What we do
The Women 4 Women mentoring and solidarity network is a safe space for women in the ILC network to exchange ideas, learn, share doubts and challenges, find common solutions and build reciprocal support. It facilitates a collaborative, joint strategy to strengthen women’s roles in the ILC network at all levels.
The ILC’s Women 4 women - ILC Mentoring and Solidarity Network is part of our efforts to make ILC gender-just.
This includes promoting women’s leadership and supporting women to play more significant roles in ILC member organisations. This network builds upon the main strength of ILC: the diversity of its members.
Hence, it also aims at reinforcing the connection among women within ILC members. Mentees and mentors are the primary target for dedicated training opportunities and are actively involved in Gender Justice sessions organised during ILC events.
The key for a successful mentoring relationship is the patience to build a new relationship and the openness to understand different perspectives, because women’s challenges cross borders, but they can also be context and culture sensitive.
Built around the principle of mentoring and solidarity, Women 4 Women has been launched in 2019 as a flexible tool for mutual exchange and collaboration, based on reciprocity. The evolution of the network takes into account the specific needs of
participating women and the changes that occurred throughout the process of mentoring.
Along the last 5 years Women 4 Women included individual mentoring, in one-to-one (or on-to-two) relationship, and group mentoring. Both based on matching of needs and expertise.
The network evolved from cross-regional (although homogenous in terms of language) – with the intent of facilitating inter-regional and cross-regional exchange- to regionally homogenous groups. The evolution of the network took into account the feedback received by the women involved.
Women 4 Women ran a yearly basis from 2019 until 2024, building upon existing ILC meetings and encouraging women’s participation in ILC events.
Among the most significant the Global learning exchange on “Weaving Knowledge and Resistance, that reunited 40 women from ILC membership in Turbaco (Colombia) (June 2024) of whom several where also part of the 2023/24 cohort of Women 4 Women.
In 2026, the programme returned with a renewed approach and structure.
Meet the 2026 cohort
In 2026, Women 4 Women is relaunching with a renewed structure and approach. The programme will feature enhanced dynamics, deeper thematic discussions, and stronger interaction at both regional and global levels. The next chapter of Women 4 Women will continue to foster learning, solidarity, and collective leadership.
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