The field of international development cooperation has experienced an increasing demand for result-driven management over the last decades. However, a clear consensus of the meaning of ‘ results’ is often lacking in initiatives and projects for social change. As the field functions throughout myriads of contexts and cultures, the demand of results therefore brings upon issues of definitions and discourse, as well as underlying values. The goals and strategies set out to achieve certain results are influenced by assumptions that define the problem definition of the targeted issue. A hierarchy in international development, the so-called aid chain, is determined by who provides funding for cooperation projects. The flow of top-down funding is shown to be accompanied by a flow of top-down policies, that are further accompanied by underlying values, problem definitions, and assumptions. This study inquires whether different notions, assumptions, and problem definitions on gender equality across cultures in the aid chain might disturb result-reporting in international projects. Departing from a postcolonial perspective, the content and discourse of the Swedish feminist foreign policy and steering documents from an Indigenous women’s organization in Guatemala are analysed and compared. Seeing policies and policy-making as a significant communicative tool and practice in the field, this study shows how results, goals, strategies, problem definition and assumptions correlate to each other in result-reporting in international development cooperation projects.

A variety of research has been done on why it is important to include local women in peace processes to gain a more sustainable peace. Despite this, there is a limited amount of information and research about women mediation networks and their aim to empower local women peacebuilders. This research explores how women mediation networks can support and empower women in conflict resolutions in relation to the Swedish Feminist Foreign Policy and the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325. By using semi-structured interviews and literature analysis, a case study of the Swedish Women’s Mediation Network will be conducted. The analysis of the Swedish Women’s Mediation Network, reveals that the network mainly works with the representation of women and uses capacity-building to empower women in other regions. This research brings more awareness to the Women Mediation Networks and their mission to increase the number of women in peace processes.

The Swedish Sex Purchase Act was unique, when introduced in 1999. While it was legal to demand and collect payment for sexual services it became a crime to respond to such demands or offer payment. It is now part of Sweden’s foreign policy to ‘export’ this law, using gender equality arguments. Several countries have since followed. The law is often portrayed as a triumph of feminism and women’s political struggles. The law is gender neutral however and applies equally to e.g. MSM sex trade (Men who have Sex with Men), a phenomenon that the normal gender equality arguments do not capture. ‘Homosexual prostitution’ was initially argued in the legislative proceedings, to be so different from heterosexual prostitution, that the scientific investigator raised concerns if one-sided criminalisation was considered by legislators. Yet, this is what happened. This study traces exactly how this came to be, analysing legislative documents and debates, focusing on heteronormative reasonings. In the final round of legislation the question had entirely disappeared. MSM sex trade or culture was not even mentioned and can be seen as heteronormative collateral damage.

En 2014, la Suède adopte la première politique étrangère ouvertement féministe. Depuis, plusieurs autres pays ont suivi l’initiative suédoise et adopté explicitement l’étiquette féministe pour orienter leur politique étrangère. Or, on remarque que, parmi les pays qui ont des engagements significatifs envers l’égalité des genres depuis plusieurs années, certains sont réticents à adopter l’étiquette féministe, et ce, malgré leurs actions « féministes » sur la scène internationale. C’est notamment le cas de la Nouvelle-Zélande, un pays actuellement dirigé par Jacinda Ardern qui s’identifie elle-même comme étant ouvertement féministe. En mobilisant la théorie des rôles, je cherche à comprendre comment les attentes et valeurs liées aux rôles performés par la Nouvelle-Zélande peuvent entrer en conflit avec l’adoption d’une étiquette féministe. En identifiant les principaux rôles mis de l’avant par la Nouvelle-Zélande depuis 1972, je trouve qu’il n’y a pas de conflit explicite entre l’adoption de l’étiquette féministe et les rôles de bon citoyen international et de leader dans le Pacifique. Je relève cependant un potentiel conflit en lien avec les intérêts économiques du pays, ces derniers étant souvent priorisés par les différents gouvernements en présence d’un conflit de rôle. / In 2014, Sweden adopted the first openly feminist foreign policy. Since then, several other countries have followed the Swedish initiative and explicitly adopted the feminist label to guide their foreign policy. Yet, we note that among countries that have had significant commitments to gender equality for several years, some are reluctant to adopt the feminist label despite their "feminist" actions on the international stage. This is notably the case in New Zealand, a country currently led by Jacinda Ardern, who openly identifies herself as a feminist. By mobilizing role theory, I seek to understand how the expectations and values associated with the roles performed by New Zealand may conflict with adopting a feminist label. In identifying the key roles put forward by New Zealand since 1972, I find that there is no explicit conflict between the adoption of the feminist label and the roles of good international citizen and Pacific leader. I do, however, note a potential conflict with the country's economic interests, as different governments often prioritize these in the presence of a role conflict.

