Actionaid Australia

ActionAid is a global justice Federation working to achieve social justice, gender equality and poverty eradication. Throughout the world, ActionAid works to strengthen the capacity and active agency of people living in poverty and exclusion, especially women, to assert their rights. Globally, we work directly with communities, with people’s organizations, women’s movements, groups and networks, social movements and other allies to overcome the structural causes and consequences of poverty and injustice. We connect the work we do at community level with broader efforts and struggles for justice at every level to make the greatest contribution towards a just, equitable and sustainable world. Guided by feminist and human rights-based principles and approaches, we seek to shift and transform power, through empowerment, solidarity, campaigning and the generation of alternatives to ensure that every person can enjoy a life of dignity and freedom from all forms of oppression. ActionAid prioritizes the leadership of women and young people, especially those living in poverty and exclusion, in our efforts to achieve social justice, gender equality and poverty eradication. We create platforms for collective action and solidarity by enabling people around the world to unite and contribute to social justice struggles in various ways – as active citizens, supporters, staff, volunteers and partners for change. Around the world, ActionAid is rooted in the contexts where we operate and proudly upholds our primary accountability to the people most affected by unequal power relations. In Palestine, we are demonstrating the same commitment to supporting the empowerment of women and young people living in poverty and injustice. We believe that the effects of Israel’s occupation of Palestine – compounded by lack of accountability of local government and a patriarchal society that denies women and young people their rights – severely limit the ability of Palestinian women and young people particularly to take control over decisions that affect their lives. Through our work we strive to contribute to freedom and justice for Palestinian people to enjoy their rights, identity and a life lived with dignity. We believe that Palestinian people living in poverty and injustice must be central in driving social, economic and political change towards the realization of their national and human rights. We prioritize the following rights holders and catalysts for change: • Women, who pay the highest price of unjust policies and patriarchal society that is reinforced by a patriarchal mindset and military occupation, must play a key role to shift unequal power and gender relations. • Young people are important drivers of change throughout the world. They also represent the majority of the population in Palestine. They experience high levels of unemployment, political disengagement and civic rights violations that are exacerbated by the oppression of the Israeli military occupation. • Human Rights Defenders (HRDs) are key to our mission: we will work to support front line activists, HRDs and Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) to protect and expand political space and participation in democratic decision making, as well as exposing the practices of the Israeli occupation at local, national and international levels. • Feminist organizations, alliances and networks; we are committed to working with and supporting women’s rights organizations, women human rights’ defenders and with feminist organizations. • The most disadvantaged groups whose rights are systematically violated due to practices, policies and norms that undermine their potential to take a lead for their future. We will ensure intersectionality by looking into strategies to engage with people with disabilities, indigenous communities e.g. Bedouin communities, children and elderly people. ActionAid Palestine works with the Palestinian community, in particular youth and women through our civic engagement