Retrieved 4: Feminist Foreign Policy in the Academic Discussion
Who produces knowledge on feminist foreign policy? When did academic research on feminist international relations start taking shape? And who gets to define what a feminist foreign policy might look like? In this episode, we go back in time with Lucia Yar, acting editor-in-chief of Euractiv Slovakia, to find the roots of feminist foreign policy in movements of the early-20th century, whilst discussing ground-breaking research that’s changing how we think about the impacts of representation in policy making.
In the series of podcasts ‘Retrieved’, by the Heinrich Böll Foundation - Thessaloniki office, we bring together experts, policy-makers and members of the civil society. We take a closer look at feminist foreign policy and understand what it means for the peace-building, migration, defence and many other policy areas.
Feminism and patriarchy are terms we tend to encounter in discussions about the way societies are organised internally. And yet, foreign policy, just like most fields of policy-making, is heavily affected by patriarchal structures and prejudice. However, its future can be better. With the help of policy advisors, journalists, researchers, and politicians, we examine how feminist foreign policy can reflect the interests of all genders and often overlooked stakeholders: from peace-building and climate, to migration and defence policy, we look to examples from across the EU that show how this bold new model benefits society at large - and the challenges on the horizon. Can feminism retrieve a new foreign policy mantra out of the dusty ideas of the past?