Masculinity and Gender Equality: A participatory diagnostic of masculinity involving boys in the cities of Bogotá and Medellín, Colombia. Save the Children Canada Report

Save the Children Canada’s decision to carry out a participatory research project in Colombia stemmed from a desire to have a grasp of children’s and youth’s understanding of their own gender identities as well as their relationship with each other. This publication is the result of fruitful collaboration between two Colombian NGOs, CEDECIS and SIEMBRA and Save the Children who together embarked on a journey of collective reflection with youth to think about, analyze and make recommendations as
to how to begin to change the discourse on gender identity and relations as well as develop new approaches that address issues of power dynamics and the more transformative aspects of gender relationships. The report deepens our understanding of the issue and the gender dynamics at play for youth in complex and challenging contexts such as Colombia, where historical armed conflict, poverty, displacement and at time pandemic violence are all part of a complex set of components that shape young boys and girls’ gender identities