Recently, a new IR movement called Feminist Foreign Policy (FFP) has become more influential and achieved certain success when states like Sweden, Canada and France adopted these theories. This study will analyse Switzerland’s foreign policy to understand to what extent it is a FFP. Feminist Foreign Policy Analysis has developed new frameworks to answer this research question. Such as Aggestam and True’s four commitments, which is adapted in this thesis. Through a qualitative content analysis, policy documents of the Swiss government are analysed for gender mainstreaming, international development assistance, Women, Peace and Security (WPS) and gender equality mechanisms. The findings are that the implementation of WPS policies is at an advanced stage, and the international development assistance includes clearly defined budget goals and many pro-gender objectives. On the other hand, there is a lack of gender mainstreaming throughout Switzerland’s core foreign policy papers and gender equality mechanisms are rather sparse. The research concludes that, although Swiss FP contains feminist elements, it cannot be defined as feminist.

[pt] Esta pesquisa busca estudar o papel da Suécia como empreendedor normativo da política externa feminista, por meio de um mapeamento histórico dos acontecimentos domésticos e de teorias sobre difusão de normas. Com este intuito traçamos os acontecimentos e atores internos que influenciaram o país a partir da segunda onda do feminismo, até a declaração, em 2014, que seu governo e sua política externa seriam feministas. Avaliamos, por meio das teorias de Finnermore e Sikkink, e Bjorkdal sobre o ciclo de vida da difusão de normas, se a forma como a política externa feminista foi lançada e divulgada reforça, ou não, o papel da Suécia como empreendedor normativo na esfera global. Observa-se, com base na forma em que a política é apresentada – um manual, em múltiplos idiomas, com forte estratégia de promoção e divulgação –, que ela surge com o intuito de influenciar outros Estados e atores a adotarem uma visão em prol da igualdade de gênero e assim consegue provocar o debate e dar visibilidade à pauta. Avaliamos que a norma em questão se encontra em estágio de disseminação e que ainda há amplas possiblidades e desdobramentos para a internalização do conceito política externa feminista, pois este encontra-se em pleno desenvolvimento. / [en] This research studies Sweden s role as a norm entrepreneur for feminist foreign policy, through an analysis of the country s historical feminist movement, its domestic events and based on diffusion of norms theories. To do this, we analyze the events and internal actors that influenced Sweden, starting from second-wave feminism, until 2014 when the country announced that its government and foreign policy would be feminist. We then assess, by means of theories on the life cycle of norm diffusion by Finnermore and Sikkink, and Bjorkdal, whether the way Sweden launched and disseminated its feminist foreign policy reinforces, or not, the country s role as a norm entrepreneur in the global scenario. We observe, based on the way in which the policy is presented – as a manual, in multiple languages, with a strategic promotion and dissemination plan –, that it arises with the intention to influence other States and actors to adopt the feminist perspective. By doing this, Sweden incentivizes the debate on gender equality and gives it visibility. We conclude that the norm in question is still being disseminated and, therefore, that there are ample possibilities for developments in terms of the internalization of feminist foreign policy on a global scale, as the concept is still in development.

