The Caribbean Male Action Network (CariMAN) is the regional MenEngage Alliance network in the Caribbean. With presence across eight Caribbean countries, the network brings together individuals and organisations working on transforming masculinities and engaging men and boys to promote gender equality. Find out more at cariman.org – or by exploring the tabs on this page.
As the regional network of MenEngage Alliance, CariMAN partners with other regional networks, non-governmental organisations, and UN agencies while also taking independent action to promote gender justice, climate justice, human rights, and social justice for all. We envision a Caribbean—and beyond—where everyone can build healthy, fulfilling, and equitable relationships and realise their full potential.
We are a diverse group of persons and organizations who mobilise to strengthen our network, share knowledge, and build partnerships. Through joint advocacy and collaborative initiatives, we work to challenge harmful gender norms related to men and masculinities, bringing our expertise in the culture, trends, and social dynamics of the Caribbean.
We have presence in many countries including: Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, St Vincent and the Grenadines, and Trinidad and Tobago
We represent the Caribbean in several global MenEngage Alliance groups, including the Advocacy Working Group, Accountability Working Group, GBV Working Group, Youth Reference Group, Communications Working Group, and Climate Justice Working Group.
CariMAN also sits on the Regional Steering Committee for the Caribbean Observatory on SRHR which is an initiative spearheaded by IPPF Americas and the Caribbean Regional Office.
CariMAN is a network of activists, academics, and non-governmental organisations who believe that gender equality efforts across the region and the world can be strengthened when careful and considered steps are taken to involve men and boys. CariMAN works to encourage men and boys to work in solidarity with women, girls and people of all gender identities to achieve the common vision of gender and social justice, and freedom from all forms of discrimination and violence.
We acknowledge and respect the diversity among men and boys in the Caribbean region. This includes diversity in age, religion/spiritual beliefs, ethnicity, class, disability, educational background, sexual orientation and identities, geography, to name a few.
Our principles
CariMAN promotes a bottom-up and decentralised model of organising, reflecting interconnections between national-to-regional levels. We strive to ‘walk-the-talk‘, meaning putting into practice our vision, mission and principles. We must not reinforce the same patriarchal structure that we envision to dismantle.
Members of the CariMAN Network affirm their commitment to the Accountability Framework of MenEngage Alliance, and take opportunities to discuss, share, contextualise, and understand the principles, values, and practices within it.
2006
The Man Talk conference – which was the first of its kind in the region dedicated to men and masculinities, served as the platform for the founder and first Chairman, Dr. Peter Weller to launch CariMAN. He envisioned that CariMAN would unite men and organisations engaged in initiatives with men.
2010
Legal incorporation gave the network formal recognition in Trinidad and Tobago, allowing the network to operate more effectively and ensuring accountability under the law. It strengthened CariMAN’s credibility with donors, partners, and government agencies, which was essential for accessing funding and building trust. Additionally, incorporation helped CariMAN to establish a clear governance structure, enhanced transparency, and laid the foundation for long-term sustainability beyond our founding members. CariMAN was then legally incorporated in Dominica in 2012.
2011
Early partners during this expansion included UN Women, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), the Pan American Health Organisation (PAHO), and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
2015
Tyrone Buckmire from Grenada was appointed the Chairperson for CariMAN.
2016
The Network began its strategic push to support young leaders and advocates across the network, providing more opportunities for youth in country level discussions and regional level structures.
2019
2019 was a pivotal year for CariMAN as it formalised its structures, clarified its political values, and expanded its membership. In November, the network hosted its 5th regional forum in Grenada, bringing together members from seven island nations, including many new participants. The forum provided a platform to share updates, progress, and best practices. Additionally, following a “State of the Field” consultation with leading feminist women’s rights advocates, members engaged in an in-depth discussion on feminism and feminist activism, facilitated by Alliance Global Network Manager and other members of the Global Secretariat team and Dr. Peter Weller
2019
Launched in 2019 by the MenEngage Global Alliance Network and funded
by Amplify Change via Rutgers, the SRHR for ALL project was developed as part of the Alliance’s work to broaden the understanding of SRHR as an issue that affects all people,women and girls, LGBTQI people, and cisgender men and boys. Key outputs of the project included:
2020
In 2020, Phillip Carlisle from Dominica was elected as the new Chairperson.
2021
CariMAN established a ‘Youth Delegate’ group consisting of 25 young people from 10 countries in the region, who then participated in various capacity-strengthening workshops and conferences. These included UNFPA consultations on the development of a regional curriculum for Comprehensive Sexuality Education, the YOUNGA2021 conference and GBV training delivered by COIN.
CariMAN youth representatives, Tivia Collins, Marcus Kissoon and Delroy Louison were elected to represent the Caribbean region in the MenEngage Youth Reference Group (YRG).
2021
The Regional Advocacy Working Group was officially established in February 2021 to lead and represent the Regional Board of Directors and Country Chapter Coordinators in CariMAN’s advocacy efforts. Its primary focus is to guide the development of comprehensive political frameworks and policy agendas aimed at transforming patriarchal masculinities and meaningfully engaging men and boys in advancing gender and social justice. As a mobilizing platform, the Working Group shares insights from global and regional forums, identifies key advocacy opportunities, coordinates joint actions, and supports campaigns at both national and regional levels. It also promotes capacity building, strengthens solidarity with networks—including the women’s movement—and helps shape unified messaging grounded in the political agendas of CariMAN and the MenEngage Alliance, through an intersectional lens.
2023
CariMAN actively participated in the Transforming Masculinities: International Symposium for Well-Being and Violence Prevention, hosted by the University of Calgary. This event marked the culmination of the Stories of Personal Transformation Project, an international community-based research initiative aimed at understanding the factors that influence men’s decisions to engage in intimate partner violence (IPV) prevention and gender equity efforts, as well as the transformative impacts of their involvement.
2023
CariMAN conducted the first IMAGES survey in the Caribbean region using an adapted version of the IMAGES survey by Equimundo and the International Center for Research on Women (ICRW). A Caribbean Model for Masculinities and Criminal
Violence was developed from this research as an approach to eliminating violence against women and girls.
2023
CariMAN developed a comprehensive Policy Manual, compiling all the policies and protocols that guide its operations.
2024
Reaffirming our commitment to the core principles and values of CariMAN marks a significant milestone in our journey. This step strengthens our foundation, deepens our impact, and enhances our ability to fulfill our mission and vision with excellence. Our goal for this process is building a stronger, more unified network—better equipped to advocate for gender equality and social justice across the Caribbean.
2024
Shalinee Bahadur represents the region in the MenEngage Alliance Youth Reference Group for the period 2024-2026.