The international landscape is marked by violent attacks on the rights of women, girls, and marginalized people by states and anti-rights movements that are coordinated and heavily funded. Severe budget cuts in many countries have led to an unprecedented decline in global official development assistance. Civil society is shrinking; the work of organizations, however diverse they may be, in France and internationally, faces increasingly formidable obstacles; and, ultimately, it is international solidarity—and even democracy itself—that are under threat.
This trend is not irreversible. Limiting its consequences in the medium term and building just societies in the long term requires a shift in awareness among a large number of public authorities and citizens, as well as the formation of broad alliances to defend international solidarity, gender equality, and democracy. It is to this effort that Equipop hopes to contribute by organizing this event in Lyon.
Solidarity is not some distant ideal. It is a practice carried out every day by many people.
With this in mind, Equipop and its local partners are organizing a tour of international feminist solidarity events in the Lyon metropolitan area from May 19 to 29, 2026, culminating in a strategic seminar.
What is the tour?
About ten activities—including film screenings followed by discussions, training sessions, community education workshops, literary gatherings, and lectures—are co-organized with local partners on topics ranging from self-defense for children and sexual and gender-based violence to democracy education, ecofeminism, and migration.
This event is being held as part of the closing ceremony for the “Générations Féministes” project, which will be implemented in the Lyon metropolitan area between 2023 and 2026, and the “Resource Center” project (funded by the AFD). However, far from being an end, this series of events will mark the first step in a future “Tour de France of International Solidarity” that will take place in five other large and medium-sized French cities starting in 2027, as well as the launch of a national campaign.
Events accessible to people with disabilities.
Check out thedetailed schedule of events
