The living conditions of LGBTI people are influenced by where in the Nordic region they live. In the Faroe Islands, Greenland and Åland, there are particular challenges regarding access to support, targeted initiatives and networks. At the same time, knowledge about the conditions for LGBTI people in the Faroe Islands, Greenland and Åland is limited, which affects the ability to design targeted initiatives and action plans.

Deepati Forsberg is a project coordinator at NIKK and responsible for the Nordic LGBTI Fund. She hopes that this year’s call for proposals will be at step towards a Nordic region where everyone has equal rights and opportunities , regardless of where they live:

We hope that this year’s call for proposals will enable us to fund projects that can help to increase knowledge and understanding of the problems that limit the rights and opportunities of LGBTI people. At the same time, we aim to provide organisations in the Faroe Islands, Greenland and Åland with better opportunities for cooperation and exchange of knowledge.

Apply for funding – and make a difference!

The criteria for applying for funding from this year’s call for proposals are the same as in previous years. Among other things, the project must involve at least three different organisations from at least three different Nordic countries (or at least two from the Nordic region and one from Estonia, Latvia or Lithuania). The difference for this year’s call for proposals is that the lead organisation must be from the Faroe Islands, Greenland or Åland.

Read more about this year’s call for proposals and please let any organisations that might be interested in applying know. Information about the call is available in English, Faroese, Greenlandic and Swedish.   

Overall, the publication shows that the work against honour-related violence and oppression in the Nordic region is extensive and continues to develop, but that it is characterised by differences in the use of concepts, strategic framing and legal regulation. These differences affect how the problem is understood, which groups are made visible and which measures are prioritised in both policy and practice.

The first two parts of the publication, which highlight how the concept is defined, the problems and challenges that have been identified, and an analysis showing the vulnerability of LGBTI people, are written by Alexandra Lebedeva, PhD in ethics and researcher at the National Centre for Knowledge on men’s violence against women at Uppsala University. The third part focuses on national legislation concerning honour-related violence and oppression in the Nordic region and is written by Johan Rosquist, PhD in sociology and senior lecturer in criminology at Linnaeus University.

During the spring, there will be an opportunity to learn about the results of the publication through a webinar organised on 24 March in collaboration with the Nordic Welfare Centre.

The project was initiated by the Swedish Presidency of the Nordic Council of Ministers in 2024 and is part of the focus area ‘An Equal Nordic Region’ at the Swedish secretariat for gender research.

This webinar offers a unique opportunity to learn about and reflect on ways forward in work to guarantee fundamental rights and freedoms for the people living in the Nordics – a life free from negative social control, violence and oppression, and the right to decide over one’s body and sexuality.

At the webinar we will present key results from a new study that reviews the policies and legislations in the Nordic countries. We will explore the transition from policy to practice and highlight successful work across the Nordic countries. The webinar is organised by Nordic information on gender (NIKK) and the Nordic Welfare Centre (NWC).

The webinar welcomes experts working in ministries responsible for addressing honour-based violence and oppression, as well as other national actors engaged in this work.

To be eligible for funding from the Nordic Gender Equality Fund, the planned activity must begin in 2026 and be completed within two years. The funding may be used, for example, to develop joint methods, produce new knowledge, organise conferences, or build networks. 

The application form will be available on nikk.no during the application period. 

Dialogue and cooperation are key cornerstones of Nordic cooperation, and the Nordic Gender Equality Fund provides an opportunity to support this. The fund finances projects involving at least three different organisations from at least three Nordic countries. The Faroe Islands, Greenland, and Åland may constitute one country, and it is also possible to include a Baltic country in an application together with at least two Nordic countries. More than three countries may be included. 

A call for the Nordic LGBTI Fund will also be launched in autumn 2026. Further information will be published in spring. 

If you are looking for project inspiration, we encourage you to explore previously funded projects on our website, as well as our anniversary publication 10! – Results from 10 Years of Cooperation through the Nordic Gender Equality Fund. 

