Six ways to support the global movement to build a feminist caring economy

How should INGOs share power to work with others – and especially grassroots and community groups – to achieve a feminist economy that values all care work? Ridhi Kalaria and Silvia Galandini share insights from Oxfam’s influencing across the UK; from backing existing movements and investing in long-term change, to knowing when to step back. Illustrations by Sonaksha Iyengar.

Infographic style image outlining a vision for change including long-term impact, outcomes and key actions. There are different flowers, leaves, and plants along with stars, spirals and megaphones reflective of the various themes represented in the vision. In the center of the illustration are a group of people marching together. The text throughout the image reads:

Tackling poverty and inequality through feminist approaches to care,
Policy: transformative policy change,
Narratives: All care is valued as a vital part of society and economy,
Power: Just and equitable movement. Grassroots and feminist leadership.

Capacity, Infrastructure and Leadership,
Influencing (Power and Voice),
Alliances and Connections,
Partnership

Grassroots groups – Civil Society Groups
-Amplifying partners’ voices
-Working in coalition
-Convening and creating connections
-Provide flexible funding — *Illustration by Sonaksha Iyengar.*

At the heart of Oxfam’s UK work on valuing all forms of care to tackle poverty and inequality is a bold vision: a fundamental shift towards a feminist caring economy. One where policies, narratives, and practices prioritise caring for people and the planet, above wealth accumulation and extraction.

A feminist caring economy is one where:

Those caring unpaid for children and for disabled, ill and older people are valued and supported

Childcare and social care workers are fairly paid and rewarded

Care services are invested in as vital infrastructure

Unpaid carers, parents and paid care workers have equal power to shape decisions that affect them

To move towards this vision, as a large INGO, we’ve addressed how we work with others. That’s meant stepping back, listening deeply to those already driving change – including carers and groups focussed on workers’ rights, anti-poverty, gender, disability and racial equality groups and movements – and showing up differently for them and in collective spaces.

Grassroots groups¹ – especially those pursuing social justice and led by communities impacted by inequalities based on gender, race, disability and other identities – often face deep-rooted barriers to power: exclusion from decision-making, limited funding and infrastructure, minimal support to build capacity, and too few places to connect in solidarity.

We’re sharing six key areas of change that INGOs should prioritise to shift and share power – especially with grassroots movements that are already pushing to break the link between care, poverty and inequalities.

Illustration of parents, carers and care workers surrounded by flowers and nature. On the left are two Asian care workers, one in a hijab and one wearing a face-mask. In the middle there’s a brown-skinned woman supporting a white older man in a wheelchair. And below them is a Black woman holding a young child. The image is in colours of blue, orange, purple and yellow. There are colourful birds flying across the illustration. Beneath a central title banner reading “Capacity, infrastructure and Leadership”, the text is set within two window panels across the page, as follows:
Spaces for more voices:
-Supporting existing work
-Invest in grassroots leadership
-Centering expertise by experience
-Space for unheard voices and disruptive narratives
-Using and redistributing power

Nurturing community power:
-Needs long term commitment
-It is not linear
-Managing expectations — *Illustration by Sonaksha Iyengar*

1. Back existing movements and trust them to set priorities

Start by asking “who is already driving change?”, then listen to them. This enabled us to support work that was already underway, and often under-resourced. Sometimes support looks like small grants to fund specific initiatives, or core costs for partners – especially grassroots organisations – to build infrastructure, think about future strategy, and access training. Sometimes it is about building connections or providing a sounding board.

All this has meant using our power with, not over; shifting from “what do we want to achieve?” to “how can we support what’s already being built?” Partners are trusted to define their own priorities and success, working with the communities they represent.

It has also meant going beyond networks we already know, to reach and include more people and organisations, less obvious voices and ideas, and ultimately invest in grassroots leadership.

2. Be flexible, rethink measures of success and invest for the long term

If we want community and grassroots power to truly drive change on valuing all care work, we must focus on making long-term commitments. This work takes time – time to build and sustain confidence, nurture collective voices through the ups and downs of making change happen, and deeply understand what communities need and hope to achieve.

If the goal is to shift power, it’s key to invest in social movements — not just projects and one-off campaigns. That means funding people and their power — not just outputs.

We also need to rethink how we define and measure the “success” of such funding. We need to go beyond more traditional measures and appreciate the value of broader ‘signs of change’ like new connections, strengthened structure and time to support wellbeing amongst others. We also need to embrace drawbacks and setbacks as part of the social change process and not see these as failures.

The text is set within the window frame balcony in the middle of the page. On the left, there is a woman reading a long document. Below, a person walks with a rollator. Two care workers are in conversation with each other across the window in the center of the page: one is in a uniform, mopping, and the other is holding a pot sitting in a garden. Behind them is a woman holding up a sign which reads “Equal power, visibility and solidarity”. Beneath a central title banner reading “Influencing”, the central text in the balcony frame reads:
-Public, Policy makers ---> Care is valued and invested in
-Amplifying partner-led work
-Broadening the movement
-Elevating grassroots power
-Commitment to collective work
-Building connections to encourage conversations — *Illustration by Sonaksha Iyengar*

3. Trust is vital, as is knowing when to step back

Our support around partner-led influencing has often involved stepping back. We supported where we were asked to, not where we thought we ought to.

