filia’s Girls’ Advisory Board

Women and girls all over the world should be given better opportunities and be able to shape their own lives – this was the vision of the founders in 2001. For this reason, young women and LBTIQ+ from the age of 14 are not only allowed to have a say in the foundation’s Girls’ Advisory Council, but they are expected to do so. Girls, young women and LBTIQ+ have a say in the allocation of funding for girls’ projects throughout Germany.

In the Girls’ Advisory Board, girls, young women and LBTIQ+ with features or factors that could be the subject of discrimination, become decision-makers. Here, they experience a sense of belonging and cooperation at an eye level. All this strengthens and empowers them to take their own lives into their own hands. The fact that the councilors can speak for themselves and represent their work is part of their self-determination. The girls’ advisory Board was awarded the PHINEO Wirkt-Siegel Seal.

So what’s a Girls’ Advisory Board?

The Girls’ Advisory Board, currently consist of 12 girls* advisory Board members between the ages of 14 and 25 from eight different German states (Baden-Württemberg, Berlin, Brandenburg, North Rhine-Westphalia, Lower Saxony, Hesse, Rhineland-Palatinate and Saxony-Anhalt). We are quite different, but that is exactly what is exciting, as we have different opinions on different topics. With these different perspectives, we select projects together that apply for filia’s project funding as part of the MädchenEmpowermentProgramm. We select – discuss – and then decide. That’s why we’re always looking for girls* and young women* who want to get engage in the work with girls* and young women*.

What does the girls’ advisory council do?

The Girls’ Advisory Council meets once a year for a weekend to discuss all applications received. In preparation for this meeting, the councilors read the applications and evaluate them individually. During the weekend, they discuss the various projects together: What do they particularly like? Where and how do they think the projects have an impact? What do they change for girls, young women and LBTIQ+? Finally, the girls’ advisory board makes the decision on which girls’ projects filia will support in Germany.

The projects that filia supports are as diverse as we are. Together, we have the opportunity to have a say in which projects receive funding. Your opinion is important to us! Experience for yourself how the Girls’ Advisory Council works for a fairer world where girls, young women and LBTIQ+ are better off.

In addition to the project selection meeting, there are other occasions during the year when the Girls’ Advisory Council meets. For example, the Advisory Board tries to visit one of the selected projects in order to get to know the girls, young women and LBTIQ+ who have applied for it and/or are participating in it and to exchange ideas with them.

Year after year since its foundation in 2012, the members of the filia Girls’ Advisory Council have been taking on more and more responsibility:

We continue to develop ourselves, discussing socio-political issues and deciding annually on the occupation of vacant seats on the advisory Council. We choose which motions we want to discuss in detail, we present the weekend gathering of the advisory Council and so on. When girls* and young women* get engaged working for others, they also get engage with themselves. Or as Francesca from Saxony-Anhalt puts it, you support and are thereby strengthened yourself.

Girls* that in other contexts are subject of multiple discrimination, play the leading role

As in the support projects of the GirlsEmpowermentProgram, girls, young women and LBTIQ+ that face intersectional discrimination play the main role in our advisory council.

What does multiple discrimination mean?

We want to especially address to Girls* and/or young women* who are disadvantaged for multiple reasons (multiple discrimination or intersectionally affected by discrimination), we would like to offer them the opportunity to promote their projects. These are, e.g. girls* and young women* who are disadvantaged in our society not only because they are female*, but also because they are e.g. Black, Jewish*, Muslim* or People of colour (PoC), have a migration background, have a faith that is not or hardly recognized in Germany, their families do not come from Germany, or they have a disability, or because they are discriminated against because of their body or their sexual orientation, etc. So a person to whom several such characteristics apply is affected by multiple discrimination.

Intersectional workshop

Visit to Leipzig

The Girls’ Advisory Board was awarded PHINEO Wirkt Siegel.

You want to learn more about the Girls’ Advisory Board? Please contact us.

Nagihan Ulusoy
Program Officer for the GirlsEmpowermentProgram
n.ulusoy@filia-frauenstiftung.de
+49 (0)40 380 381 9981