Helena participated a meeting with other Nordic parliamentarians in Stockholm in January to discuss joint strategies in the Nordic and global context on SRHR and gender equality, exchange updates on national developments, and explore opportunities for enhanced cross-country collaboration.
Over the past few years, I’ve found myself returning again and again to the same uneasy feeling: something fundamental is shifting in the global conversation about women’s rights and gender equality. What once felt like steady, decade‑by‑decade progress now often feels more fragile, more contested, and more exposed to political winds than I ever expected to see in my lifetime.
Although the Nordic region is often regarded as a stronghold of gender equality, none of us here are insulated from these trends. In discussions with colleagues across Nordic parliaments, I’ve heard the same observations repeated: concern about polarisation, rising hostility toward long-agreed human rights frameworks, and the increasing visibility of movements directly challenging concepts once considered settled.
These developments aren’t abstract. They appear in debates about education, bodily autonomy, and public health. They surface in local communities where individuals – especially women, girls, and LGBT+ people – are made to feel that their rights, identities, or safety are up for negotiation.
What has struck me most in recent years is how coordinated the global landscape has become. Challenges to gender equality or sexual and reproductive rights rarely happen in isolation. They tend to move across borders, through networks, social media, and narratives that are often strikingly similar from one country to the next. This interconnected backlash is precisely why Nordic cooperation has become so important. Working across borders is not only about political alignment; it’s about shared learning, shared resilience, and shared understanding.
This moment we are living through is not defined only by backlash. It is also defined by the strength and determination of those who refuse to let progress unravel. The Nordic parliamentary cooperation on SRHR and gender equality is, for me, a reminder that while global dynamics may be shifting, solidarity and shared purpose can still anchor us.
The work feels heavier sometimes. It also feels more essential.