Pushing Gender Equality Advocacy and Action into the Spotlight
06 October 2026
How does a meeting of feminists, women’s movements and global actors ensure ongoing advocacy and a wider impact for gender equality?
By Jane Alver and Jill Scanlon
In mid-September, the United Nations General Assembly in New York was presented with the Melbourne Declaration for Gender Equality, the statement from the Women Deliver 2026 conference held in Melbourne in April, as a platform on which to share the document and give impetus to its implementation.
Women Deliver released a UNGA81 Strategy for Engagement in August, four months on from the world’s largest development conference on women, in an effort to influence a wider circle of development practitioners, states and institutions, and then shared the Declaration on September 18 at the UNGA, using this platform to launch the implementation phase and take another key step towards turning the power of its well-supported collective vision into action.
The 81st session of the UNGA was seen as an important moment to come together around the Melbourne Declaration - a shared political vision for the gender equality ecosystem globally - exploring how people and organisations can use it as a foundation for action and outcomes within their own contexts. There was a focus on both implementation, looking to turn this shared political vision into concrete local and global strategies, and on multilateral advocacy, addressing the increasing depletion in rights for women and girls globally amid multiple crises and conflicts.
The Women Deliver 2026 (WD2026) conference was attended by 6500 people from 189 countries. The major outcome of the gathering was the launch of the Declaration – a document that calls for a rebalancing of the ecosystem:
‘A world where States respect, protect, and fulfill human rights; where feminist movements and civil society have the resources, space, and legitimacy to hold States accountable; and where the wider gender equality ecosystem aligns its resources and influence behind that work.
There was much positivity at the end of four days of WD26, but more tangibly there were agreements, commitments and the Melbourne Declaration.
So, what is it? What is its purpose and how realistic is the expectation of any substantial outcomes from it?
The crux is to turn intent into action. This calls for the dismantling of systems of oppression, insisting on human rights protections, especially by state actors, supporting a strong civil society enabling the accountability of states through adequate resourcing, and a focus on solidarity and transforming institutions.
At a time of backsliding and shrinking civic space, the Melbourne Declaration is the opportunity to restate where change is sought and what it takes to be transformative. It is notable that this Declaration is outside the United Nations system and is being endorsed by individuals, organisations and a number of states.
The Beijing Declaration (1995) was created at the 4th World Conference on Women more than 30 years ago, but a 5th World Conference has not been planned or scheduled for fear that the targets set in 1995 will be rolled back. Indeed, many attending the annual Commission on the Status of Women meetings at the UN each year note that civil society actors are not progressing gender equality targets, but merely ‘holding the line’.
Promoted as a shared, signable commitment to rebuild the way in which gender equality work is done, the document was created by more than 900 people globally, calling for power, resources, and accountability to be rebalanced toward people; and for States, movements, funders, institutions, and allies to act together for a gender-just future.
With more than 927 endorsements to date (September) from individuals and organisations, the declaration is essentially looking to achieve, or at least advocate for, systemic transformations, from a broad range of actors – states, NGOs, CSOs, communities – with the expectation of an evident shift from commitments alone to accountability and action on gender equality.
Nayomi Kannangara, CEO of the International Women’s Development Agency was among those who said the Women Deliver conference importantly heightened the sense that gender equality efforts were stalling and any gains were under threat.
While speakers at the conference ranged from prominent global leaders and advocates such as the UNs Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed, former NZ and Australian Prime Ministers Jacinda Ardern, Helen Clark and Julia Gillard and leaders from the Pacific, some of the most powerful interventions came from representatives from grassroots organisations and communities speaking about their own experiences.
While the conference covered a wide range of topics, there was a clear focus on more prevalent issues of concern such as climate change impact, advocacy and actions.
So, how does the WD2026 dialogue manifest inside climate institutions and through ongoing climate advocacy?
Out of the starting blocks on the first day of the conference was a gathering in one of the large conference rooms, attended by about 300 people, which opened a discussion on Gender Climate Justice; where the key questions asked to kick it all off were ‘What’s NOT working well? What IS working well? What alliances are needed? And therefore, what gives you hope?
Overwhelmingly, while much was debated at round table groupings in the room, responses related to the attitude, determination and passion of the people in communities – especially women and youth. And this set the tone for the week, across many and varied topics and themes, reaching further than a focus on just Climate Change.
Opportunities being created by women in leadership roles were also highlighted, such as the Hon. Ruth Cross Kwansing, the Kiribati Minister for Women, who was a featured speaker at the conference and who is at the forefront of Kiribati gaining a seat on the Commission on the Status of Women at the United Nations, and that the upcoming pre-COP31 discussions in Fiji and Tuvalu can provide further opportunities for pollination from one institution to another.
A feature of the conference in relation to being hosted in Australia was that it had a very visible Oceanic focus, which therefore included Pacific nations on the frontlines of the impact of climate change.
Kiribati Minister Kwansing, alongside Tuvalu Prime Minister, the Hon. Feleti Penitala Teo, spoke in a session titled ‘The Climate Crisis We’re Not Talking About’, hosted by SPREP and UN Women, where the conversation traversed issues such as the connection between climate stress and women’s safety, noting Climate Change is about more than just changes in temperature and weather patterns, in fact impacting mental and physical health in the form of GBV and trauma; as well as looking at climate finance where communities dealing with the impacts need support to survive; and moving to the growing issue of climate migration, with the discussion rounding out on the potential for climate adaptation and finally climate justice from a global perspective through a Pacific lens.
Other sessions on climate change impacts discussed issues such as nutrition, where the impacts manifest through food supplies and services to communities (eg: health, accessibility and communication), all of which widen gender gaps.
The common calls to action at WD2026 were for longer term funding and that local voices and perspectives be central in all discussions.
But how can momentum for change after the conference, and now the UNGA81 presentation and advocacy, be ensured?
Women Deliver CEO Maliha Khan articulated her objective in hosting these large events:
Our goal? A Women Deliver that represents all girls and women, in all their intersecting identities...co-created by the people that will lead the charge on advancing gender equality around the world long after we’ve left.
How?
According to Khan, the ideal is ensuring grassroots women’s movements and coalitions continue to lead the discussions about their lived experiences of the challenges being faced. That there are spaces for such perspectives to be shared beyond the gatherings and a full diversity of experiences is included with a commitment to intersectional representation front and centre.
Ongoing discussions and conversations have been taking place as part of the aftermath of WD2026 - all asking 'What now?'. Some meetings have brought together those taking action, funders, shapers, connectors, to talk about the next steps and to share the experience with those who had been unable to attend. There are ongoing portals and spaces for participation and contribution from the development sector, and the general public more broadly, with accessible advocacy toolkits available as part of the efforts to continue, highlight and promote the need for ongoing discussion. All of which underlines the strong advocacy for the key messages from the conference.
While the impact of both the conference and the Declaration, through action and measurable evidence, is still in its infancy, and underlined by its presentation at UNGA81, the overall message is for the development sector specifically and the global community more broadly, is to keep talking, advocating through spaces such as cascading workshops in communities, to continue and build on what was discussed and how to take it forward to state actors who can influence policy change for gender equality.
After all, to achieve change, the work never stops.