Society of Gender Professionals

01/10/2026

Our latest newsletter edition is out, and we think you’ll want to settle in with it. Inside, you’ll find SGP Gender café, Circle updates, SGP Revisioning process, and stories from one of our members of the community that remind us why this work matters. Take a few minutes to read it, share it with a colleague, see the link in our Bio to the Linkeln edition

28/09/2026

Can DEI Survive the Era of Backlash? Lessons from Four Years of Gender Cafés

Backlash against gender equality and DEI is no longer a series of separate national controversies. It is coordinated, it crosses borders, and it is reshaping how we do this work.

That was the throughline of four Gender Cafés co-organised by CCINDLE and the Society of Gender Professionals (SGP), a global network of gender practitioners, academics and activists spanning 127 countries. Close to 800 people registered across the series, from human rights lawyers in Buenos Aires to DEI consultants in Nairobi and community organisers in Manila.

The conversations moved through some of the sharpest fault lines of our time: how anti-gender movements operate on the ground, how technology and AI are amplifying gender-based violence, and the rising backlash against LGBTQI+ rights in Africa and South America. The series closed on 30 June 2026 with the hardest question of all: what actually sustains DEI when it is under attack?

A few insights stayed with me from that final session:

Backlash looks different depending on where you stand. In much of Asia it is often quiet and structural, with DEI roles folded into other functions or dismissed as a “Western concept.” In South Africa, where legislation is already strong, the fight is about evidence: showing where legal protection and lived reality part ways.

The economics matter. LGBTQ+ discrimination alone is estimated to cost Southeast Asia up to USD 33 billion in lost GDP, and Hong Kong now requires DEI policies for listed companies.

Survival is not the goal. Speakers argued that visibility and representation are necessary but not enough. The deeper work is redistributing power, authority and decision making, and building the capacity to depart from the norm.

We also need room to grieve. The exhaustion of constantly justifying one’s own humanity is real, and it rarely gets named in DEI spaces.

The most important takeaway is that no one has to carry this alone. As one speaker put it, when one person is exhausted, others can continue the work. That is exactly why communities like SGP matter.

See the link in our bio for the full article.

03/09/2026

🌍✨ AFRICAN YOUTH — THIS IS YOUR SPACE!

Are you 15–35 and passionate about gender equality, SRHR, GBV, climate justice, education, digital rights, economic justice or youth organizing?

Join the CSW71 Africa Regional Youth & Adolescent Consultations.

🗣️ Share. ✊🏾 Shape. 🌍 Influence.

Your voice. Your lived experience. Your agenda.

22/07/2026

Find out about our events, resources, and news articles from across the globe. Ask a colleague or friend to sign up for our Newsletter today! Share widely with your community. See the link 🔗 in Bio

30/06/2026

Join us today as we re-write many assumptions surrounding Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI)
Come be the Voice that impacts and brings about change.
The time is Now to counter the backlash, the time is now to speak out👏🏽
See y’all in a few

30/06/2026

The Gender Cafe conversations are happening today, register with the link in the Bio to join us.
Don’t miss! Tag a friend not to miss!

10/06/2026

DEI is under attack, and the implications extend far beyond workplaces and boardrooms.

Around the world, diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts are facing increasing resistance, funding cuts, policy reversals, and public backlash. The question is no longer whether there is a backlash—it is whether DEI can survive it and emerge stronger.

Join us at the Gender Café as we bring together practitioners, advocates, policymakers, researchers, and allies to unpack the growing pushback against DEI, examine its root causes, and explore what the future holds for inclusive development and social justice.

Can DEI withstand the attack? What strategies are needed to sustain progress? And what role must each of us play?

Let’s have the conversation.
Find the registration link in the bio

Equity Leadership Development FeministLeadership

18/04/2026

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06/04/2026

What does it take to advance LGBTQI+ rights across vastly different regions, yet shared struggles?

In this Gender Café, Intersecting Struggles, Shared Futures, we explore how activists, researchers, and policy influencers across Africa and South America are navigating complex realities to drive equality and social justice.

🎙️ Featuring:
▪️ Javier Corrales, professor of Political Science at Amherst College in Amherst, Massachusetts
▪️ Marcela Romero, Argentine activist who has led the fight for the rights of transgender people in Latin America and the Caribbean.
▪️ Amanda Odoi, PhD, feminist, gender, and social justice advocate and an academic.
▪️ Brindaalakshmi K. K, a queer-feminist journalist, researcher and advocacy professional working at the intersection of human rights
▪️ Francesca TRAGLIA, an international humanitarian and gender justice, leads programmes, advocacy, and feminist movement-building across Latin America, Africa, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia.

Featuring diverse voices from the Global South, this conversation highlights both hard-won successes and ongoing challenges, from legislative progress to community resilience, while unpacking the role of cross-regional solidarity and inclusive policy frameworks.

Watch the full discussion and subscribe to our channel for more conversations that amplify voices that matter.

Intersecting Struggles, Shared Futures: Advancing LGBTQI+ Rights Across Africa and South America Monday, 8th of December 2025 | 10:00-11:30 EST, 16:00-17:30 CET, 20:30-22:00 IST This gender cafe,

08/03/2026

Happy International Women’s Day 2026
Whoever you are, However you are, you are justified, powerful and unique… SGP celebrates you all today

❤️