About Equinet

Equinet, the European Network of Equality Bodies, brings together 37 organizations from 30 European countries, which are empowered to counteract discrimination as national equality bodies across the range of grounds including age, disability, gender, race or ethnic origin, religion or belief, and sexual orientation.

Equinet builds upon the two year project "Strengthening the co-operation between specialised bodies for the implementation of equal treatment legislation" (2002-2004) and is currently funded by PROGRESS, the European Community Programme for Employment and Social Solidarity (2007-2013).

Our mission

Equinet works to enable equality bodies to achieve and exercise their full potential at Member State level by sustaining and developing a networking between and a platform for equality bodies at European level.

Our values

Equinet seeks to work in a manner that:

• Is based on the active participation of the equality bodies that form the network.
• Reflects the needs and interests that are common to equality bodies
• Takes account of the diversity of equality bodies.
• Is open and transparent.
• Is to a high standard of excellence and professionalism.
• Implements good practices as an employer.
• Mainstreams gender equality and diversity in its work.
• Respects environmental sustainability.

Equinet seeks to develop relationships within its membership based on:

• Trust, mutual support and solidarity.
• A shared ownership and control of the network by the equality bodies that form part of it.

Equinet seeks to engage with its stakeholders in a manner that:

• Reflects the unique and singular position of equality bodies as independent statutory bodies – bodies that are independent of both civil society and of the statutory sector.

Our strategic plan 2011 - 2014

Over the lifespan of this Strategic Plan, Equinet will pursue four objectives:

A. Enhance the skills and capacities of the staff of the equality bodies.
B. Enhance the strategic capacity of the equality bodies.
C. Identify and communicate the learning from the work of national equality bodies.
D. Enhance the recognition and strategic positioning of Equinet and member equality bodies with all stakeholders at European Union level.

In order to achieve these objectives, Equinet will build upon already acquired experience and implement four interrelated strategies:

1. A Strategy for Peer Support to Enhance Staff Development within Equality Bodies.
2. A Strategy for Peer Support to Enhance Institutional Development of Equality Bodies.
3. A Strategy for Contributing to Policy Formation at European Union Level.
4. A Strategy for Growth and Positioning as a Network.

Download the Strategic Plan 2011-2014

Download the Work Plan 2011

Our activities

Equinet seeks to engage in advancing equality in practice by facilitating the contributions and a stronger voice of national equality bodies to the wider European debate, by promoting and organizing:

• Ongoing information exchange and sharing of data and expertise from and among national equality bodies
• Regular training seminars for staff members and experts within national equality bodies
• Ongoing collaboration, exchange and research within Working Groups structured around thematic work areas of relevance to national equality bodies, namely:

1. Equality Law in Practice
2. Strategy Development
3. Communication Strategies and Practices
4. Policy Formation

• Publications and opinions on relevant themes and policy developments relating to equality and non-discrimination at European level.

• Studies on selected themes relating to the work of national equality bodies

The structure

The Annual General Meeting (AGM) consisting of all national members is the highest decisionmaking body within Equinet. An elected Executive Board led by the Chairperson of Equinet is responsible for the overall management and the strategic leadership of the network. The operational structure consists of Working Groups of staff of national equality bodies (Equinet members) and a Secretariat headed by an executive director (Anne Gaspard) based in Brussels.

EQUINET – European Network of Equality Bodies is an international not-for-profit association (Aisbl) with an operational secretariat based in Brussels since end 2007.

Download the Equinet statutes in English and French

Download the Equinet presentation leaflet

What are national equality bodies?

National equality bodies are independent organisations established on the basis of EU equal treatment directives – Directive 2000/43/EC (the so-called Race Directive), Directive 2004/113/EC (the so-called Gender Goods and Services Directive) and Directive 2006/54/EC (the so called Gender Recast Directive) - with a mandate to provide an independent assistance to victims of discrimination, conduct independent surveys concerning discrimination and publish independent reports and make recommendations on any issue relating to discrimination in their country.

Read more about equality bodies in Europe.