Gopika Bashi. Together, they unpacked the global feminist funding ecosystem and reimagined ways of resourcing some of the most important but difficult-to-fund work happening within our movements.
The conversation started with an exploration of what differentiates feminist collectives from other types of organisations working in this space, from their unconventional structures to their more flexible approach to work.
What makes a collective? Often it’s about structure & ways of working, says @Angarika90. Her collective @Maraa_Blr has a horizontal structure which evenly distributes resources among members, their work is not structured into programs & is not focused on scale #IWDATroublemakers
— IWDA (@iwda) June 1, 2022
For @gopikabashi, a lot of what sets #FeministCollectives apart is the opportunity they offer for those in them to contribute to something collectively while still having the space to work on your interests and incorporate your own politics in it.
— IWDA (@iwda) June 1, 2022
To Angarika and Gopika, it is this flexibility and innovation that enables feminist collectives to undertake the more radical aspects of their work and push the boundaries of what is possible within feminist movements. Without the restrictions of working within a formal organisational structure, unregistered feminist collectives have a greater capacity to take on the kinds of unique and transformational work that fully represents their values and ideals.
Having worked with a number of collectives – one of the things that @gopikabashi kept coming back to was how much amazing work was being done outside of the traditional structures of the system #IWDATroublemakers
— IWDA (@iwda) June 1, 2022
Yet this same ability to work outside the confines of traditional structures is also what limits these groups when it comes to securing funding. Within a global ecosystem that prioritises hierarchical structures, clearly delineated work and established organisations with a ‘proven’ track record, unregistered feminist collectives often find it hard to make their work fit into these pre-defined boxes to access to the resources they need.
Funding the powerful work of unregistered collectives shouldn’t be this hard, says @gopikabashi. “For those of us who believe resources should be redistributed, we need to focus on how can we radically imagine that happening, especially in a difficult environment.”
— IWDA (@iwda) June 1, 2022
To Angarika and Gopika, it is this flexibility and innovation that enables feminist collectives to undertake the more radical aspects of their work and push the boundaries of what is possible within feminist movements. Without the restrictions of working within a formal organisational structure, unregistered feminist collectives have a greater capacity to take on the kinds of unique and transformational work that fully represents their values and ideals.
Yet this same ability to work outside the confines of traditional structures is also what limits these groups when it comes to securing funding. Within a global ecosystem that prioritises hierarchical structures, clearly delineated work and established organisations with a ‘proven’ track record, unregistered feminist collectives often find it hard to make their work fit into these pre-defined boxes to access to the resources they need.
Funding the powerful work of unregistered collectives shouldn’t be this hard, says @gopikabashi. “For those of us who believe resources should be redistributed, we need to focus on how can we radically imagine that happening, especially in a difficult environment.”
— IWDA (@iwda) June 1, 2022
When faced with the question of how to fund this kind of work, Gopika and Angarika believe it is essential for unregistered feminist collectives to carefully consider what it is they actually want to achieve and what resources are essential to get them there – whatever form that might take.
When considering funding opportunities, @Angarika90 of @Maraa_Blr thinks it’s essential to consider what audiences you want to reach, who the work is for & what are the sensibilities of the context in which you are working #IWDATroublemakers
— IWDA (@iwda) June 1, 2022
“A question we keep asking ourselves is where is capital important, and where can we think about other ways to receive support? We’re hardcore supporters of gifts-in-kind – so people can give us space, food, train tickets.” – @Angarika90 of @Maraa_Blr #IWDATroublemakers
— IWDA (@iwda) June 1, 2022
During the session, they both shared personal stories of how re-shaping their thinking around funding has allowed them to find alternative ways of resourcing their work – from crowdsourcing to help fund a feminist comic book for Gopika to an unexpected collaboration for Angarika.
The opportunity this partnership offered has convinced @Angarika90 that collectives need to stop assuming think that the money is going to come from traditional sources.
And a key part of doing that is gaining the ability to see & articulate your work in different, unique ways.
— IWDA (@iwda) June 1, 2022
While both emphasised the importance of this kind of flexible thinking, Angarika and Gopika also made one thing clear – ensuring feminist collectives can have access to the funding they deserve also requires a broader change in how the global feminist funding ecosystem itself functions. From funders accepting that supporting unregistered groups might mean embracing unfamiliar ways of working to more traditional non-government organisations thinking about what role they could play in this, their conversation highlighted the role we all have to play in ensuring a more sustainable way forward for unregistered groups.
For @gopikabashi, there’s a false assumption that only younger #feminists are interested in unregistered organising, and as feminists get older they will automatically seek formal funding from traditional sources simply because they have more access to it.#IWDATroublemakers
— IWDA (@iwda) June 1, 2022
Traditional NGOs need to also consider how they are supporting collectives and political activism. Otherwise, “in 10 years if we don’t do this, there’ll be no voices of dissent” @gopikabashi #IWDATroublemakers
— IWDA (@iwda) June 1, 2022
Watch a recording of the first half of the session below and hear more from Gopika and Angarika on how we can re-work our current funding system to make room for unregistered feminist collectives and the transformative work they make possible.