3 questions to Sophie Pouget, Raja-Danièle Marcovici Foundation’s chief delegate

Since 2006, the Raja-Danièle Marcovici Foundation has been working for the emancipation of women in France and around the world.

Interview with Sophie Pouget, Raja-Danièle Marcovici Foundation’s chief delegate

Focus 2030 : The Fondation-RAJA Danièle Marcovici has initiated the creation of the "Coalition pour une Philanthropie Féministe (CPF)", supported by a group of donors to remedy the under-funding of gender equality in philanthropy. The objectives of this coalition, of which Focus 2030 is a member, are to promote gender equality within the public interest sector, mobilize more resources and ultimately increase the impact and influence of feminist movements. Can you tell us more about the objectives of this coalition and the dynamics at work ?

Sophie Pouget : To this day, gender equality is underfunded both by public authorities and by French philanthropy, even though it is a growth factor for society.

Faced with this situation, the Coalition for a Feminist Philanthropy is pursuing three objectives. Firstly, the coalition aims to promote gender equality and women’s rights by giving greater visibility to these issues within French philanthropy, notably by sharing the knowledge and expertise of feminist funders. Secondly, the coalition aims to fully mobilize financial resources in favor of equality, by improving and coordinating private funding for women’s rights. Finally, it aims to increase impact, by pooling expertise and coordinating joint actions. The coalition’s conviction is that it is through alliances and collective action that we can take truly transformative action !

To illustrate this in concrete terms, one of the coalition’s actions is to draw up a cartography of private funding committed to gender equality and women’s rights, in order to inform but also to encourage sponsors who do not take these issues into account to do so. The coalition is therefore initiating a study to establish the current situation in France regarding the place of gender equality and women’s rights in the funding strategies of private sponsors. The aim is to identify the French funds and foundations committed to our issues, their characteristics and the proportion of their budget devoted to gender equality, both in their actions in France and internationally.

If I had to sum up the primary ambition of this new dynamic, I’d say it’s to broaden and promote different, complementary fields of action in order to take a 360° view of feminist causes in all their diversity.

Bringing about significant change for women and girls around the world is a necessity today, and a collective, coalition-based approach is essential.

Focus 2030 : According to your preliminary estimates, who funds gender equality in France ? What are the main areas supported ? What are the preferred modes of intervention, for example between field activities, research and advocacy, national vs. international...?

Sophie Pouget : Above all, it is public institutions that fund gender equality in France and around the world. In this regard, it is worth noting the recent announcement of budget cuts including the cancellation of commitment authorizations amounting to 7 million euros for the Ministry of Equality and 742 million euros for official development assistance (decree 2024-124 of February 21, 2024). However, in terms of international funding, we already know that only 0.55% of international aid targeted women’s rights organizations in 2021. The downward revision of these budgets is very worrying.

There are also private donors, including members of the Coalition for a Feminist Philanthropy. These include BNP Paribas Foundation, CHANEL Foundation, Women’s Foundation, Fondation de France, Kering Foundation, Doctors of the World Foundation, RAJA-Danièle Marcovici Foundation, Endometriosis Research Foundation, L’Oréal Fund for Women, Fund for Women in the Mediterranean, Mirova Foundation and, of course, Focus 2030.

Most of these donors act by co-financing field actions deployed by civil society organizations, and by conducting or supporting advocacy and research activities. However, these donors are too few in number. We cannot be satisfied with donors specialized in gender equality and the defense of women’s rights. We need to promote a comprehensive, cross-cutting approach that will enable other donors to mobilize, in order to provide better, more effective support for feminist organizations, and encourage their strengthening and networking. That’s why we want to involve players focused on international solidarity, crisis management and ecological transition.

Focus 2030 : Your Foundation has recently initiated activities focusing on the link between gender and climate. Can you tell us more about this and the other priorities of the Fondation-RAJA Danièle Marcovici for the coming years ?

Delphine O : The Foundation works to promote the role of women in implementing sustainable solutions. Over the past few years, our Women & Environment program has financed innovative solutions, and deployed advocacy activities in favor of greater consideration of gender in environmental and climate actions. Since its creation at COP21 in 2015, more than 80 projects have been supported in 29 countries, offering support to tens of thousands of women. Nearly 70% of the projects supported under this program support the interface between women and agroecology: these are initiatives in favor of more ecological modes of production, partly or wholly led by women.

We have just published a report on this program, including a study by Carine Pionetti, a researcher in political ecology and women’s rights. The study is based on a cross-sectional analysis of a dozen projects supported by the Fondation RAJA-Danièle Marcovici. The study’s conclusions highlight the various success factors of projects aimed at supporting the transition to a feminist agroecology, and recommend that donors invest in these issues, both in terms of developing a narrative in favor of equality and gender mainstreaming, and in supporting initiatives promoting women’s voice and leadership in ecological transition.

In line with this intersectional approach to environmental issues, the Foundation has also launched a Feminist Climate Fund. This provides financial support to civil society organizations founded or run by women, operating with a budget of less than €20,000 and enabling women to play an active role in the fight against climate change. In 2023, 12 associations were supported in several countries around the world (Bangladesh, Colombia, France, Kenya, Peru, El Salvador, Tunisia, Uganda).

Because there can be no sustainable development without the full participation of women, the link between gender and climate will remain one of the Foundation’s priorities. However, this will not prevent us from reconciling this commitment with other priorities, including the fight against violence against women and girls, access to education for young girls, opportunity and professional equality for women, and the fight against anti-rights movements.

Our democracy is based on the rule of law, which guarantees universal human rights for all. Women and girls, and all gender minorities, must be able to exercise them freely and fully, everywhere and at all times.

NB: The opinions expressed in this interview do not necessarily reflect the ideas of Focus 2030.