Chirine Basbous

Chirine is a Lebanese gender equality advocate with over 7 years of experience in gender equality, development and humanitarian work. She currently serves as a Project Coordinator at ABAAD, Resource Center for Gender Equality, one of the leading organizations in the region working towards gender equality in Lebanon and the Arab countries. Her work focuses on advocacy with young people and civil society actors, and she also leads projects that work directly with community members to challenge harmful ideas about gender and build more equal and just communities. 

Chirine is the MenEngage Lebanon Youth Hub coordinator, where she organizes and coordinates activities with youth members across the country. She is also a member of the MenEngage Alliance Youth Reference Group, where she works to make sure young people are not just included in conversations about gender justice, but actually help lead them. 

What drives Chirine’s commitment to MenEngage is the belief that lasting change starts with people, in conversations, in communities, and in the everyday spaces where gender norms are formed. Through her work on the ground in Lebanon, she has learned that when young people organize together, they don’t just raise their voices, they change what is possible.

In the coming years, Chirine wants to see the Youth Hub in Lebanon biome a home for a new generation of activities, and to help build a stronger, more connected youth movement for gender equality and masculinities across the Arab region, one where men and boys stand along women and girls as partners in change.