Women's/Gender Studies Network in Asia-Pacific
Welcome to the Women's/Gender Studies Network in Asia and the Pacific website.
The creation of a Women’s/Gender Studies Network in Asia Pacific emerged as an important recommendation from the Regional Consultation on Women’s/Gender Studies Programmes in the Asia-Pacific region held in Bangkok in December 2003. Organized by the Regional Unit for Social and Human Sciences in Asia and the Pacific (RUSHSAP), UNESCO Bangkok, the consultation brought together expert proponents and practitioners of Women/Gender Studies, some of whom have played pivotal and pioneering roles in the establishment of Women's/Gender Studies in their own countries and institutions.
A List of Women's Studies and Gender Research Centres in Asia and the Pacific is available here.
The Women's/Gender Studies Network in Asia Pacific, under the auspices of UNESCO Bangkok's Regional Unit for Social and Human Sciences in Asia and the Pacific (RUSHSAP), aims to advance the following objectives:
- Serve as a mutually-reinforcing support network and forum for the discussion of challenges of pressing issues that recognizes diversity and similarities of WS/GS throughout the Asia Pacific region;
- Strengthening WS/GS, and centres, associations and institutions that promote WS/GS in the region;
- Be a mutually-reinforcing support network where teachers could share and pool course and other relevant resource materials for the advancement of WS/GS and consequently be a springboard to plan out activities such as future consortia and conferences that address specific themes and concerns in WS/GS;
- Undertake collaborative research in response to challenges, and open new tracks for national policy, including education, and enhance the publication and dissemination of research;
- Introduce and mainstream WS/GS into graduate, undergraduate, secondary and primary education levels;
- Serve as a forum where WS/GS scholars, practitioners and policy makers exchange ideas and plan on the ways with which their programs and activities could be assisted or support existing UN instruments such as the Convention to the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), UNESCO’s Education for All (EFA) and the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs);
- Advocacy of GS issues and translation of research in GS, with policy-makers, governments, academic institutions, NGOs and other stakeholders in the Asia and Pacific region.
Please find draft meeting reports of the network meetings held on 10 February (pdf file) and 12 February (pdf file), 2009.
The Women’s/Gender Studies Network in Asia Pacific is closely linked to the Global Women’s Studies and Gender Research Network which was established in 2006 by UNESCO. The secretariat of the global network is located at Miriam College in Quezon City, The Philippines. The network includes scholars and women’s studies departments at universities in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean, North America, Europe, and Oceania. More information can be found on the UNESCO WS/GR Network's webpage.
Follow the links below for more information on the Women's/Gender Studies Network in Asia and the Pacific:
The Network
History
Resources
Contact
RECENT EVENT:
UNESCO Gender Studies & Women's Research Networking Conference
9-13 February, 2009
Imperial Tara Hotel, Sukhumvit Soi 26, Bangkok, Thailand
*Programme (pdf) *Participants (pdf)
*Abstract book (pdf), the final publication will be available soon.
Papers submitted for the conference (all pdf files):
Jean Franco: "Exploring Women's Economic Citizenship: Philippines"
Lorna Israel: "The Construction of the Word and World of Gender in South East Asia"
Rae Blumberg: "The Consequences of Women’s Economic Empowerment vs. Disempowerment: From the “Magic Potion” for Development to the “Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse”?
Latifa Noveria: "Gender Perspective of Human Trafficking in Indonesian Border Areas"
Sally A. Hastings: "Political Rights and Economic Disempowerment: The Case of Japan"
Poonsap S. Tulaphan: "Organizing Informal Women Workers Under Solidarity Economy Framework", Foundation for Labour and Employment Promotion/HomeNet Thailand
Suzanne Franzway: "Enhancing Women Workers' Social-Economic Rights and Trade Union Leadership", University of South Australia
Page last updated on 7 March 2010