Our work

Colmena means “hive” in Spanish—a symbol of community, connection, and collective strength. The Colmena Fund celebrates the power of its network of diverse women political leaders—who work together, support one another, and create change that is not only inclusive, but also deeply transformative.

The problem
we address

Women are often singled out and persecuted for their participation in politics, with challenges that disproportionately impact racialized women, Indigenous peoples, people with disabilities, as well as queer and nonbinary individuals. These barriers are deeply rooted in sexist norms and reinforced by institutional power structures that make it harder for them to thrive in politics and decision-making spaces.

They face persistent obstacles: limited funding and resources, harassment and violence both online and offline, exclusion from influential networks, and a lack of specialized training and protection mechanisms. These systemic inequities not only prevent them from entering politics but also hinder their ability to sustain leadership and drive meaningful change.

Yet, despite the adversities, women in all their diversity continue to rise, defy the status quo, and play a vital role in dismantling long-standing systems of oppression.

.We work across Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Middle East, engaging at local, national, and regional levels to dismantle barriers and support women in all their diversity to thrive at every step of their leadership journey, through different strategies.

Our goal is to increase the participation of diverse women in politics, who are committed to democratic and human rights values, —supporting them to run for office, thrive, and sustain leadership roles.

How we support women political leaders

Catalyze funding from private and public donors to support partner organizations, led by people from marginalized backgrounds and rooted in broader social movements, nurturing leaderships that advance democracy and human rights.
Offer multi-year grants and expertise to:

Support partner organizations to strengthen technical capacities of women political leaders and ensure their security and protection.
Create supportive environments by connecting women leaders in different sectors through regional networks, and amplifying their stories to tackle existing stereotypes and encourage other women to participate in politics.

Theory of Change

Our goal in 10 years is to increase women championing democratic and human rights values, especially young women, from marginalized backgrounds to enter politics, and secure leadership positions in targeted countries.

Through our work, we envision women political leaders sustaining their roles of increased power and delivering better social and economic outcomes for their communities.

Global Impact

The Colmena Fund is a non-partisan, nascent fund, dedicated to bring critical funding and infrastructure to advance women’s feminist and democratic political leadership, particularly in the Global South.

In 2024, we started our grantmaking journey by launching the call for proposals Strengthening Support for Women Political Leaders in the 2024 Super Election Year, addressed to organisations experienced in working directly with women political leaders in context in which there has been gains though electoral processes in 2024.

After a competitive process, we selected six projects that seek to advance democracies and political representation of women in all their diversity. The projects cover a wide range of geographical areas: Argentina, Brazil, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Jordan, Kenya, Mexico, South Africa, Thailand, Tunisia and West Africa with a focus on Senegal. Some projects seek to combat tech enabled violence against women in politics, while others are supporting those at the beginning of their political careers or already in elected positions.

Projects emphasize supporting diverse and historically marginalized communities such as LGBT+ and afro descendant women; and employ a number of interventions including coalition building, training programs or development of tech tools. This call for proposals also sought to develop alternative narratives that build on hope. Such narratives show that despite the many challenges that the world faces, gains are being made and that in many contexts women in all their diversity are a pro-democratic force.