Sanni Grahn-Laasonen, Finnish Minister of Social Security, has led the Nordic ministers’ co-operation on gender equality and LGBTI issues during the Finnish and Ålandic presidency in 2025.

“Our commitment to the Pushing for Progress initiative remains strong even after our presidency year, and we wish Denmark and the Faroe Islands every success in taking the initiative forwards during their upcoming presidency. It’s important that we gain more support for our initiative and strengthen the coalition of countries committed to promoting gender equality, sexual and reproductive health and rights, and equal rights for LGBTI people,” she says.

During the annual meeting of the UN Commission on the Status of Women (CSW), the Nordic Council of Ministers, led by Finland and Åland, hosted several meetings and discussions focusing on issues related to the push-back of women’s rights as part of Pushing for Progress. Among other things, a meeting was held between the Nordic ministers for gender equality and UN Women’s Executive Director Sima Bahous.

“Together, we can more effectively support the UN and influence international policy in this work, but also support each other through the exchange of knowledge, joint statements, and a joint gender equality programme,” says Åland’s Minister for Gender Equality Arsim Zekaj, who shared this year’s presidency with Sanni Grahn-Laasonen.

This was the first time the presidency was shared, which Åland and Finland saw as positive and as something that has strengthened and deepened co-operation at both the Nordic and international levels.

Men and masculinity on the agenda

During the autumn of 2025, a series of seminars was held to highlight how social norms affect men and boys, the role of men in crises, and how men and boys can promote ‘positive masculinity’ in order to improve knowledge and stimulate discussion about men and masculinity in the Nordic and Baltic countries. NIKK (Nordic Information on Gender) produced a publication reviewing how earlier initiatives and documentation from the Nordic Council of Ministers have addressed men and masculinity and shed light on the perspectives that were missing, with the aim of guiding Nordic gender equality policy going forwards.

During the year, the 30th anniversary of the UN Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action was also marked. The Nordic ministers discussed the action programme and the anniversary from a Nordic perspective during the Equality Days in Vantaa, an annual Finnish gender equality conference.

“We’re delighted that I was able to celebrate this milestone together with my Nordic ministerial colleagues in October in connection with the Equality Days event in Vantaa. We discussed the significance of the Beijing Declaration and Nordic success stories,” concludes minister Grahn-Laasonen.

Deepati Forsberg is responsible for fund administration at NIKK and is looking forward to following the projects that have been awarded funding.  

 We hope that the projects that have received funding can help to create better living conditions for LGBTI people in the Nordics. This year, organisations from all five Nordic countries and Lithuania are involved in one of the projects that have been awarded funding, which in itself is proof that Nordic cooperation really does make a difference.   

The projects will focus on gender-based killings outside heteronormative relationships, where LGBTIQ+ women and other marginalised groups are particularly vulnerable, developing organisational and individual crisis preparedness strategies for HIV and LGBTIQ+ groups, and ensuring and strengthening the long-term impact of the Nordic digital curriculum to meet the needs of LGBTQIA+ people.  

Read more about the projects approved this year below and on the LGBTI fund page, where you can find out about previously funded projects and how to apply for funding in next year’s call for proposals.  

Projects granted funding

Femicides Beyond Hetero Relations: Nordic and Baltic Mapping

The project highlights a common blind spot in Nordic-Baltic research on femicide – cases that occur outside heteronormative relationships. LGBTI women and other marginalised groups are at greatest risk, but their experiences are rarely reflected in the statistics. Differences in definitions and methods make it difficult to compare results between the Nordic countries. The lack of common standards and intersectional perspectives means that patterns of exclusion, hate crimes and gaps in protection often remain invisible. Drawing on the experience of the Centre for Violence Prevention, the project examines how sexual orientation, gender identity and social position affect vulnerability, access to justice and protection. 

