This version of the register: 23 September 2026

Public register of results

Here you can check how the development of the Women's Life-Cycle Economy Index is progressing: which materials have been prepared, what the team is working on, which tasks are waiting to start and what stands in their way. Every entry has a date, a status and a next step; completed work says where the result can be seen. The decision history shows what changed in the program and why.

What stands today

A short summary of the current model. The detailed record and the decision history follow below.

Stage

2026 is the architecture year: the methodology is being developed and the pilot prepared. Data collection has not started.

The Index and the Audit 45-64

The WLCE Index is a separate index product. The study "Age-Gender Misclassification of Women Aged 45-64 in AI, Marketing and Hiring: An International Comparative Audit" (the Audit 45-64) is the first module of the Womafreesm Evidence Data program: it builds the first evidence base for the Index and stands outside its architecture. The Audit is due in December 2026.

The pilot

The pilot tests the instrument: the questionnaire, the collection procedures and the calculation of measures, against eight criteria published in advance. The pilot countries will be determined. The first edition of the Index comes after the pilot results have been assessed and the methodology is ready.

The formula

A preliminary formula and a verification plan are published before the pilot; version 1, prepared after the pilot, is fixed before the first global wave.

Independence

Decision taken to set three powers in written documents: stopping fieldwork, access to data, external statistical audit. The governing documents are prepared in 2026; the external ethics committee and the auditor will be chosen in 2027. The Index will be published together with the auditor's report.

Scale and data

The scale of the program is a design target for full rollout, not a current figure (entry of 21 June and refinements of 23 September): 2,000,000 questionnaires from all collection paths, with the number of women who answered published separately. The methodology and the code will be open; individual participants' answers stay in a secure research environment under a data access agreement.

Next update: no later than 31 December 2026, or within seven days of any change of status.

How to read the register

Seven statuses. Entries are not deleted: a change of status is added as a new line, and the earlier line stays.

  • Done Completed, with the date and where the result can be seen
  • In progress Started, with what is being done and what comes next
  • Not started Planned, with what it depends on
  • Blocked Cannot proceed, with the reason named and who or what unblocks it
  • Decided A design decision taken and recorded, with the date
  • Refined An earlier decision made more precise or changed, with a reference to the first entry
  • Withdrawn A promise or plan that was dropped, with the reason

The date of an entry is the date of the event or decision as recorded in the document that fixes it. Where only the date of the document's last edit is known, the entry says "by" and gives that date. The date of the register update is shown at the top of the page.

Done

What exists, at what stage, and where it can be seen. Entries later refined by a decision carry a mark.

  1. 3 to 5 Apr2026

    First public descriptions of the Index and of the Equal Consideration principle, in an encyclopedia page and two articles.

    cyclowiki.org, vc.ru
  2. 24 Apr2026

    Grant presentation "WLCE Index. First Operational Layer: Building the Data Foundation": the Audit 45-64 defined as the first evidence layer of the Index, with a 12-month plan.

    Internal document
    Refined by the decision of 24 Jul 2026
  3. 1 May2026

    Pilot package of the Audit 45-64 assembled: concept note v4 (RU and UA), one-pager, questionnaire, partner brief. The series is signed "Womafreesm Evidence Data, WLCE Index Research Series".

    Internal documents
  4. 13 May2026

    Strategic Plan of Womafreesm (RU 5 May, EN 13 May): the Index named the flagship research infrastructure; year-one pilot is the Audit 45-64; monthly reporting of what is done, in progress, blocked and why.

    Internal document
    Refined by the decision of 24 Jul 2026
  5. 15 May2026

    AI audit module of the pilot 45-64 launched: collection instruction for AI-system responses, five countries, three domains (marketing, hiring, expertise). Donor presentation of the Audit issued the same day.

    Internal documents; audit page
  6. 28 May2026

    Public page text of the Audit 45-64 prepared (RU and EN), with the Index as the flagship product for which the Audit builds the first evidence layer.

    /women-45-64-marketing-recruitment-ai
  7. 21 Jun2026

    Architecture of the WLCE Index, version 1: scale, nine modules, fifteen indicator groups, nine subindices, a separate random sample for country estimates, four data-access levels, independence from donors, public register of results, five-year calendar with a ten-country, fifteen-language pilot.

