Feminist leadership

Our transformative vision of a just world free from poverty, oppression and patriarchy requires transformative feminist leaders: leaders who enable others to lead, building power with them instead of over them.  To develop this approach, we have adopted a set of feminist leadership principles.

1. Self-awareness

We will keep our egos in check, so that we can lead with empathy and open minds. In order to do this, we will work towards accepting our vulnerabilities, as well as recognising and valuing our strengths and those of others.

2. Self-care and caring for others

We will take care of our emotional and physical well-being, in order to renew our inner sources of inspiration and compassion so we can continue to give of our best. We encourage and support others to do the same, actively working towards a more flexible and supportive work environment, particularly for those with caring responsibilities.

3. Dismantling bias

We recognise that society gives us (and others) certain advantages that are not asked for or earned (for example, based on gender, class, race, caste, ability, sexual orientation, education or other factors). We will help to uncover and challenge these forms of discrimination in our day to day workplace practices and policies. We will be aware of how our own privileges can make others feel disempowered or inferior, as well as how we react to others’ privilege, and deliberately change our behaviour to treat everyone as equals.

4. Inclusion

We will create ways for everyone to be equally heard, respected and successful. We will challenge ourselves to build diverse and inclusive teams and to recognize and respond to different barriers to participation.

5. Sharing power