PAR-L (Policy, Action, Research List) is a bilingual, electronic network of individuals and organizations interested in women-centred policy issues in Canada. It is a support for the community of feminist researchers and activists in Canada and Québec.

PAR-L was founded as an email list on March 8, 1995, by the former Canadian Advisory Council on the Status of Women (CACSW); it now operates from the University of New Brunswick in Fredericton. In 1996, it expanded to include a Web site. Since 1997, it has received funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, Strategic Research Networks, Women and Change Program; these funds provide support for the PAR-L Strategic Research Network, which is a partnership of feminist research centres, professional associations, and grassroots women's organizations, and for two online publications, Niouzes and Feminist Stratégies féministes.

PAR-L's mission is to promote women's equality by using new electronic means for networking and for discussing and distributing feminist research and strategies for action in English and French.

PAR-L's specific objectives are to:

• foster a greater online presence for feminist groups by creating a network of Partners;


• provide a space for discussing policy and action issues of concern to women in Canada;


• provide a convenient electronic gateway to feminist online resources for policy, action, and research;


• circulate the results of our Partner's research and activities widely among academics, policy analysts, community groups, and interested individuals;


• enhance the visibility and accessibility of feminist action and research online.

PAR-L Team

PAR-L Activities