    Internal document; exported to the working folder on 21 Aug 2026
  8. 21 Jun2026

    Equal Consideration Standard, framework draft: seven instruments, five levels of adoption, a recognition pathway and rules for a future ECS mark.

    Internal document
  9. 22 Jun2026

    Master Questionnaire v1: core survey of 20 to 30 minutes, sensitive module by separate consent, optional follow-up, contact data stored separately from answers. Donor Brief with an impact registry and a donor independence rule.

    Internal documents
  10. 7 Jul2026

    Evidence and Data Protocol of the Assembly (in force from July 2026): the WLCE Index fixed as the organization's main research instrument, the Equal Consideration Standard as Article VIII.

    Internal document
  11. By 24 Jul2026

    Strategic Plan, July edition: the scale of the architecture carried into the plan; the Audit 45-64 stated to be outside the architecture of the Index.

    Internal document
  12. 26 Aug2026

    Strategic Plan 2026-2031 (EN): the scale presented as a design target for full rollout in 2027-2031, not a current figure; a ten-country pilot placed in 2027.

    Document for partners and donors
  13. 4 Sep2026

    Research knowledge base of the Index set up; decisions before the methodology research recorded: index mathematics by the OECD/JRC handbook, uniqueness in the construct, standard methods in the calculation.

    Internal
  14. 5 to 11 Sep2026

    Methodology research across thirteen topics, from index mathematics and existing indices to sampling, ethics, data protection, translation and credibility risks, run in four AI research systems and then checked claim by claim against the primary sources. Its findings underlie the decisions of 6 and 9 September (below) and the methodology note in preparation. Claims not yet checked, mainly national ethics-review rules in individual countries and regional estimates, are marked as unverified in the knowledge base.

    Internal knowledge base; methodology note in preparation
  15. 12 to 14 Sep2026

    Texts of thirteen public pages of this section prepared (RU and EN), including this register: working versions.

    Review and publication:
    see In progress
  16. 15 to 23 Sep2026

    Page texts reviewed and reworked on comments: fifteen pages of this section and two Assembly pages, RU and EN, as layouts; a vocabulary of canonical wording and an automatic check of every page against it.

    Layouts; publication on the site:
    see In progress

In progress

Started, with the next step named. Entries checked on 23 September 2026.

Research protocol

Drafting the protocol: how the content of rules is compared with women's experience when the rules are applied.

Next:
submission for external ethics review

List of measures and their calculation rules

A paired card for every measure: the rule on paper, the question women answer, what the rule decides, which women it applies to, the benchmark.

Next:
checking which of the needed information is already available in external sources

Ethics and safeguarding protocols

Separate consent for different kinds of participation and data use, rules of the sensitive module, what to do if questions cause strong emotional strain, safety rules for interviewers and other members of the team.

Next:
submission to external review

Data protection impact assessment

Preparation: the risks to participants in collecting and using the data, and the measures that protect them.

Next:
completed after the legal entity responsible for the data is decided (see Blocked)

Translation

Rules for translation and for checking how women understand the questions of the questionnaire.

Next:
first language versions for the pilot

Offline collection protocol

Eight sections defined.

Next:
drafting

Platform

Own control plane: a separate protected store for identifying and contact data, a consent registry, linkage keys, a store for the sensitive module, a disclosure-risk check, a secure research environment.

Next:
practical test of two candidate tools for collecting answers, in fifteen languages

Public pages of this section

Layouts of fifteen pages of this section and two Assembly pages are ready (RU and EN) and reworked on comments; the texts are checked against the vocabulary of canonical wording.

Next:
publication on the site

Methodology note

Assembled from the verified research knowledge base.

Next:
publication with a permanent identifier

Blocked

A task that has stopped: what it is, what stands in the way, what depends on it and what unblocks it. Entries checked on 23 September 2026.

Legal entity responsible for the data

Task:
decide which legal entity is responsible for the data.
What stands in the way:
a specialist legal opinion is needed; the program does not take this decision alone.
Depends on it:
the impact assessment, the consent architecture, data transfer routes, country data annexes with partners.
Unblocks:
counsel's opinion

List of pilot countries

Task:
determine the pilot countries.
What stands in the way:
the decision has not been taken yet.
Depends on it:
national ethics reviews, permits, maps of help services, the list of ethical and legal requirements for each pilot country.
Unblocks:
the decision on the countries

Spanish term for Silent Denial

Task:
a Spanish name for the term.
What stands in the way:
the direct translation overlaps with an administrative-law procedure in Spanish.
Depends on it:
the Spanish versions of the glossary and the questionnaire.
Unblocks:
a terminology decision

Not started

Planned, with what it depends on.

