This open access book, supported by FEPS and Fondation Jean-Jaurès, centres on the work of contemporary progressive feminist thinkers and the idea that there is no democracy without gender equality.

Chapter 1: Introduction: Imagining a new gender equality contract for Europe.- Chapter 2: Imagining a new gender contract for SRHR.- Chapter 3:  Imagining a new gender contract for labour.- Chapter 4: Imagining a new gender contract for care.- Chapter 5: Imagining a new gender contract for education.- Chapter 6: Imagining a new gender contract for cultural rights.- Chapter 7: Imagining a new gender contract for democracy.- Chapter 8: Imagining a new gender contract for climate.- Chapter 9: Imagining a new gender contract for foreign policy.

 “This book reminds us: women’s rights are fundamental rights. They are human rights.”

—Evelyn Regner, Member of the European Parliament

“In developing a systematic agenda for a more feminist EU, this book shows that at issue is not only long-overdue gender equality in all spheres of life and society but the sustainability of society itself.”

— Chiara Saraceno, Professor Emerita, University of Turin and Berlin Social Science Center, and Honorary Fellow, Collegio Carlo Alberto

“The book is a wonderful call – for activists and theorists alike – to read, think,

discuss and act.”

—Helma Lutz, Goethe University Frankfurt

This open access book, supported by FEPS and Fondation Jean-Jaurès, centres on the work of contemporary progressive feminist thinkers and the idea that there is no democracy without gender equality. The authors develop the concept of a feminism that works for everyone – regardless of their gender, social or cultural identity – in the context of EU policy. The book features gender experts with multidisciplinary backgrounds from across Europe, providing a comprehensive exploration of efforts to move away from “gender backlash” rhetoric and towards a new gender contract for a fairer, more equal European Union.

Andrea Pető is Professor in the Department of Gender Studies at Central European University, Vienna, Austria; Doctor of Science at the Hungarian Academy of Sciences; and Doctor Honoris Causa at Södertörn University, Stockholm, Sweden.

Laeticia Thissen is Senior Policy Analyst for Gender Equality at FEPS, where she works on women’s rights, equality and anti-discrimination issues – with a focus on gender injustice, care work and gender-based violence.

Amandine Clavaud is Director of the Studies and Research Department at Fondation Jean-Jaurès and Director of the Observatory for Gender Equality. She is the author of the essay Droits des femmes: le grand recul (Éditions de l’Aube, 2023).

“In developing a systematic agenda for a more feminist society, this book shows that the issue is not only the long-overdue gender equality in all spheres of life and society, but the sustainability of society itself. For fairer, more cohesive, as well more authoritative and efficacious international politics, the EU needs to rethink its direction from a feminist perspective, where care and caring needs are not marginalized, demographic concerns are not exclusively framed in quantitative terms and contrasting inequalities take centre stage. Starting from a concern for gender equality, this book addresses vital topics for everyone that should be at the forefront of the agenda for the upcoming political elections.” (Chira Saraceno, Professor Emerita, University of Turin and Berlin Social Science Center & honorary fellow, Collegio Carlo Alberto)

“This timely and wide-ranging book makes a powerful case for why gender equality should become a unifying force towards more egalitarian, solidaristic and caring societies. As well as providing the political and moral case for change, it also shows us the way towards a different type of society from the vantage point of a new gender contract. With chapters considering care, climate, culture, democracy, and sexual and reproductive health, among others, the collection addresses big questions and offers tangible answers to address current challenges for a fairer and more equal Europe.” (Mary Daly, Professor of Sociology and Social Policy at the Department of Social Policy and Intervention, University of Oxford, and Fellow of Green Templeton College)

“This book comes at exactly the right time: ahead of the European elections, in a period of setbacks with regard to the rights of women and minorities, the authors plead for a renewal of the gender equality contract. They use and understand feminist theory as an impetus for a readjustment of equity and justice in gender relations. This compilation succeeds in making it clear that gender relations have to be renegotiated in many arenas of daily life: sexual and reproductive health; labour-market relations; in the fair sharing of care responsibilities; in the reorganization of higher education; in using a decolonial/intersectional feminist approach to cultural diversity; in elaborating a new gender contract in the area of democracy, climate and foreign policy. The book is a wonderful call – for activists and theorists alike – to read, think, discuss and act. It will hopefully stimulate many debates that we urgently need to make the EU a fairer place.” (Helma Lutz, Goethe University Frankfurt)
 

This book is open access, which means that you have free and unlimited access Gathers gender expert voices with multidisciplinary backgrounds to launch a comprehensive reflection Covers political reflection toward an inclusive and all-encompassing feminism for policymakers

Open Access This book is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this book are included in the book's Creative Commons license, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the book's Creative Commons license and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder.