Call for Experiences: Knowlympics 2026

The Knowlympics serve as a vital tool within our Learning & Sharing activities, fostering the capturing of experiences and their exchange within our network. We believe that by sharing both successes and challenges, we can collectively deepen our understanding and inspire others.

Click here to see the winners from the last edition.

Para ver o convite em português, clique aqui (pdf).
Pour l'appel en français, cliquez ici (pdf).
Para ver la convocatoria en español - To see the call in Spanish, haga clic aquí (pdf).

As usual the three first places will receive prizes between 750 and 1000 Euros.  

Prizes can be used for learning & sharing purposes according to the needs of the winning organisations – e.g., an exchange visit to another organisation, training for your staff, or equipment.

• Fill out the “Learning from Experience” questionnaire.
• Send the questionnaire to the Knowlympics coordinator within the deadline.

Everybody can get something out of these knowledge sharing games, as all submitted experiences will be published on the horizont3000 website, uploaded to Knowledge Hub, and shared within our knowledge network.

We are collecting practical experiences, innovative practices and strategies, showing how engaging men and boys has helped remove barriers to gender equality and strengthened human rights. We welcome successes as well as ‘fail‑forward’ lessons related to this year’s theme. Any sector is welcome (e.g., SRHR, WASH, agriculture, climate action, education, organisational development, technology adoption, economics, peacebuilding, …).

Below are specific questions and issues you could take into consideration, while filling out the “Learning from Experience” questionnaire. Sharing your experiences in these areas could be immensely valuable for others.

Context and problem

• Which gender issues were undermining the communities’ sustainable livelihoods or human rights?
• Add specifics and data if available – e.g., norms around unpaid care, decision‑making, GBV prevalence, access to services, control over income/assets).
• What solution was anticipated, and which barriers did you believe could only be dismantled by involving men – rather than working with women alone?

Who and why

• Which group(s) of men did you engage – e.g., husbands/partners, young fathers, male youth, religious leaders, traditional leaders, employers, teachers, male health workers, local officials.
• Why these men? Explore their roles as gatekeepers or enablers – e.g., control over resources, agenda‑setting roles, influence in households or institutions.

Convening and engagement

• Where and how were men engaged – e.g., workshops, peer groups, father clubs, religious/traditional gatherings, workplaces, schools, community meetings, digital forums.
• Frequency and continuity – was it a one‑off or repeated cycle? How often and for how long?
• Methodologies used – e.g., reflective dialogue, role‑play, community theatre, positive masculinity, media or IEC.
• Who led the sessions – e.g., peer‑led, expert‑led
• Safeguarding and do‑no‑harm – e.g., how were risks identified and mitigated, referral pathways, survivor‑centred principles.

Issues and resistance

• What did men struggle with? – e.g., misunderstandings of gender equality, fear of losing status/control/respect, religious or cultural objections, jokes and ridicule, resistance from peers/family.
• How was pushback navigated? – e.g., practical tactics for de‑escalation, reframing benefits, norm‑shifting, engaging male champions, working with role models, using data/stories.

Impact – evidence of change

• Individual shifts in attitudes and behaviours – e.g., from defensive to proactive, increased care work sharing, non‑violent conflict resolution.
• Household and institutional shifts – e.g., joint budgeting/decisions, school or workplace practices, traditional leader messages.

The ripple effect

• How are men acting as multipliers? – e.g., mentoring peers, speaking in public fora, advocating for policy or practice changes, facilitating father groups.
• What spread or scale is observable? Replication, spin‑off groups, integration into partner programmes, uptake by local authorities or networks.

YARD: training male champions to advocate for gender equality, mobilise for gender trainings, and minimise the persistence and impact of harmful ideologies like toxic masculinity

JOSSOAL: targeted curriculum to increase the involvement of young fathers or partners during pregnancy, primary education and postnatal maternal care

UWONET: involving men as allies to support women’s groups to navigate patriarchal systems, access markets, or secure inputs that might otherwise be difficult for women to acquire

LEMUSICA: designing sessions for men and boys to explore masculinity, responsibility, and respect, as well as dialogue sessions with traditional leaders

Like last year, winners will not be chosen completely at random, but on the basis of specific quality criteria. Submissions will be ranked based on clarity, compelling nature, and implementation, as well as potential for replicability and adaptability. 

When selecting your experience, please consider the following criteria:

• You are a current project partner of horizont3000 or of our Member Organisations.
• The experience must refer to a specific practice, method, strategy or approach your organisation has applied in its projects and programmes.
• While your experience should reflect this year's theme, it does not need to be the main objective or focus of your entire project or programme. It may just be an aspect during your work that has resulted in a valuable experience.
• The experience must be considered potentially relevant for other organisations. The most important thing is the possibility to learn from it! Negative experiences and failures can also be part of successful project work and can teach us a lot! Therefore, we especially encourage the submission of relevant negative experiences.
• Consent confirmed for any images/quotes you want us to publish; sensitive data anonymised.

UN Women – Knowledge portal: Men and boys to end violence against women – Evidence and programming entry points for engaging men and boys to prevent violence against women, with practice notes and examples.

UNFPA – Engaging Men and Boys in Gender Equality and Health (global toolkit) – A toolkit covering SRHR, fatherhood, HIV, GBV prevention, advocacy and M&E for male engagement.

WHO – RESPECT Women: Preventing violence against women (2nd ed., 2025) – UN-endorsed framework detailing evidence-based prevention strategies, incl. norm change and relationship skills.

OECD – Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) – Global dataset on discriminatory laws, social norms and practices underpinning gender inequality - useful for country context sections.

MenEngage Alliance – Large worldwide collective working to bring men and boys into the work of women's rights, LGBTQIA+ rights, and gender justice for all,

ICRW - Gender Equity & Male Engagement: It Only Works When Everyone Plays (2018) – Field synthesis and design guidance on accountable, effective male‑engagement programming.