For media inquiries, please contact: press@equimundo.org
May 2026 – As global leaders, activists, researchers, and policymakers prepare to gather in Rio de Janeiro next week for the MenCare Changemaker Summit, Equimundo is highlighting why Brazil is uniquely positioned to host this international convening on caregiving, masculinities, and gender equality.
Equimundo Founder and CEO Gary Barker reflects on the organization’s roots in Brazil and the country’s decades-long leadership in engaging men and boys in the pursuit of gender equality and violence prevention.
“I moved to Brazil in 1993 to work with women’s rights activists to combat the sexual exploitation of girls,” said Barker. “From those conversations, we partnered with activists to build community-based approaches engaging men for ending violence against women, but also [for exploring] how we, as men, benefit from embracing a manhood based in care and respect and connection.”
Those early partnerships helped spark a movement that expanded from local community initiatives into national campaigns promoting paternity leave, fathers’ participation during childbirth, and research programs on masculinities at Brazil’s leading universities. Since then, Brazil established one of the world’s largest national Men’s Health Programs through its Ministry of Health, and the country has expanded efforts to engage men in ending violence against women and addressing femicide. Along with this, broader public investments in healthcare, education, and reducing inequalities based on ethnicity and gender have created fertile ground for advancing caring masculinities and strengthening families and communities.
Today, Brazil stands as one of the world’s leading examples of how governments, researchers, and civil society can work together to engage men as allies for equality.
“The key to this work has been government leaders at both state and national levels who take this issue seriously,” Barker explained. “This incredible work by activists and researchers has had an impact because of that public commitment.”
Equimundo, which emerged from this work in Brazil, now operates globally through research, advocacy, and initiatives including the MenCare Campaign and the Global Boyhood Initiative.
“Our mission is quite simple,” Barker said. “If we care about and for men and boys, men and boys will care for equality, for our planet, for our communities, and our families.”
Barker says hosting the MenCare Changemaker Summit in Rio is both symbolic and practical, bringing global changemakers together in a country that has helped shape the international conversation on caregiving, masculinity, and equality.
“It seems obvious to me that this is the place to bring the MenCare Changemaker Summit,” he said. “I’m absolutely sure you will come away both inspired and challenged to ask: what do men have to do with gender equality and ending violence? And what do we as men gain when we embrace caring versions of manhood?”
About the MenCare Changemaker Summit
The MenCare Changemaker Summit convenes global leaders, advocates, researchers, policymakers, and practitioners working to advance gender equality and promote caring masculinities. The gathering focuses on solutions that engage men and boys as caregivers, allies, and advocates for healthier, more equitable societies.
About Equimundo
Equimundo works globally to promote gender equality and social justice by transforming intergenerational patterns of harm and promoting caring, equitable, and nonviolent masculinities. Through research, advocacy, and partnerships, Equimundo collaborates with organizations and governments worldwide to engage men and boys in building a more equitable future.
Got questions or want to cover this story?
Reach out to our press team: press@equimundo.org
English 
Français 
Português do Brasil 
Español de México