Notes from the GEM Practitioners Exchange

Session title:Theme 7: GEM Practitioners Network

Facilitator:Chat Ramilo, Cheekay Cinco

Documentor: Lenka Simerska

How could GEM be used by the testers?

What do testers need to continue using GEM?

Advice and Support

Time and support from other GEMers and the Team.

  • An advocacy and a user group which will promote the tool to more people and organisations.
  • Support to continue.
  • Advice.
  • A reference group to bounce ideas and ask for advice.
  • Research Advice.
  • A support network of resource persons and an info resource portal.
  • Strengten the regional network of GEM users.
  • Time alone and with experienced GEM trainers to know the tool well.
  • Support from experienced evaluators.
  • More dynamics for workshops.
  • Continue to plug into the network.
  • Build new alliances.

Training

  • Quantitave methodolgy training.
  • Participate actively in a network to be trained constantly.
  • More training for myself and collegues.
  • Simplified practical manual of the GEM tool.
  • Training in the region of CEE/CIS
  • Refresher training in the use of different quantitative and qualitative tools/techniques, both for data gathering and data analysis.
  • More joint trainings.
  • Training on qualitative research skills, and the GEM tool itself.
  • Capacity building in methodologies.

Making GEM accepted across different audiences

  • Ally at the Ministry of Information as an entry point to apply GEM in the state funded projects.
  • Strategies to disseminate the use of GEM among women’s groups, social movement, policy makers.
  • More insights and solutions to encouraging non-gender aware project implemetators to use GEM.
  • Sensitive Board at INTERCOM to be able to include gender perspective into projects from the beginning and use GEM for constant evaluation.
  • Identify testers for Arabic GEM application, conduct workshops to train on how to implemet GEM.
  • Create and get support for GEM dissemination project.
  • To make GEM more known and popular in the country/region/worldwide.

Translation, adaptation, tool development

Into Portugese

  • Into Arabic
  • Technical support and feedback in translating GEM from evaluation-based into goal-setting
  • Adapt materials and content for rural women
  • Develop systematization for popular education
  • Have more indicators focused on “subtile” discrimination
  • Refine quantitaive and qualitative indicators on empowerment and sustainability
  • Transform the tool as a research reference.
  • Adapt GEM for women’s organisations and feminist organisations.

Resources and capacity

  • Computer equipment.
  • Bigger team.
  • Funds. (5x)
  • Time. (2x)
  • Human resources.
  • Intenet access.
  • Resource person.
  • To build GEM into the project funding so that the time and work required is covered.

What are the plans of the testers in continuing to use GEM in their work?

Deepening understanding

  • Explore how/if one can use the GEM toll to measure the meaning/impact of gender-aware and feminist content on lives, self-preceptions, and actions of women who access/use our website.
  • Read and have a deeper understanding of the concept and the process of evaluation.
  • To get to grips with GEM and our testing process – to reflect on our use of GEM and to plan how we will use it in the future.

Specific Application of GEM

  • Promote use of GEM in other venues – policy advocacy workshops, B+10, etc.
  • Try to get women from region (ex Yugoslavia) to translate GEM materials.
  • Use GEM for gender senzitisation.
  • Use GEM for systematisation.
  • Plan upcoming projects with GEM.
  • GEM for women’s leadership project.
  • Use GEM in my disertation in gender and ICTs.
  • Apply GEM for national campaign around money for FUST - the money that established by regulatory law, from the telecommunications companies in Brazil
  • Evaluate a new project with Fantsuam foundation.
  • Use it quoterly to evaluate existing projects going on in the organisation.
  • Use the tool to assess the impact of the ISIS-WICCE women’s internet café.
  • Encourage local partners to use GEM to assess the progress of their project activities.
  • Use the GEM tool at the conceptualisation of projects to also help shape the project into one that ampowers women trainees at different deeper levels.
  • Use GEM as a tool to evaluate work of AAW and its activities.
  • Evaluate the national Information and Communication Infrastructure and process / initiation of ECA.
  • Evaluate the impact of the DTR (Sierra Leone) project on women’s empowerment in Sierra Leone.
  • Use GEM in e-government programmes.
  • Apply GEM on activities of the Network of East West Women.
  • Use GEM to evaluate governmental plan of ICT policy.
  • Use GEM throughout a project from planning to end evaluation.
  • 2004 GEM I – sample size; 2005 GEM II – analysis depth; 2005-6 – advocacy and policy forming.
  • Evaluate how ICT4D project has been able to ensure that its impact / benefits are passed to disadvataged groups of the society in an equitabl manner in terms of gender.
  • Infuse/mainstream gender perspective in our ICT and non-ICT projects.
  • Incorporate in evaluation of projects funded under GKP’s SGSIP Fund.
  • Build into the management system of Shebolgs.
  • Adapt GEM to use for gender-related goal setting when designing projects.
  • Introduce GEM to other groups in my network.
  • Integrate GEM into upcoming survey.
  • Try to introduce GEM to the staff of governmental office for ICTs.
  • Use GEM for digital inclusion.

Other plans

  • Participate in training from gender perspective.
  • Share GEM.

Expectations and plans for GEM Practicioners Network

  • Facilitate GEM data processing and interpretations.
  • Exchange of experience.
  • Adapting GEM to different contexts.
  • Strenghten GEM network – team building.
  • Learn more on how others have used GEM.
  • Use GEM in telecentres.
  • See how others have used GEM around the world, and their outputs and findings.
  • Exchange experience, relate own experience.
  • Hear about difficulties testers and users had with GEM.
  • Find ways to put the GEM results into action.
  • Deeper understanding of gender issues.
  • Mainstreaming ICTs into gender work.
  • Debate on how the GEM results can be incorporated into WNSP’s work and ICT policies (national, regional, international).
  • See how GEM can be used in other work and by other organisations.
  • Tool management.
  • Future plans to continue using GEM.
  • Establishing a global network of GEM users.
  • Develop a clear plan for the GEM Practicioners Network including: training needs, communication, coordination, sustainability, how to use ICTs to get the network going.
  • Mainstreaming gender issues into policy.
  • Find ways to do a project to practice GEM in Pangea.
  • Adapt GEM to make it more practical for application.

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