Recently, the implementation of feminist foreign policy (FFP) has gained traction in the Global South. The trend is most visible in Latin America, where Mexico, Chile, and Colombia have announced their commitment to the policy. Nevertheless, FFP has been dominated in the Global North sphere as Sweden pioneered the policy in 2014. Establishing the policy outside the Global North raises the question of how a Western-based policy will be adapted to the Latin American context and understanding of feminism. This study has aimed to investigate the feminist understanding and contextualization present in Mexico's, Chile's, and Colombia's FFPs. Based on previous research, this study has developed a framework of a Global North and Global South feminist discourse to analyze the foreign policies through feminist theory. A discourse analysis focusing on the policy texts' implicit and explicit representation of the central concepts of feminism: Structures, Oppression, and Change has been conducted. The policies include central aspects of feminist thought. The Global North feminist discourse dominates the FFPs, but distinctive elements of the Global South feminist discourse are present and adapted to international norms. However, this study also finds that the FFPs lack an explicit aim to address the fundamental causes of structural inequality and oppression. While the FFPs can still be a unifying framework for governments to promote gender equality internationally, the findings of this study raise questions about the possibilities of state-centered institutions to address the root causes of unequal societies since foreign policy tends to contain oppressive structures in itself.

This thesis addresses the socio-cultural configurations in Liberia in relation to climate resilient development and feminist foreign policy carried out by the Embassy of Sweden in Monrovia. It builds on the intention to explore potential points of integration between the feminist foreign policy with the construction of climate adaptation capacity. Research on climate adaptation actions demonstrates the need to engage more deeply with vulnerability contexts and embed the implementation process in local practice, value and experience. This study explores Liberian society as a case study to examine how feminist foreign policy and climate resilient development can be incorporated fit to the socio-cultural configurations. Methodologically, the study adopts an ethnographic framework. It draws on Butler’s performative notion of gender (1990, 1999, 2007) and ecological masculinities developed by Hultman and Pulé (2021) along with theories of environmental femininity by Bob Pease (2019). Empirically, the study is based on fieldwork in the form of participant observation, ethnographic interviews and document analysis.The results suggest that socio-cultural configurations are permeated by a patriarchal structure with traditional beliefs that householding tasks are linked to female obligations, leading to a disparity in responsibilities and accessibility to cultural activities. Stereotypical notions of masculinity are based on heteronormative assumptions that men should demonstrate dominance, self-reliance, and restrain emotions. The empirical work signifies that Liberian norms of masculinity lead to a reluctance to cooperativeness, block societal development and lead to unnecessary individual suffering. The culture is concluded to be centered around men, while women take a larger workload in key societal activities. Citizens experience that the state doesn't recognize them as equal participants, therefore forfeiting the opportunity to foster vital social capital that could enhance both state legitimacy and the effectiveness of public service delivery. The results illustrate the importance of considering citizens of marginalized areas as stakeholders in decision-making to enable engagement in development processes. Citizens from marginalized areas have their own underlying logic and views of the world. The thesis concludes that the socio-cultural configurations not just produce possible integration between climate resilient development and feminist foreign policy, but even forces the two to be pursued as interdependent processes. Advancing climate resilient development and feminist foreign policy in an integrated manner is thought to increase each other’s effectiveness and achieving them is possible when interdependence is leveraged. This thesis argues that the inauguration of female leadership and changing the perception of what masculinity stands for are the most distinctive points of integration in Liberian socio-cultural configurations. The thesis concludes seven possible procedures for the Embassy of Sweden in Monrovia to achieve climate resilient development aligned with the existing feminist objectives: 1. Include landownership in female empowerment strategies. 