Ongoing Nothing without us: Women with disabilities leading the change 

The goal of this project is to support and enhance the participation of women and girls with disabilities in advocating for gender equality and women’s rights. 

Women with disabilities make up 60% of the disability population and almost the 30% of the female population in the European Union. Yet they rarely play an important role both in the disability and women’s rights movements.

Women and girls with disabilities face many barriers, including socio-economic disadvantages, gender based and domestic violence, forced sterilisation and abortion, limited access to services and justice, poor housing, institutionalisation, inadequate healthcare and/or exclusion.

They are also two to five times more likely to experience violence compared to women without disabilities.

Inclusion, leadership, and self-advocacy within the disability and women’s rights movements are crucial to addressing these challenges. Women with disabilities must be given the resources, space and support to be leaders in these efforts.

Objectives

The aim of this project is to support EDF member organisations, at European and national level, in strengthening their work on women’s rights and gender equality. This includes engaging both women and men leaders in the disability movement, alongside with family members and other key activists. 

In addition, it will also try to increase the participation of women and girls with disabilities both within the disability movement and the women’s rights movement.

Activities

This project includes a variety of activities, such as:

Supporting organisations in establishing women’s committees and integrating gender equality in their work: including developing a gender mainstreaming package, providing individual support, fostering peer exchange between organisations and through sub-granting dedicated to specific activities related to women and girls with disabilities.
Fostering connection between the disability and feminist movements: including through a mentoring programme and workshops in different European countries.
Increasing networking, awareness and advocacy for the rights and challenges faced by women with disabilities at both national and European level: including the organisation of a European conference in the last year of the project.