To Femicides Beyond Hetero Relations: Nordic and Baltic Mapping

The Nordic HIV Preparedness Project

 The Nordic countries share similarities in their healthcare systems and political structures, and face common geopolitical threats. HIV and LGBTI groups in the region experience similar challenges, particularly in terms of stigma, exclusion and lack of targeted preparedness. This project leverages these commonalities to develop joint organisational and individual strategies for crisis preparedness.  

To The Nordic HIV Preparedness Project

Nordic Digital Curriculum for LGBTI Competencies in Higher Education Programs for Human Service Professions

The project aims to strengthen and embed the impact of the Nordic digital curriculum on LGBTI inclusion in social work in the long term. The curriculum consists of four freely available modules in Finnish, Norwegian, Swedish and English and strengthens the competence of social service professionals. The follow-up project will disseminate the curriculum to Nordic universities, integrate it into social work and healthcare education programmes, and ensure continuous updates based on new research and policy. To increase accessibility, the material will be expanded with Danish and Icelandic translations and perspectives.   

To Nordic Digital Curriculum for LGBTI Competencies in Higher Education Programs for Human Service Professions

Resilience can be described as a system’s ability to cope with pressure and change while continuing to develop. Pandemics, wars, climate change and geopolitical threats highlight how the crises of our time are becoming increasingly complex and intertwined. In the Nordic region, the resilience of welfare is crucial – as experience from the Covid-19 pandemic shows. Welfare is important both for good and equal health and for functioning societies in general. At the same time, today’s challenges in healthcare are considerable. 

The healthcare systems in the Nordic countries are based on similar principles of universal welfare, but differ in their organisation and governance. These differences affect how countries respond to crises. At the same time, they all face the same fundamental challenges – not least an ageing population, skills shortages and difficulties in coordinating care between different levels and actors.

Four essays written by researchers

How can we strengthen our crisis preparedness and increase Nordic welfare resilience? When does a crisis begin and who decides that? In the publication Welfare resilience during crises in the Nordic region, gender perspectives on challenges and ways forward in healthcare, researchers in global public health, economic history, demography, sociology and social work contribute reflections and problematisations in four essays. Based on their research findings, they open up new perspectives, questions and possible solutions for future crises.

• A two-tier healthcare system reduces resilience.
  John Lapidus, a researcher in economic history at the University of Gothenburg, analyses the emergence of private health insurance, which creates a parallel system alongside public healthcare.
• Strengthened resources and more collaboration needed in care systems for older adults.
  Ann Liljas and Bo Burström, researchers in global public health at the Karolinska Institute, point to the shortcomings that the pandemic exposed in the healthcare and care systems for older adults. 
• Time and relationships are crucial resources.
  Paula Mulinari, a researcher in social work at Malmö University, highlights the stories of healthcare workers and describes how women’s time and labour today form the basis of a permanent care crisis.
• Outdated assumptions underpinning total defence human resource planning

Ann-Zofie Duvander and Minna Lundgren are both researchers in Sociology at Mid Sweden University. They highlight that planning for increased preparedness and war does not take sufficient account of today’s labour market and family structures.

Bringing together the researchers’ texts is an attempt to frame the issue of resilience in welfare in a new way, to stimulate discussion between fields and perspectives that rarely meet.

A sector under pressure

Several of the essays emphasise that healthcare is already under severe pressure today. A fragmented and partially privatised sector faces significant challenges even in everyday life, which are exacerbated in a crisis and raise the question of when a crisis begins. When resources are insufficient and conditions are unequal, the resilience of the system becomes fragile.

Overall, the publication shows that the resilience of welfare is not just a matter of resources and organisation. It is also based on social justice, equality and sustainable conditions for both care recipients and care providers. In order to cope with future crises, the Nordic countries therefore need not only to strengthen the capacity of their systems, but also to address the structural inequalities that make healthcare vulnerable. 

Support for decision-makers

The publication highlights different levels, areas and perspectives that may be needed in analyses, and concludes with a number of key messages from participating researchers. In this way, it can serve as a support for decision-makers responsible for developing welfare policy in the Nordic region. 

