Feminist Webs National Launch

Feminist Webs is an award winning national movement and network to promote working with girls and young women in youth work settings to break down sexism and and provide safe spaces for young women to learn to be assertive, to fulfil their potential, to break down the cycle of violence against women, and for women to be exposed to hundreds of experiences which will enhance their life and career opportunities.

Their national launch will be taking place Tuesday 2nd March 2010 at The Women's Library, London with the showcase of the body image animation 'More Than a Face' and North West regional body image banner, as well as 'What Young Women Want' book of postcards created by young woman across the country about their needs and wants today.

The official Launch will run 2-4pm with a show case and key note speaker in the first hour and a chance for the young women and professionals there to talk to each other about key issues in the second hour.

Contact them via their web-site if you wish to attend.

The Guardian: The Feminist Year Ahead

Brace yourself girls...

The feminist year ahead - The Guardian

A run-down of the books, films, events, exhbitions and what-not that we'll be feasting our feminist eyes on during 2010.

30 Ideas for a Better Life - Women Take Note

The Observer Magazine last Sunday (03/01/10) ran a piece entitled '30 Ideas for a Better Life', a resolution inspired list of things to do this year. The suggestions ranged from 'Get Philosophical' to 'Take Control of Your Spending Habits' but what caught my eye was the stark juxtaposition of two aimed at women. Firstly is a entry from Sarah Pennells on 'Sound Financial Advice for Women' - Sarah runs Savvywoman, a web-site aimed at giving comprehensive and relevant financial advice to women. As Sarah notes in The Observer article:

I concentrate on the financial concerns and priorities of females in a way that resonates with them. I report and advise on issues such as how state pension changes affect women, how they have lower debts than men but become more anxious over them, and how to make immediate and long-term financial plans when child-rearing. I ask, are you and your partner even financially compatible?

A worthwhile cause and perhaps a justified resolution for this year perhaps then? But what is this then juxtaposed with? Read a little further on in the piece and you will find the idea from clinical psychologist and sex therapist Bettina Arndt of 'revitalising your sex life'. And though it is not suggested in the title itself, this again focuses on women. Because Bettina is suggesting that a focal problem in long-term relationships is 'mismatched desire', that this desire is usually lacked by the female and that these females need to basically get over it (my words not hers):

Arndt advocates a "just do it" approach for couples in a rut. Women should ignore their lack of desire and just get on it with.

So women of Britain, take note. Two ideas for a better life:

1. Get some sound financial advice
2. Lie back and think of England.

Happy New Year!

Call for Papers: Presenting Research on Women Differently

On behalf of Julia Carter and Rosemary Hill - Centre for Women’s Studies, University of York.

Call for Papers: Not PowerPoint Again! Presenting research on women in popular culture differently.

University of York, 23rd April 2010

Are you bored of the traditional conference paper? Tired of watching a presenter stand and read off a script while pointing to an ill thought-out PowerPoint display? Nervous of presenting in a way that feels alien or doesn’t support your research?

Then come along to our Day School where we are experimenting with different and alternative ways of presenting research.

Our aim for the day is to encourage participants from all disciplines to deliver research in inspiring ways. By thinking of different ways to present our research we can spark new perspectives, imagining different angles and approaches that we may never have considered before. We hope to attract presenters from a range of disciplines and thus intend to question the rigid lines of disciplinary thought that we so often become constrained by. The day school will facilitate this interdisciplinary integration by providing an atmosphere of experimentation and questioning.

We want to encompass presentations from as many disciplines as possible; the topics may include, but are not limited to:

* Music
* Sporting women
* Representations of weddings, marriage and divorce
* Women on film and TV
* Magazine culture
* Books
* Gardening
* Representations of religion
* The Internet

We hope to encourage discussions around how presenting differently may lead to thinking differently about research in academia; how presenting differently helps the researcher and the audience to engage with ‘papers’; and whether experimental presentations really can have a place in traditional academic circles.

As the day is geared to presenting in innovative and engaging ways you may wish to present your paper using, for example: performance art, workshops, short films, live experiments, music, dance or other interactive methods. The design is entirely up to you.

To take part in this Day School please submit a summary of your presentation or a Storyboard (both of which must outline your proposed topic, the mode of your presentation, how long it will take, and what equipment you will need) to: notpowerpointagain@yahoo.co.uk by 14th February 2010.

For more information see http://notpowerpointagain.blogspot.com/