We collaborate and support each other on Research, Evidence, Advocacy and Living, addressing our real lives, real issues, real questions.
Researching
Through the POWER group (Positive Women Engaged in Research), we support each other in our activities to lead research, or as research steering committee members, peer researchers or in other roles.
The POWER group provides a space for us to share experiences and ideas about research, and analyse power dynamics and barriers and facilitators of meaningful involvement. It also provides a space for us to support each other to develop research experiences and findings for publication.
The POWER Group core team consists of around 30 women living with HIV and their supporters around the world who are all engaged in research, including participatory and community-led research, qualitative research, academic research and medical research.
The POWER group is newly formed. Please come back soon for more information.
Evidencing
Building the evidence base and foregrounding lived experience and the voices and views of women on gender equality, HIV, violence, and sexual and reproductive health and rights.
Lived experiences are often dismissed by policy-makers as ‘anecdote’. It is time for this to change. We believe without taking into account lived experiences, the evidence base is sorely lacking. Speaking out and together is a political act and a tool for change. While fully respecting confidentiality and data security, Making Waves brings the abundant lived experiences of women into policy and practice in numerous ways: through podcasts, publications, conference abstracts and peer-reviewed articles. In all cases, women and their organisations are involved in the production of the resource and are listed as co-authors and/or contributors. This matters because women are often excluded from authorship of research and articles that use their analysis of lived experiences.
Advocating
We want to contribute to creating the conditions for gender equality, sexual and reproductive health and rights, and a world free of violence against women. Recognising that women often have to combine advocacy and activism with paid work (which is disproportionately low-paid, given the gender pay gap) and care responsibilities, we support advocacy on:
- Gender equality, sexual and reproductive health and rights, HIV and violence against women and girls.
- Recognising and valuing peer support and caring responsibilities.
- Increasing the funding available for women’s rights work and women-led efforts.
- Meaningful involvement of women and women’s organisations, recognising expertise and engaging as equal partners in research, advocacy, decision-making, monitoring and accountability.
- Feminist approaches to economic justice.
Living
We provide each other with mutual support and connection internationally.
We also share and document lived experiences, using social media, audiovisual approaches and creativity.
makingwaves.network 