2. Transform masculinity normsthrough consultation-groups. 3. Focus on family configurations. 4. Work with religious leaders. 5.Embed policies in informal networks. 6. Encourage female-centered cultural activities and 7. Benefiton the knowledge of grassroots organizations to adopt an ethnographic approach. / Det här examensarbetet behandlar sociokulturella konfigurationer i Liberia och undersöker hur de kan relateras till klimatresilient utveckling och den feministiska utrikespolitik som bedrivs av Sveriges ambassad i Monrovia. Arbetet utforskar potentiella integrationsmöjligheter mellan feministiska utrikespolitik och lokal anpassning till klimatförändringar. Tidigare forskning om klimatanpassningsåtgärder visar behovet av att engagera sig i utsatta områden och förankra implementeringsprocessen i lokala erfarenheter, värderingar och beteendemönster. Med det i åtanke intenderar studien att undersöka det liberianska samhället som en fallstudie för attanalysera hur feministisk utrikespolitik och klimatresilient utveckling kan integreras med sociokulturella konfigurationer. Metodologiskt antar studien ett etnografiskt förhållningssätt där det empiriska arbetet består av fältarbete i form av deltagande observation, etnografiska intervjuer och dokumentanalys. Det teoretiska ramverket på Butlers performativa föreställning om kön (1990,1999, 2007), ekologiska maskuliniteter formulerade av Hultman och Pulé (2021) och teorier om miljöfeminism av Bob Pease (2019).Resultaten illustrerar att de sociokulturella konfigurationerna genomsyras av en patriarkal struktur som innefattar traditionella ideér om att hushållssysslor är kopplat till kvinnligt åliggande, vilket i förlängningen leder till skillnader i ansvarstagande för samhälleliga aktiviteter. Stereotypa föreställningar om maskulinitet bygger på heteronormativa antaganden om att män bör visa dominans, självtillit och emotionell tillbakadragenhet. Det empiriska arbetet påvisar att liberianska maskulinitetsnormer leder till en motvilja mot samarbete, blockerar samhällsutveckling och bidrar till onödigt lidande både för män och kvinnor. Kulturen anses vara centrerad kring män, medan kvinnor tar en större arbetsbörda i flertalet viktiga samhällsfunktioner. Resultaten visar också att medborgare upplever att staten inte ser dem som likvärdiga deltagare i samhällsprocesser. Därmed försummas en möjlighet att skapa socialt kapital som kan främja statens legitimitet och effektivitet i offentliga tjänster. Resultaten antyder att medborgare från marginaliserade områden har en egen bakomliggande logik och syn på världen. Dessa medborgare bör betraktas som viktiga intressenter i beslutsfattande för att möjliggöra engagemang i utvecklingsprocesser. Arbetet drar slutsatsen att de sociokulturella konfigurationerna inte bara producerar en möjlighet för integrering mellan klimatresilient utveckling och feministisk utrikespolitik, utan även tvingar de att implementeras som två ömsesidigt beroende processer. Att främja klimatresilient utveckling och feministisk utrikespolitik på ett integrerat sätt anses öka varandras effektivitet och att uppnå dem är möjligt först när beroendet utnyttjas. Arbetet framhåller att en ökning av kvinnliga ledare och att förändra bilden av vad maskulinitet innebär är distinkta möjligheter för att integrera klimatresilientutveckling och feministisk utrikespolitik i de liberianska sociokulturella konfigurationer. Arbetetringar in sju möjliga riktlinjer för Sveriges ambassad i Monrovia för att uppnå klimatresilientutveckling med befintliga feministiska mål:1. Inkludera markägande i strategier för jämställdhet. 2. Ändra maskulinitetsnormer genom konsultationsgrupper. 3. Fokusera på familjekonfigurationer. 4. Arbeta med religiösa ledare. 5.Förankra policies i informella nätverk. 6. Främja kvinnocentrerad kulturverksamhet och 7. Antag ett etnografiskt förhållningssätt i samråd med gräsrotsorganisationer.