Pilot fieldwork

Depends on:
protocol, ethics review, impact assessment, platform, the list of pilot countries

Registration of participants

Depends on:
pilot launch, published consent texts

Country data annexes with partners

Depends on:
the decision on the legal entity responsible for the data

Public dashboard

Depends on:
the first summary results after a disclosure-risk check

External independent ethics committee

Depends on:
the governing documents prepared in 2026; the committee will be chosen in 2027, before data collection begins

External statistical auditor

Depends on:
a cost benchmark has been requested; the auditor will be chosen in 2027, before data collection begins

Terms of attestation under the Standard

Depends on:
version 1 of the Standard after the pilot; the terms are published together with the attestation rules

Decision history

Design decisions in the order they were taken. A hollow dot marks a refinement of an earlier decision; the current model is summarized at the top of the page.

  1. By 7 Mar2026

    The Index included in the organization's DNA as the flagship of Evidence Data. Principles: methodology independent of donors and partners; a public register of results and a public log of corrections.

    Decided
  2. 13 Mar2026

    First scale: about 1,000,000 women in more than fifty countries; a five-stage pipeline: evidence, verification, legal pathways, standards, adoption.

    Decided
  3. By 3 Apr2026

    Equal Consideration adopted as the principle, with its English name; support and governance separated by design; the organization states what is live, what is in development and what is published next.

    Decided
  4. 24 Apr2026

    The Audit 45-64 defined as the first operational layer of the Index; the task of the pilot is to test the measurement method.

    DecidedRefined by the decision of 24 Jul 2026
  5. 25 Apr2026

    Glossary of terms: Equal Consideration with its Ukrainian and Spanish forms.

    Decided
  6. 13 May2026

    Year one: methodology framework, ethics framework, consent forms, data protection protocol, impact assessment; founding donors receive no governance rights, no methodological influence and no control over conclusions.

    Decided
  7. 21 Jun2026

    Scale of the programme: 2,000,000 verified participants, 120 countries and territories, 60 languages, five years, age 18 and over.

    Decided
  8. 21 Jun2026

    Model of the index: a headline index and nine subindices built from nine modules; an open survey is not a representative study by itself, a separate random sample for country estimates is required.

    Decided
  9. 21 Jun2026

    Ethics and data: privacy by design, sensitive module by separate consent, data protection impact assessment, four levels of data access.

    Decided
  10. 21 Jun2026

    Limits of promises: donors and partners do not influence methodology, analysis or conclusions; data does not change laws by itself.

    Decided
  11. 21 Jun2026

    Equal Consideration Standard: seven instruments, five levels of adoption, recognition linked to a completed stage of work, the future mark is not decorative.

    Decided
  12. By 24 Jul2026

    The Audit 45-64 separated from the Index: the Audit is not a pilot of the Index architecture.

    Decided
  13. 26 Aug2026

    The scale is presented as a design target for full rollout, not as a current figure.

    Decided
  14. 4 Sep2026

    Index mathematics by the OECD/JRC handbook: uniqueness in the construct, standard methods in the calculation; the architecture of 21 June confirmed as the canon of scale.

    Decided
  15. 6 Sep2026

    Formula baseline: fixed goalposts, equal weights between subindices, linear inside and geometric between, non-compensatory floors.

    Decided
  16. 6 Sep2026

    Formula registered and published before global wave one. Refines the calendar of 21 Jun.

    Refined
  17. 6 Sep2026

    Matrix of life-cycle stage by decision system as the base measurement layer; nine subindices as its public projections. Refines the model of 21 Jun.

    Refined
  18. 6 Sep2026

    Scores published with intervals and rank bands; exact positions not promised. Changes the ranking promise of 21 Jun.

    Refined
  19. 9 Sep2026

    Country estimates rest only on a separate probability sample (the random-sample survey); the open survey gives reach. Refines the sample design of 21 Jun.

    Refined
  20. 9 Sep2026

    Decision to set the powers of independent review in written documents: those responsible for ethics may stop fieldwork, those responsible for data decide access for everyone, an external statistical auditor checks the results. The status of the documents and agreements is shown under Not started. Refines the principle of March and 21 Jun.

