What is the Equal Rights Coalition?
The Equal Rights Coalition (ERC) is a multilateral and multi-stakeholder coalition through which 42 member states cooperate closely with civil society, multilateral agencies, and other stakeholders to advance LGBTI human rights and inclusive development. The ERC works to promote innovative, effective diplomacy and inclusive development in support of the human rights of LGBTI persons.

The ERC Structure
Since it was established in 2016, the ERC has been primarily centered around a bi-annual ERC Global Conference, which is co-hosted by two co-chair governments (one global south and global north). The ERC Global Conference is the only global convening of its kind in which states, development cooperation agencies, civil society, international organizations, philanthropic foundations, and other relevant stakeholders come together to advance LGBTI human rights and inclusive development.

Between conferences, the work of the ERC takes place through an Executive Committee, Coordinating Committee and Thematic Groups.

ERC and Philanthropy

GPP’s members have been involved in the ERC since it was established in Montevideo in 2016 and the earlier global conferences which led to its creation. These include:

  • 2010 – A first-ever convening on global LGBTI human rights and development, co-hosted by the Swedish Government’s development agency, Sida, and HIVOS in Stockholm
  • 2013 – “Increasing Support and Resources for LGBT Rights” Conference, co-hosted by the German The German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) in cooperation with the Lesbian and Gay Federation in Germany (LSVD) in Berlin.
  • 2014 – “Conference to Advance the Human Rights of and Promote Inclusive Development for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Intersex (LGBTI) Persons”, organized by U.S. Department of State and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), with the support of the Council for Global Equality in Washington, D.C.
  • 2016 – Global LGBTI Human Rights Conference, co-hosted by the Government of Uruguay and the Government of Netherlands in Montevideo.
  • 2018 – Equal Rights Coalition Conference, co-hosted by the Government of Canada and Government of Chile in Vancouver.

GPP released position statements prior to the 2016 Montevideo conference (read here) and 2018 Vancouver conference (read here), which outline the network’s priorities for the ERC in order to support the coalition to be an effective platform for increasing the amount and quality of resources flowing to LGBTI movements and communities in the global south and east.

These pages include links to ERC public statements, lists of members, and more. 

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