How can we scale empowerment?

Empowerment Self-Defense is not just a methodology. It is a movement.

Empowerment Self-Defense is a methodology that gives participants a framework for choosing the best action/reaction for them in any given context or situation of risk. 

There is no formula or one-size-fits-all solution for self-defense; our method is rooted in deep respect for the autonomy and unique needs of every individual. Unlike martial arts-based defense systems, which focus entirely on the physical body, this method takes a holistic approach, working with physical, verbal, psychological and energetic skills for self-defense in a wide range of situations–from encounters with strangers to intimate partnership, workplace dynamics, families, and social scenarios. Unlike shallow and disempowering “tips” for women’s safety, which often insist that women must restrict their lives in order to avoid violence, this method never tells participants what they ‘should’ or ‘must’ do. Rather, it offers options and tools to add to participants’ existing toolboxes, ultimately reminding them of their own right to CHOOSE. It has the necessary nuance and depth to be relevant and applicable to the complex, intersectional experiences of real people.

At the highest level, we are cultivating communities where people are accountable to themselves and others. Where mutual respect and consent guide social, professional and romantic relationships. Where women feel confident to move freely in public and private spaces, raise their voices boldly, say no without apology, trust their intuition, and express their ferocity and power with pride. 

The reality is, many women, today in 2024, do not feel safe. They have suffered trauma in abusive relationships, have survived sexual violence, have not been invited to express their natural ability and right to self-protection, advocacy and empowerment.

Choose Empowerment is a movement of women claiming their power, embracing their voices, and fighting back against any and all attempts of violence toward their personal integrity. 

Women who boldly say “No” to the misogyny, machismo and patriarchal violence which has no place in today’s world… and who enthusiastically embrace their intrinsic freedom, pleasure and connection, which is their birthright. 

I came to this movement because I was invited to train as an Empowerment Self-Defense instructor in 2018. I answered the call, and discovered the missing link so many women have been waiting for (whether they know it or not) to step into their personal power. Since then, I have seen it as both a privilege and a responsibility--dharma, if you will–to spread this system as far and wide as possible.

Since 2022, I have been training trainers to implement this methodology in their own communities, beginning in Costa Rica, but with an eye to expanding to other regions as we are invited. Those who choose to train as instructors are self-selecting: these women are leaders, passionate about creating social change and fostering empowerment from the grassroots all the way up to large institutions. They, too, are answering the call.

This is my theory of change: if we train an empowerment self-defense instructor in every community–someone who is deeply committed to sharing this method for empowerment with everyone around her–and provide ongoing mentorship and support on their journey to expertise in the field, she will train thousands of people (or possibly many times that) in self-defense foundations over many, many years. If thousands of people in a community receive this training, they will seed cultural transformation in their workplaces, families, and other relationships. These seeds will eventually create a society ruled by respect and consent, where no one feels afraid to move through the world as they choose, where everyone is free from the threat of violence. 

This is how we scale a movement. Teaching a method is not enough. We must train trainers, in order to amplify the ripple effect several degrees wider.

The ultimate vision for this movement is to become obsolete. In the world of fully actualized individual and collective empowerment our instructors are building, there will be no need for specific empowerment training. It will be a pillar of our cultures, education, and relationships. There is nothing to remember, because we have not have forgotten.

—Toby Israel, Choose Empowerment Founder