Kayan - Feminist Organization

About us

Founded in 1998, Kayan is a capacity-building non-governmental organization devoted to women's development. As an organization dedicated to the personal and collective empowerment of women, Kayan is committed to strengthening women and women's initiatives and to help gender-mainstream Arab women in Israel.

Kayan's mission is:
• To bring feminism and feminist perspectives to Arab society in Israel, and affect a radical change in the way Arab women view themselves, and thereby catalyze independence and pro-action.
• To recognize Arab women's special contributions and needs, and at the same time, advocate for equity, equal rights and improved status.
• To eliminate all forms of discrimination against Arab women, and work towards achieving full and equal rights- legally, socially and economically.

Kayan offers a wide array of courses, knowledge-based trainings, mentoring programs and activities with women's groups and associations, with non-profits, and with the public. Empowering women and women's groups to be pro-active, Kayan works to achieve the goal or women's full participation in the private and public spheres of society.

Kayan's current projects are focused towards women's empowerment and gender-equity include but are in no sense limited to grassroots skills and capacity building, knowledge-based training, civil and legal demands, networking and coalitions and international advocacy. Kayan organizes, educates and motivates women to be vocal, visible and participatory members of society.

Activities:
• Community Action: Kayan organizes workshops, lectures and community meetings about women`s rights and issues so that participants are prepared to advocate for themselves and create social change in the community. Kayan`s staff trains, mentors and advises local leaders in the community in addition to raising funds and support for various women`s initiatives.
• Legal Aid: Kayan gives legal aid, assistance, and advice to low income Arab women.
• Policy change: Kayan has developed relationships with policymakers in the government in order to be effective in bringing about policy change primarily in Arab villages and communities. Through an ongoing dialogue among women in the community about the areas most in need of improvement, and collaboration with policy makers on how to address these issues, Kayan continues to progress.
• Advocacy: Kayan engages in ongoing public discourse, comprehensive data collection, publishing of reports and dialogue in order to advocate for ourselves and other Arab women by bringing key issues to the public arena.

Kayan is a member of the Haifa Women's Coalition together with Isha L'Isha-Haifa Feminist Center, the Haifa Battered Women's Hotline, and the Haifa Rape Crisis Center. All four groups are working for women's equality and against gender-based violence.

Rula Deeb is the director of the Kayan - Feminist Organization.

For other net participants we can offer an expert guidance through trained staff, give an expert opinion, procure expert information and establish new contacts in the field of our work.