CREA’s Feminist Leadership, Movement Building, and Rights Institute

If you are a feminist activist, human rights advocate, or community organizer passionate about deepening your understanding of feminist leadership and movement building, the applications for CREA’s Feminist Leadership, Movement Building, and Rights Institute – East Africa (FLMBaRI-EA) 2025 are now open.

Held in Kampala, Uganda, this prestigious residential programme offers a unique opportunity to engage with cutting-edge feminist theories and practices, build solidarity across movements, and strengthen your advocacy strategies for social transformation.

Designed for activists across East Africa, the Institute is more than a training—it is a dynamic and experiential learning space led by renowned feminist scholars, practitioners, and leaders. Participants will critically examine contemporary challenges, power structures, and emerging forms of patriarchy to sharpen their leadership and strategic skills for change.

🗒️ Program Summary

Location: Kampala, Uganda
Host Institution: CREA (Creating Resources for Empowerment in Action)
Programs Type: Professional development (non-degree residential programme)
Target Group: Feminist activists, human rights defenders, community organizers, researchers, practitioners from East Africa or working in the East African context
Fields of Focus: Feminist leadership, movement building, social justice, human rights, sexuality, gender and diversity, sexual and reproductive health and rights
Coverage: Full coverage (including travel, accommodation, meals, local transportation, and visa fee reimbursement for East Africa-based participants)
Duration: 8 full days in October 2025 (exact dates to be confirmed)
Application Deadline: 24th May 2025
Start Date: October 2025
Eligible to: Activists embedded in feminist or human rights movements; applicants must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and Yellow Fever; members of structurally excluded groups are strongly encouraged to apply.

🎓 Program Overview

The Feminist Leadership, Movement Building, and Rights Institute – East Africa is crafted around the belief that deep-rooted conceptual clarity and strategic understanding amplify feminist leadership. Rather than addressing symptoms of inequality, the programme delves into the fundamental structures that sustain patriarchy, offering tools to challenge and dismantle them.

Participants will:

Interrogate how concepts like nation, identity, and development influence feminist struggles.
Explore various forms of feminist leadership across generations.
Build collaborative and innovative modes of resistance against new power configurations.
Reflect on and connect micro-practices within broader feminist and social justice movements.

🧩 Institute Structure, Curriculum, and Activities

Pedagogy: A blend of classroom sessions, group work, theatre, simulation exercises, literature discussions, films, music, and case studies.

Core Principles:

Strong linkage of theory to practical activism.
Critical analysis of policy and programme interventions through a rights-based lens.
Emphasis on collective, experiential learning.
Learning led by globally acclaimed feminist faculty.

Faculty:

Core Faculty: Solome Nakaweesi, Dipta Bhog, and Paromita Chakravarti—leading feminist activists and academics with decades of experience.
Visiting Faculty: A roster of experienced feminist activists, academicians, and practitioners.

🎁 Program Benefits

Full boarding and lodging during the 8-day Institute.
International and local travel expenses covered (for participants from East Africa).
Reimbursement of visa fees and local transportation costs (with receipt submissions).
Twin-sharing accommodation facilities.
Access to world-class feminist faculty and diverse participants from across East Africa.
An inclusive, accessible learning environment with encouragement for persons with disabilities and structurally excluded groups to apply.

✅ Eligibility Criteria

Be activists, service providers, community organizers, researchers, or human rights practitioners engaged in issues related to sexuality, gender, diversity of sex characteristics, LGBTIQ rights, sexual and reproductive health, disability rights, HIV/AIDS, public health, or violence against women.
Be actively embedded in human rights or feminist movements or closely working with civil society organizations.
Not be full-time students.
Be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and Yellow Fever.
Be from East Africa or working within an East African context. (Travel grants are not assured for applicants applying from outside East Africa.)
Applicants from structurally excluded communities, including persons with disabilities, are highly encouraged to apply.

📝 Application Procedure

Application Form: Fill and submit the official application form (available on CREA’s website).

📂 Supporting Documents:

Updated CV
Personal statement detailing your activism experience, motivation, and what you hope to gain from the Institute
Letter of recommendation (preferably from a human rights/feminist organization you are associated with)

- Submission Method: Applications must be emailed to (flmbari-ea@creaworld.org)

- Deadline: Submit your complete application by 24th May 2025.

- Selection Notification: Applicants selected for the Institute will be notified by the end of September 2025. Only successful applicants will be contacted.

ℹ️ For any queries regarding the Institute or application process, you can reach out to CREA at flmbari-ea@creaworld.org.