Welfare resilience during crises in the Nordic region, gender perspectives on challenges and ways forward in healthcare has been produced by NIKK on behalf of the Nordic Council of Ministers.

The projects will focus, for example, on combating technology-facilitated gender-based violence through concrete tools, strengthening gender aspects in Nordic emergency preparedness work, changing the gender narrative in Sápmi through gulahallat  and examining anti-LGBTI indoctrination on online platforms. Read more about these projects below and on our project page. There you can also find out about previously funded projects and how to apply for funding in next year’s call for proposals.

Read more about the projects here:

Turning EU Laws Into Action
This project aims to strengthen civil society’s ability to combat technology-facilitated gender-based violence (TFGBV) by turning EU legislation—such as the Digital Services Act, the AI Act, and the Violence Against Women Directive—into concrete advocacy and support tools.

Between Equality and Emergency: Gendered Dimensions of Nordic Resilience
The project centres on (gender) equality in times of crisis and explores how future Nordic resilience strategies can better support equality goals.

Promoting Gender Equality in the Nuad Thai Sector Across the Nordics
This project is a Nordic initiative led by ThaiWISE–Hela Människan i Malmö to promote gender equality, fair working conditions, and the integration of Thai women in the massage industry. 

Changing the Gender Narrative in Sápmi
The project challenges dominant gender narratives in Sámi society by highlighting diverse voices, perspectives and experiences. Using gulahallat—a Sámi tradition of dialogue—it creates arenas where men, women and LGBTQIA+ persons can reflect on gender roles, ideals and diversity on Sámi terms.

HateFYP
The project intends to track whether online platforms are pushing hate-driven indoctrination to users, focusing on anti-LGBTI content.

Women Investing in the Nordics: Overcoming Structural Barriers to Economic Participation & Decision making
The project is a Nordic research and policy initiative examining the social, psychological, structural, and institutional barriers that limit women’s participation as investors, with a focus on professional women in leadership and business roles.

Who makes the news? Nordic summit for gender equality in the news
The Nordic summit *Who Makes the News?* highlights gender equality in news media, building on results from the Global Media Monitoring Project (GMMP) 2025.

The work to improve the living conditions of LGBTI people is an important part of Nordic co-operation and of the Nordic Council of Ministers’ vision of becoming the world’s most sustainable and integrated region.  

Since 2020, the Nordic Council of Ministers has been co-operating to promote equal rights and opportunities for LGBTI people in the Nordic region. One part of this work is the Nordic LGBTI Fund, which is administrated by NIKK on behalf of the Nordic Council of Ministers. This autumn, the Fund opens up for applications for the fifth year in a row.  

Who can apply for funding?  

Dialogue and co-operation is one of the cornerstones of Nordic co-operation. The Nordic LGBTI Fund encourages this by funding projects in which at least three different organisations, from at least three different Nordic countries, work together. The call is open to different businesses and organisations that want to fund a project focusing on equal rights and opportunities for lgbti people in the Nordic region. 

Projects that contribute to Nordic interests and work for equal rights and opportunities for LGBTI people in the Nordic countries can apply for financing from the Fund. A total of approx. 1,2 million DKK will be distributed.  

The activities should start in the beginning of 2026 and are to be carried out within two years. The funding can be used to develop common methods and new knowledge, and to hold conferences and build networks, etc.  

LGBTI people in the Nordic countries who belong to multiple minorities are in a particularly vulnerable position. These groups are subject to multiple forms of discrimination and marginalisation based on, for example, racism, homophobia and ableism. Sometimes the term intersectional discrimination is used to capture how different types of oppression interact and affect the conditions for a particular group or individual.

Studies show that LGBTI people with non-normative abilities or a foreign background are more likely than other LGBTI people to report exposure to bullying, violence, threats and hate crimes. The publication Standing out even in groups to which you belong aims to shed light on the living conditions of LGBTI people belonging to several minorities and to disseminate knowledge and experiences from the projects in order to increase their sustainability, benefit more people and inspire others to Nordic co-operation.