What is the relationship between gender equality and current economic processes? This report is an analysis of the state of gender equality worldwide, with a focus on the economics of gender equality and development. It provides a conceptual framework that examines the factors that have fostered change and the constraints that have slowed progress in relation to gender equity.

Rape and sexual forms of violence against women are often the least visible and reported. While the underlying causes of sexual violence are multiple and complex, among the core causes are unequal gender norms and power dynamics between men and women. It is increasingly argued that men’s use of violence is a learned behaviour, rooted in the ways that boys and men are socialised.

What are the key issues around involving men in reproductive health? This paper reviews a variety of existing global data on men’s sexual and reproductive health (SRH) needs, attitudes and practices and identifies current gaps in this body of knowledge. The authors also highlight policy work that support and institutionalise male involvement in reproductive health, as well as programs that involve men in reproductive health, emphasising the evolution of such programming and policy, as well as best practices and success stories.

How can community development initiatives contribute to changing men’s perceptions, beliefs, attitudes and behaviour in regard to promoting gender equality? In Nicaragua, a number of development NGOs started to engage in challenging hegemonic masculinity in the 1990s, because women within those organisations began to emphasise the connections between social justice and gender justice.

How can indigenous women’s political participation in positions of authority improve? Although there have been many initiatives promoting indigenous women’s political participation in Mexico, successes remain to be scarce. This paper argues that success of these initiatives has been limited because the dynamics of masculinities among men have been overlooked and insufficiently addressed. The paper presents findings from nineteen case studies of indigenous women that were elected as municipal presidents in Oaxaca.

How can social movements become more gender-just? This article illustrates the challenges and successes of integrating gender equality as a core principle into social justice movements. The findings are based on three case studies analysing experience from the global human rights movement, with a focus on Amnesty International, the CLOC Via Campesina movement in Latin America, and the Occupy movement in the United States. The case studies have been developed as part of the three-year BRIDGE Cutting Edge programme on gender and social movements.

How have African men understood the shifts for women’s rights that have become integral to international declarations and grassroots activism? This article draws on ethnographic research from Kampala, exploring how ordinary men and women from urban Uganda understand women’s rights and notions of masculinity. The findings relate to 69 in-depth interviews conducted with men and women and several group discussions.

Estimates say that there were 33.3 million internally displaced people (IDP’s) in the world as of the end of 2013. Forced to flee their homes by armed conflict, generalised violence, and human rights violations. Conflict and disaster impact men and women differently, underlining the need for knowledge on currently displaced populations.

What does justice mean for survivors of conflict related sexual violence at the local and global levels and what are the social, political, and legal implications gender has or should have? Today, armed groups frequently employ sexual violence in conflict in a systematic manner, as a tactic of war.