Call for submissions – FFPPVC policy brief series

This call for tender closed on 16/02/2024

Call for tender
17 January 2024

Background

In October 2023, the ‘Feminist Foreign Policy Progressive Voices Collective‘ (FFPPVC) was formally launched with the motivation to provide an international platform for progressive-minded academics, policy experts, policy makers and civil society representatives to share their intelligence and influence policy developments on feminist foreign policy in Europe and beyond.

Call for policy briefs

In the continuation of The Collective’s policy shaping objectives, members of the Collective are encouraged to submit their proposals to contribute to the FFPPVC policy brief series by (co)authoring one of the briefs in the series. The aim is to accompany policy developments in the field of FFP (e.g. ahead of the new EU legislature in the post-2024 elections context, Shaping the Future of FFP Conference hosted by Mexico in 2024, etc.).

Format

The policy briefs provide expert and critical analysis of and reflection on areas of research and study. They are aimed primarily at EU policymakers, as well as a more general readership. They reflect on policy, provide key points and offer guidelines and concrete recommendations. See the policy briefs section of our website (FEPS / FES) for our latest editions.

Policy briefs are between 2,300 and 5,000 words long (excluding endnotes).

Important deadlines

Submission of abstract: 15 February 2024
Submission of first draft: between February and June 2024 (to be agreed with authors)
Publication of final draft: between March and July 2024 (to be agreed with authors)

If you wish, we welcome you to invite colleagues (even if not formally part of the collective) to participate in this call for submissions and/or to co-author with you.

Key themes

We welcome contributions and proposals on any aspect of FFP, its wider influence, its reception and its implementation. The focus should be on how to implement FFP on the EU level in practice (the endorsement of an EU FFP being currently impossible because dependent on support from all EU member states).

In particular, potential contributors may wish to focus on the following subthemes in relation to FFP:

• FFP from promise to action: What would an EU FFP look like? What makes an international practice/institution/organisation feminist? What is the role of relevant EU institutions (EEAS, EU Parliament) and action plans (Gender Action Plan III, 2021-2027) and how can the EU substantially modernise its organisational set up to facilitate equal representation and a more gender-aware allocation of resources? How do neoliberal logics and funding imperatives factor into gender-related work? How can EU governance mechanisms serve as a vehicle for FFP?
• [proposal already submitted] Defence / the military / war: How does FFP promise to look at security and defence policy in a more holistic way that incorporates the effect of its policies on people on the ground (incl. women and other marginalised groups)? What would a feminist perspective on the EU’s strategy towards third countries consist of? What impacts can gendered silences have on the wider efficiency of FFP/WPS? To what extent can the EU contribute to make defence policy a feminist issue?
• Trade policy: How can trade agreements / policies meet explicit feminist aims? To what extent do FFP policies promote a paradigm shift considering the inherent power struggles in international trade policies by moving the focus away from state interest towards the multifaceted vulnerabilities and well-being of people?
• Crafting a feminist development policy: Inspired from Global South studies that draw on non-Western feminist approaches, how do we interrogate and advance development and cooperation aid mechanisms (e.g. including through FFP-proof EU funding programmes)? How can we learn from existing practice (e.g. Germany’s feminist development policy)?
• Migration policy : How can a feminist approach enable a comprehensive, inclusive, and human-centered EU migration policy that reflects international power structures and focuses on all groups of people?
• FFP utopia/toolkit: Drawing on a combination of various best practices from different countries, authors could also draft a methodological manual addressed to practitioners for effective pathways towards FFP implementation outlining feminist driven policy approaches at national / international level.
• Intersectionality as a FFP sine qua non condition: Feminist engagement with intersectionality in connection with FFP and its practical scope at (inter)national/EU level: How can anti-patriarchy, anti-racist and anti-colonialist actions be sustained through FFP? What does it mean to decolonise the global order?
• Masculinities as a foreign policy issue: Beyond the need for numerical representation of more diverse groups in diplomacy, how can we overcome gender-stereotypical foreign policy discourses that inherently limits policy options?
• Recipients-orientedness: How can foreign policy become more supportive of its end recipients, in particular women’s associations and the most vulnerable groups? How can the voice of CSOs be strengthened and better taken into account in conducting international relations? How can foreign policy make use of feminist approaches to better consider the agency of women and other marginalised groups?
• Etc.

Beyond the above-cited examples, do not hesitate to surprise, challenge or to question us with other, perhaps more innovative themes you deem relevant to be addressed as part of this FFPPVC Policy Brief Series !

Selection

Submitted proposals will be evaluated by FEPS and FES in consultation with the Collective’s cochairs based on originality, technical and/or research depth, accuracy and relevance with the objectives of the FFPPVC and the EU agenda.

Fee

A 3000 EUR fee (incl. VAT) will be foreseen per policy brief.

Submission

Please submit your policy brief proposal by filling out the fields below and returning the form to Euléane Omez, Project Management Coordinator, FEPS (euleane.omez@feps-europe.eu).

If you have any questions, please contact: Laeticia Thissen, Senior Policy Analyst for Gender Equality, FEPS (laeticia.thissen@feps-europe.eu) n.b. on parenting leave from 26/01/2024

And/or

Agnes Mach, Policy Officer on Gender Equality, FES (agnes.mach@fes.de)

Submission form