Conceptualising and Supporting Girls’ Leadership

On International Womens Day, we are pleased to highlights Dr Rosie Walters‘ Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) Impact Acceleration Account (IAA)–funded project on women’s leadership and everyday activism. Working with Plan International and communities across several countries, Rosie Walters led an analysis of long-term participatory research, with contributions from Hannah Colpitts-Elliott, to bring women’s voices to the fore in research and policy conversations.

Dr Walters’ analysis showed that 83% of girls studied experienced physical abuse for questioning gendered norms. Despite this, many demonstrated commitment to social change through informal political practices. The team produced a technical report foregrounding girls’ everyday forms of activism, encouraging government authorities, community leaders and education providers to foster enabling environments for girls to create change. Cardiff University has an established, long-running partnership with Plan International, a global children’s charity that supports girls in over 80 countries who face inequality in their daily lives. Dr Rosie Walters has worked closely with the organisation since 2019, analysing the data collected in their eighteen-year study of 143 girls in nine countries and helping to shape their programming and policy work.

IAA funding enabled the appointment of a Policy and Impact Officer, Hannah Colpitts-Eliott, who co-developed webinars with Dr Walters for Plan International. These clarified the conditions that enable girls’ everyday resistance. The webinars and report are being used to shape Plan International’s programmes and advocacy, strengthening support for girls and building gender equal communities globally.