EQUAL Asia Foundation

Location: Thailand

Focus: Community and capacity building

Website: https://equalasiafoundation.org

Established in 2019, Equal AF are a regional LGBTQI innovation incubator, anchored in feminist and human rights principles. Their collaborators include donors, policymakers, governments, businesses, academics and UN agencies. Equal AF design and test solutions that advance inclusion, and support those working for a more equitable future for all. 

They address blind spots in LGBTQI programming by co-creating solutions with community organisations in the region. They focus on: poverty and economic exclusion; mental health and wellbeing; aging and intergenerational gaps; and inclusion in humanitarian action. 

Asia is the world’s most disaster-prone region: millions of people are blighted by natural disasters and conflict each year. LGBTQI people are disproportionately affected by these humanitarian events, yet are not included in plans to reduce, respond to or recover from them. Recognising that climate change adaptation is taking place at a community level, Equal AF want to understand the strategies communities use to do this. In 2020, they received a small grant from UNDP Asia to look at current research in this area. Since then, they have focused on online advocacy, developing a platform for LGBTQI people to share their experiences of climate change. They have also begun building case studies of LGBTQI communities that have developed responses and strategies. In 2021, GiveOut’s grant will support Equal AF’s core costs as they undertake further research on how communities are responding to climate change in Southeast Asia.

GiveOut is a charity registered with the Charity Commission for England and Wales (Registered Charity Number 1176434).