Promoting Youth Leadership for Gender Justice

Global Fund for Children supports youth-led groups and networks of community-based organizations in Central America that are engaging boys and young men in promoting healthy masculinities and advancing gender justice.

This initiative is a partnership between the Summit Foundation, the Kendeda Fund, and GFC. It aims to create lasting individual and social change for gender equity in Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua by:

• Supporting the efforts of youth-led groups to promote healthy masculinities, champion the gender justice movement, and strengthen the leadership skills of boys and young men so they can act as community promoters of healthy masculinities
• Promoting storytelling to spark dialogue, challenge predominant ideas of masculinity, and foster the contributions of young men to narratives for gender justice
• Creating safe spaces for boys and young men to challenge stigmas, attitudes, and laws that undermine gender equality
• Strengthening networks for advocacy and learning by connecting youth-led organizations and movements promoting healthy masculinities in Central America

The Promoting Youth Leadership for Gender Justice initiative is also known as the HEEL initiative, a Mayan word that means change and transformation. The initiative builds on the progress made during GFC’s six-year Changing Gender Attitudes, Empowering Girls initiative, which was also a partnership with the Summit Foundation, with additional support from Hawk Rock Foundation and the Girls Rights Project.

Learn more about these initiatives by reading the stories below.

Project Partners:

ACADEMIA DE LIDERAZGO SOCIAL

Tegucigalpa, Honduras

Academia de Liderazgo Social is a youth-led organization that empowers children and young people to take on leadership roles and get involved in political and social issues. It was founded by university students and provides youth with leadership development programs and training in community organizing.

ASOCIACIÓN SERNIÑA

Sacatepéquez, Guatemala

Asociación SERniña is a youth-led organization that fosters gender equality and empowers children and youth to reach their full potential. In partnership with local schools and community groups in Chimaltenango and Sacatepéquez, SERniña facilitates workshops on gender equality, leadership skills, and healthy masculinities, including a comprehensive program for boys and young men known as SerNiño.

RED DE JÓVENES ARTISTAS POR LA JUSTICIA SOCIAL

Quetzaltenango, Guatemala

Red de Jóvenes Artistas por la Justicia Social is a network of young people from different departments in Guatemala who use art as a tool for advocacy and empowerment. Its members have organized workshops, festivals, murals, trainings, debates, and exhibitions to raise awareness about issues that impact youth, to influence public policy, and to spark dialogue.

WARRIORS ZULU NATION HONDURAS

San Pedro Sula, Honduras

Founded by two brothers who discovered breakdancing as an alternative to gangs when they were teenagers, Warriors Zulu Nation Honduras is a youth-led organization that uses urban arts to engage young people. It empowers youth in neighborhoods with a significant gang presence to practice different art forms while exploring social issues that impact their communities.

This initiative also has a partner organization in Nicaragua. For security reasons, GFC is not naming the Nicaraguan organization.

Header photo: © OYE