A project works best when the whole team shares the same goals. This is especially true when it comes to gender and inclusion.

Some team members may already be familiar with these topics — others may not. That’s okay!

In this section, you’ll find tips on how to:

• Raise awareness in your team
• Build knowledge and skills

This section is most relevant for teams comprising people from different sectors and disciplines and we highly encourage this kind of collaboration. Since this brings together partners with different goals, priorities, work cultures and ways of thinking, it is important for everyone to find a common understanding of gender and inclusion before the project begins. Not everyone will see its value right away—so raising awareness and building knowledge is key. However, it is not only necessary to find a common understanding on gender/inclusion, but in general - working together on this helps everyone to understand the project goal and plan better and find a common language for all its parts. For instance, gender experts need to understand the technical or medical terminology, and vice versa (Karaulova et al. 2025).

Here are some practical ideas to raise awareness and build capacity within the team (Karaulova et al. 2025):

Why It Matters: Explain how gender and inclusion improve your project. It might help to do some research beforehand to be able to do so. Use real examples and talk about your progress and successes in the project. Look at the 'Why Section' for helpful arguments or at support material from your funding agency.

Start with a Workshop: Hold a team workshop at the beginning to discuss key concepts like gender, intersectionality, and inclusion (for more information, see the 'Why Section'). Include case studies and good practices to show that gender/inclusion matters. Plan interactive activities to discuss where and how gender and inclusion is important for your project. Make the workshop part of your official project plan.

Involve the Whole Team: Include team members in co-creation activities (see Step 3 and 4), so they can learn about effects of participation and inclusion. Give your inclusion expert a clear role throughout the project. Let them give feedback on all project tasks and involve them in all processes to fully integrate inclusion. Team check-ins and co-creative sessions where you reflect together work better than sending out info sheets.

Communicate as Equals: Encourage open, respectful communication where everyone learns from each other.

Learn from Others: Talk to other experts or teams who have worked on similar projects about how they did it. Inclusive Gender Innovation is often learned through experience. Think about getting external support (e.g. from a consultant) if you feel you need it.

Use Familiar Concepts: For teams unfamiliar with inclusion, start with related ideas like human-centered design, then link them to inclusive gender innovation.

Inclusion work isn’t always easy—but it’s worth it. Every team is different, so find the approach that works best for yours.

👉 See Step 1 for helpful tools and resources.

There are supportive factors, which can minimise resistance and create an enabling environment for inclusive gendered innovation:

• A project leader who supports gender and inclusion
• Gender and inclusion knowledge is widespread in the team or
• Team members are open minded and interested in working interdisciplinary
• Clear roles and tasks for the inclusion expert written into the project plan, integrating his or her expertise in all project steps.

This gives the gender/inclusion expert the authority to speak up throughout the project.

However, talking about gender and inclusion in a project can lead to resistance – especially in male-dominated fields. If this happens, please read the next section.

Strategies for Dealing with Resistance in Inclusive Gender Innovation

Resistance to gender and inclusion is, unfortunately, not uncommon. But don’t get discouraged. Resistance can be managed, and in some cases, even turned into progress. There is no single solution, but the strategies below can help:

First, try to understand the resistance (source):

• Why is there resistance?
• How is it being shown?
• Who is resisting?

Look After Yourself: Don’t take it personally: It’s easy to feel discouraged, especially if resistance comes from your own team. Remember: this is about systems and mindsets – not you. Stay calm and focus on the project goals. Inclusion work can be emotionally draining. Make space to reflect, take breaks, and seek support when needed. You don’t have to carry it all alone.

Focus on Project Goals and Outcomes: If people resist the topic of inclusion, refocus the discussion on what the project is trying to achieve. Emphasise how inclusion helps improve:

• Innovation quality
• User satisfaction
• Social impact/justice
• Market reach

Use data, examples, and past project successes where possible.

Demonstrate gender-specific and inclusive knowledge: If project partners from other disciplines are skeptical about the relevance of inclusion and gender in the project, show them gender knowledge from their field of research. This often leads to aha-experiences.

Create Safe Spaces for Dialogue: Organise short workshops or discussions where team members can ask questions and reflect without judgement. Use real-life examples and show how inclusion is already shaping better results.

Use Strategic Entry Points: If “gender” is a trigger word in your team or sector, start with familiar terms like: Human-centered design, User needs or Accessibility. Then show how these naturally connect to inclusion and gender.

Find Allies: who can help carry the message. A small group of committed people can shift dynamics more than lone efforts. Support from the project lead or management makes a huge difference. If possible, brief them early on inclusion benefits so they can back you up in key moments.

Publish your results and experiences: If an innovation project is not so successful due to resistance, don't hide it but publicize what has nevertheless been achieved. Make your experiences with resistance public too - that way we can learn from each other and develop strategies together.

Celebrate Small Wins: Highlight even small examples of progress. Did a new feature get improved thanks to user diversity feedback? Share the story. Visible results can reduce resistance over time.

Long-Term Solutions: Changing mindsets takes time. Encourage your organisation to invest in: Regular training on gender and inclusion and Clear policies and incentives that reward inclusive practices.

Resistance won’t disappear overnight – but with the right strategies, you can keep your project on track and make a real impact.

