Central Asian Network for Gender Studies was established in July 2002 in Almaty. It is a non-profit, non-governmental union of researchers working together for developing a scientific discourse of gender equality and promoting institutionalization of gender studies in the higher education institutions of Central Asia.
Main Network goals are:
- to create a forum for discussing issues of gender studies, education, and promotion of gender equality in Central Asian societies
- to promote development of curricula on gender studies for universities and other institutions of higher and secondary education
- to supply members with educational material and academic literature on gender studies, feminist theories and women’s movement in western and post-socialist countries
- to provide methodological and organizational support to local studies interregional projects with participation of the young researchers
- to inform about resources on gender studies in the different regions of the world (grants, educational programs, published literature, conferences, current projects, etc.)
The Network offers subscription to a discussion list and edits an on-line journal “Gender Studies in Central Asia”. It also organizes conferences on gender issues.
The website is available in both Russian and English. The Russian version, however, is more detailed. The main page contains links to downloadable materials on the topic of gender studies in the areas of politics, education, sociology, psychology, and philosophy. Most of the papers are in Russian, however some are in English.