About us

What does it mean to be a man right now? MenEngage Alliance is a global network of organizations dedicated to helping men and boys explore positive and equitable answers to this question — to discover pathways to purpose, fulfilment, and happiness in their own lives, while stepping up as allies for women’s rights, LGBTQIA+ rights, and broader social justice causes. 

Together, we are more than 1000 groups in some 80 countries coming together around shared values and standards for how to do this work.

Click here to read about our structure and networks, and here to learn about our approach to advocacy.

Our mission

The mission of MenEngage Alliance is to transform unequal power relations and dismantle patriarchal systems by:

• Transforming patriarchal masculinities and rigid, harmful norms around ​‘being a man’. This includes addressing the ways that ideas, norms and values around being a man relate to a range of interconnected issues facing societies and the world today.
• Working with men and boys on gender justice through intersectional feminist approaches
• Building inclusive collaborations from local to regional to global levels. As members, and as a collective, we aim towards a shared vision and mission for positive change, and to transform unequal power for the benefit of all.
• Developing joint actions in partnership with and accountability to women’s rights, gender- and other social justice movements. Together with women’s rights and LGBTQI rights groups, we aspire to collectively understand, challenge, and transform patriarchal masculinities.

A brief history 

In 2003, a group of civil society organisations and individuals, all passionate about the role of men and masculinities in achieving gender equality, came together. They shared an aspiration to create a platform for connection, to exchange valuable lessons and promising practices, and to foster collaborations.

Over the next few years, similar connections emerged at local, national, and regional levels, drawing in more individuals and organisations learning about and connecting into the informal but growing network. By 2007, after a series of consultations, it was decided to formalise the network as MenEngage Alliance. This formalisation included the formation of a Global Steering Committee, ensuring broad membership representation.

During this time, various country and regional MenEngage networks became active, growing into key platforms for the work on men, masculinities, and gender equality at regional and national levels. Our governance structures were strengthened to support this growth.

By 2016, MenEngage Global Alliance officially registered in the United States as a ​‘501(c)’ non-profit organisation. This marked a pivotal moment, creating a formal structure to support the Regional and Country networks, our diverse membership, and our joint agenda.

Today, MenEngage Alliance is the largest international civil society network working on men and masculinities in women’s rights and gender justice.