    Refined
  21. 9 Sep2026

    Open methodology and code; participant-level data only through a secure research environment. Changes "open data" of 21 Jun.

    Refined
  22. 9 Sep2026

    Attestation under the Equal Consideration Standard: fee for procedure, published tariff, no refund, whoever checks does not consult, index and attestation separate. Develops the recognition pathway of 21 Jun.

    Refined
  23. 9 Sep2026

    Paired measurement as the unit of the index; measurement specification before data, standard version 1 after the pilot.

    Decided
  24. 9 Sep2026

    Offline collection through partner organizations as the basis of country estimates where internet access is not universal.

    Decided
  25. 9 Sep2026

    The pilot validates the instrument and is not the first index; eight pass criteria published in advance. Refines the pilot plan of 24 Apr and 21 Jun.

    Refined
  26. 9 Sep2026

    Retrospective life-history module as the minimum for the longitudinal part. Refines the longitudinal cohort of 21 Jun.

    Refined
  27. 12 Sep2026

    Terms are created in English and translated: Equal Consideration, Unconsidered Point, Consideration Deficit, Silent Denial. Develops the glossary of 25 Apr.

    Refined
  28. 22 Sep2026

    The external statistical auditor's report is published together with the Index; the auditor gets no power to hold the release. Refines the powers of 9 Sep.

    Refined
  29. 22 Sep2026

    The pilot countries will be determined by a separate decision; no list is published before it.

    Decided
  30. 23 Sep2026

    The governing documents are prepared in 2026; the external ethics committee and the auditor will be chosen in 2027, before data collection begins. Refines the powers of 9 Sep.

    Refined
  31. 23 Sep2026

    Unit of the scale: questionnaires that have passed quality checks, instead of "verified participants". Refines the scale of 21 Jun.

    Refined
  32. 23 Sep2026

    The count of 2,000,000 questionnaires includes every questionnaire that passed quality checks, from all collection paths: the open survey, the random samples and the repeat waves. The number of women who answered is published separately, since one woman may answer in several waves. Refines the unit of the scale of 23 Sep.

    Refined
  33. 23 Sep2026

    The terms of attestation under the Equal Consideration Standard, including payment, will be published together with the attestation rules and are not described on the site before that. Refines the entry of 9 Sep.

    Refined
  34. 23 Sep2026

    The Audit 45-64 carries one name in every document and on the site: "Age-Gender Misclassification of Women Aged 45-64 in AI, Marketing and Hiring: An International Comparative Audit", the full name from its concept note, with the short form "the Audit 45-64". It replaces the earlier display and official names.

    Decided

Withdrawn

Promises and plans that were dropped, with the reason. They stay on the page.

  1. 6 Sep2026

    "Exact country ranking", promised in the architecture of 21 Jun 2026

    A country's position can change with the chosen weights and calculation methods; results will therefore come with a robustness analysis and ranges of positions under the tested calculation scenarios.

  2. 9 Sep2026

    "Open data" as a promise, architecture of 21 Jun 2026

    Pseudonymized data remains personal data; replaced by open methodology and code with controlled access to microdata.

  3. 9 Sep2026

    "First index from the pilot", calendar of 21 Jun 2026

    The pilot is designed to test the questionnaire, the collection procedures and the calculation of measures; the first edition of the Index is planned after the pilot results have been assessed and the methodology is ready.

  4. 12 Sep2026

    Working terms "design deficit" and "translation loss"

    Both occupied by other fields with different meanings; replaced by Consideration Deficit and Silent Denial.

Questions and answers

What is the public register of results?

A dated record of what the WLCE Index has done, what is in progress, what is blocked and why. Entries are never deleted; a change of status is added as a new line.

Which stages of development does the register cover?

The register starts in March 2026, when the Index was named in the organization's founding documents, and follows the path since: the first public descriptions in April, the architecture in June, the methodology research and the baseline formula in September, and the preparation of the public pages. Data collection has not started; entries about it will begin with the pilot.

Why publish what is blocked?

Because a funder, a partner or a participant needs to know what has not happened yet and what it depends on.

How often is it updated?

On every change of status, and no less than once a quarter. The dates of the last and the next update are shown at the top of the page.

Related pages

  1. 1. Propose a research partnership
  2. 2. Discuss funding the next stage
  3. 3. Status of the programme
  4. 4. Independence and governance
  5. 5. Women's Life-Cycle Economy Index