In late March 2020, as countries around the world began to implement social distancing measures to protect public health in the face of COVID-19, it became clear that feminists must be equipped with tools for unprecedented levels of virtual organizing.

Though we may not be able to gather together around tables or in the streets in the same way for the next few months, the work of advocating for a just recovery and resisting repressive responses must continue virtually. As feminists, we must find ways to build power together online.

Though this toolkit might be particularly useful in this time of social distancing, we hope its utility extends beyond, too. We must reach and connect to our feminist partners and allies around the world in order to address the most pressing global issues of our time, and virtual meetings can be one crucial tool in our toolbox for that work. There are many great platforms and resources available to do things such as: host virtual forums and conferences, collectively write and brainstorm digital media, and reach broad audiences online, but there are also a variety of challenges to accessing these tools.

The digital divide, as well as lack of information about how to use various platforms that exist, often limit feminists’ (and everyone’s) chances to participate in virtual organizing.

In April 2020, three advocacy organizations, The Youth Cafe, Women’s Environment and Development Organization (WEDO) and Women Engage for a Common Future (WECF), hosted a series of three teach-ins on organizing virtual meetings, centered around three kinds of skills to grow together. These were: 1) Planning meetings: accessibility & methodology; 2) Logistics: nuts & bolts of software; 3) Digital safety. In this toolkit, we have included the tools discussed during the three teach-ins as well as other tools requested by the participants. We hope you’ll find it useful!