Here you find tools and resources for support

Tools & Resources

• The EQUAL4EUROPE project published a guide, which also offers a section on resistances.
• The FESTA project published a handbook on resistance to gender equality in academia.
• For more help, check out the SUPERA toolkit on how to deal with resistance to change. It gives useful tips that you can use as inspiration for dealing with resistance in your project. For example, it might be helpful for you to build networks and alliances within your organisation, the project team or with other relevant stakeholders (e.g. with experts, civil society groups or NGOs).
• For resistances in online meetings, you can consult guidelines for inclusive online meetings by the FairCom project.
• For networking: The GILL Hub is a collaborative platform and community that provides tools, methods, services, and resources to support gender-responsive smart innovation and entrepreneurship. Registered users can get in touch with each other.

Videos & Webinars

• Here is a video on Overcoming Resistance by the ACT project.

When you're working on an research and innovation project that considers gender and inclusion, it’s important to regularly reflect on your methods and results.

• Include more voices: Stay aware of who is being heard and who might be missing.
• Avoid stereotypes: Even with good intentions, bias can sneak in. Reflection helps you spot and fix it.
• Be responsive to findings: New insights or feedback from participants or stakeholders may highlight important issues that require you to reconsider your approach.
• Understand power dynamics: Reflection helps you see how decisions are made and who holds influence.
• Improve quality and credibility: A reflective approach shows responsibility, builds trust and enhances the quality of your outcomes.

Here are some easy ways to build reflection and learning into your project:

• Team check-ins and feedback: Regular updates help share different views, stay transparent, and keep each other accountable.
• Plan reflection points: Add short reflection sessions after each major task or work package to review what worked and what could improve.
• Set clear goals for inclusion: Include milestones and indicators for gender and inclusion. Check if your funder requires this – or create your own based on your project’s needs. You can also use ideas from MEL (Monitoring, Evaluation & Learning) (see Resources section).
• Try reflective methods: You can reflect alone, with a colleague, as a team, or together with stakeholders. Choose what fits your style and team best (see resources below).

Reflective Questions to Ask During Your Project

Use these questions to regularly check your progress and keep your project inclusive:

Impact & Inclusion

• Who benefits from our work?
• Whose needs and experiences are included — and who might be left out?
• Have we included people with lived experience or marginalised voices in a meaningful way?

Bias

• Where in the project might bias (e.g. gender bias) show up — in design, data, or decisions?
• Have we spotted and addressed these risks? How?
• Are we making assumptions about gender roles or norms?

Stereotypes & Language

• Do our tools, materials, or communication include any stereotypes?
• How can we ensure that we do not reinforce harmful norms or clichés?
• Are we using inclusive language in surveys, publications, and user interfaces?

Expertise & Skills

• Do we have the right knowledge to handle gender and inclusion well?
• Would it help to bring in outside experts or do a short training?

Data & Analysis

• Are we including gender and other factors (like age, race, disability) in our data collection and analysis?
• Are we using inclusive categories that reflect lived realities (e.g. not just male/female)?
• How are we making sure different groups are visible in our findings?
• How do the results shape our next steps?

👉 We recommend adding these questions as tasks in your project plan. Assign someone (like the project lead or an inclusion expert) to guide this reflection process — otherwise it may be forgotten in busy project work.

Being open to Changes

While reflecting on your project, you may find ways to improve or face new challenges. If that happens, it's okay to adjust your plan — even if it’s mostly fixed.

For example:

• You might decide to include a new target group in your user testing.
• Or you could organise a final workshop to share your findings with others.

Being flexible is often better than strictly following a schedule. Adjusting your work to real needs is a key part of reflection and meaningful innovation.

Here you find tools and resources for support

Tools & Resources:

• Rethinking Research Priorities and Outcomes: Research Priorities and Outcomes might be a bit biased, so it's worth thinking about.
• Gender Impact Assessment: You can find assistance on this process here on the gendered innovation website and a checklist here on the RESET project website. If you are interested in an intersectional project design, have a look at the gendered innovation website or for quantitative intersectional study design on the CIHR website.
• There are intersectional design cards, which you can used to navigate assumptions and biases and reflect on your outcome.
• On the better evaluation website, you can find methods and approaches for evaluation, such as the ORID (objective, reflective, interpretive, and decisional) method or a validation workshop.
• For support regarding indicators, please have a look at
  • The mini-guide on MEL indicators in a gender project by CARE Gender Justice
  • The MEL (Monitoring, Evaluation, Learning) indicator guide by Nidos
  • An article on SMART Indicators by the EvalCommunity

Good project management is always important — but it’s even more important in projects that focus on gender and inclusion. Here’s why:

• Inclusion is complex: Planning ahead helps make sure all groups are considered. For example, when recruiting a diverse test group or preparing for team changes. In order to work inclusively (and intersectionally), it may be necessary to invest a significant amount of time and resources into reflection, research and learning.
• Inclusion should be present from start to finish: It’s not just one task — it needs to be built into every stage of the project and across all teams. This requires good planning and thinking ahead, as well as working and coordinating with different people and organisations.
• Poor management can harm inclusion: If inclusion isn’t a clear priority, it can easily get lost behind other goals like publications or product delivery.
• Leadership matters: As a project lead, your role is also about leading people. That means creating a respectful, inclusive team culture where everyone feels heard and valued.

👉 Projects led by people who understand gender and inclusion often do better in this area (Wroblewski 2016) .

Here you find tools and resources for support

Tools & Resources:

• The RESET project published a project management toolbox for gender equality projects.
• The GiLL project offers support regarding co-creation and the navigation of online collaboration in diverse remote teams.
• There is a handbook for gender-responsive leadership by the Folke Bernadotte Academy.