Supporting partner-led influencing isn’t a one-off project; it’s about building an ongoing relationship based on trust. It takes time and demands stability. The partnership needs to be consciously modelled and should challenge existing organisational hierarchies. Otherwise, we risk reinforcing the same power imbalances we’re trying to dismantle. Without this commitment, collective efforts begin to unravel — there is a loss of momentum, uncertainty grows, and hard-won progress risks slipping backwards.

4. We can and should work at many levels, combining broad policy influencing with equitable partnership work

Our vision for change is broad: all care has to be valued. To achieve this, our work and partnerships span diverse policy areas, issues, and conversations across many spaces and networks.

Combining broader influencing work with connecting with specific communities and grassroots is complementary: we have space to bring the people and groups we work with together to think about the wider changes we need to challenge existing norms and narratives, and to unlock more ambitious policy change.

Where specific policy change is needed – realistic, achievable and incremental – Oxfam has used its power and visibility to push for this: always looking to amplify and join in solidarity with those whose expertise and knowledge lead the way.

In the middle of the image are four windows opening to the text inside them. There is a group of people from the back at the bottom of the image, with interlinked arms, looking ahead into a large expanse filled with bubbles, stars and rainbows. To the left of the windows are two hands joining together, with flowers blooming from them, and a man with a child strapped to his body in a baby carrier. On the right is a woman with a cloth and cleaning spray bottle wiping down the window, and another set of joined hands. The image is surrounded by trees and plants in bloom. Beneath a central title banner reading “Alliances & Connections”, the text in the windows reads:
-Creating connections at the heart of shifting power
-Identifying opportunities for interdependent strategic alliances
-Using power to open doors and build bridges
-Alliances adapting to collective goals — *Illustration by Sonaksha Iyengar*

5. Cultivating connections is at the heart of shifting power

Intentionally investing energy in cultivating connections between people and organisations is at the core of shifting attention away from our own exclusive vision, plans and strategies, and towards thinking about who is already driving change and what they need to be supported and amplified.

Leveraging our presence as an INGO, we’ve spent time linking those who wouldn’t necessarily have met or worked together. For example, introducing grassroots groups to larger organisations and decision-makers.

More work is needed to build a more connected movement on valuing all care – as others have also observed. Our work has taught us that it’s important to find the right balance between nurturing a broad vision for change – a useful backdrop to bring ideas, efforts, people and organisations together – and pushing for targeted policy change, adapting alliances to the shared goals.

Illustration of a group of parents, carers and care workers holding hands in a circle in the middle of the page breaking open windows. The text is set in a yellow circle between them. There’s a Black woman on the left holding crutches and a megaphone, and a person wearing a dupatta on her head on the right also holding a megaphone. The page is filled with leaves and bushes on the top and the bottom. Beneath a title of “Partnership”, the text in the centre reads:
-Sharing power and letting partnerships lead
-Steering with transparency and equity
-Equity in leadership as a practice
-Taking on different roles depending on what’s needed and requested
-Together establishing roles, responsibilities and expectations — *Illustration by Sonaksha Iyengar*

6. Equity is about the relationships we hold and power we share

We’ve learnt that equity in leadership is first and foremost about letting partners lead and sharing our power to elevate the agendas of those we are working with. This acknowledges everyone’s contribution and expertise.

We’ve come to appreciate how this equitable leadership is a key part of the role that everyone plays in building alliances, not simply a job title or position in organisational structures. And this also means being ready to play different roles aligning with what partners need from us – our input might be about providing expert knowledge or creating connections, but also more ‘hands-on’, like planning and coordinating work: all these functions are equally important if we want to achieve our shared goals.

We have also learnt how important it is that internal processes and ways of working – especially around grant-making, e.g. due diligence, reporting, timelines – are not focused on ‘assessing’ partners, and instead on establishing together the terms and values underpinning our partnership. This has meant shifting entrenched practices and norms – and we’re very much still working on it. But it’s fundamental to truly change power imbalances.

Similarly, we’ve come to appreciate that open and honest conversations that establish roles, responsibilities, and expectations are essential — without becoming too rigid. Because clarity doesn’t block equity. It enables it.

The journey continues…

We must challenge ourselves to put our values into practice. There will always be trade-offs and tensions, and we won’t always get it right. But we’ll continue to try, learn and adapt – as we know that the practice of equity is very much at the heart of building a feminist caring economy.

Author

Ridhi Kalaria

Author

Silvia Galandini

Silvia Galandini is the Domestic Poverty Lead at Oxfam GB

We would like to thank Liz Griffin at Hidden Depths Research for her support with gathering the learning from this work; Sonaksha Iyengar for bringing the learning to life through the illustrations; and all the partners that have given their time to share their reflections on their own and our collective work.

We define grassroots groups and movements as those that are rooted in and accountable to the community they represent, whether this is a local area or a particular group affected by injustice. ↩︎