Guest post by Kari McGregor: when trying to make orgs, groups and meetings female-friendly, I think it's important to look at it all holistically, and accept that it'll take time for the changes to happen - i.e. everything you can do to bring the change won't actually result in change until later.... source: Punch Key... Continue Reading →
Digital porn debate – neither heat nor light
I don't quite know what I think about porn. I don't think about it much, don't watch it (What never? No, hardly ever). So what? What I do and don't do, what I like and don't like has no moral weighting when we are talking about societal harm. This is a basic point that I... Continue Reading →
Reflections on feminism and women’s liberation
Sue Crockford is a London-based feminist. Here's a brief interview with her in which she reflects on how she got involved in the Women's Liberation movement (via involvement in anti-Vietnam War activity), what her memories of that time she cherishes, and what feminism means to her. Below, another feminist, Sarah Irving, writes about her reactions... Continue Reading →
Of Monbiot, Manchester and miserable ‘feral’ futures.
Nature as redeemer, nature as escape, nature as the solace for our "gridded, controlled, mannered urban lives." So far so romantic. Well, nature is on the road, and she’s gunning for the lot of us. We’ve poked the beast, and now it really is waking up. On a quiet day, you could hear it snoring.... Continue Reading →
Terrible meetings? Here’s a nesta reasonable ideas…
According to the American humourist Dave Barry “Meetings are an addictive, highly self-indulgent activity that corporations and other large organizations habitually engage in only because they cannot masturbate.” (As in, meetings aren't just ego-potlaches, they're also for the recycling of anxiety and responsibility). While meetings might be full of wankers, they’re surprisingly joyless experiences. “Nesta”,... Continue Reading →
Before the Hunger Games – Feminist scifi and “The Female Man”
The Female Man is the best, most important book you probably* never heard of. Written in 1970 but not published until 1975, Joanna Russ delivered a mind-bending and gender-bending work of genius. Think 12 Monkeys meets The Hunger Games with the sensibility of Thelma and Louise. Speaking as a man, and so accustomed to giving... Continue Reading →
Books by women, and even – darn it – about women
This year (starting last week) the only fiction I will read (novels and short stories) is by women, as per suggestion from the wonderful wife (7 years hitched!!). It occurred to me, both before and after reading Ursula Le Guin's comments on her 'The Eye of the Heron' that this might not mean I was... Continue Reading →
The year of reading women… starts today
Yesterday I was looking over my book-a-holic wife's shelves, hoping she had a couple of early Gillian Slovo novels (nope). While we were talking about the wonderful Barbara Kingsolver today, the wife suggested today that I spend a year where all the fiction I read is all by women, (with a bias towards non-Western). And... Continue Reading →
“The Girl in the Mirror” – 80s pop and #feminism
Today on Youtube, while doing grunt work on the PhD (goes quicker with a soundtrack), I stumbled on something I don't think I'd ever heard - a political (feminism) pop song from the 1980s. You can watch it here, followed by my attempt at lyrics and a John Berger quote that seems to fit.... "Following... Continue Reading →
Explaining #climate in a pub – of duvets, sailing ships and coal…
Last night I got to do a ten minute "what is my research about" spiel at "PhD in the Pub." It was followed by a slightly-less-than-20-minute q and a session (because I 'donated' some time from that to having folks confer before we began asking questions). My spiel covered - "meet someone you don't know"... Continue Reading →