{"id":14598,"date":"2021-03-08T09:15:36","date_gmt":"2021-03-07T23:15:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/testblogs.griffith.edu.au\/library\/?p=14598"},"modified":"2024-06-25T10:14:55","modified_gmt":"2024-06-25T00:14:55","slug":"choose-to-challenge-this-international-womens-day","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/testblogs.griffith.edu.au\/library\/2021\/03\/08\/choose-to-challenge-this-international-womens-day\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Choose to Challenge\u2019 this International Women\u2019s Day"},"content":{"rendered":"

E<\/span>very<\/span>\u00a0day\u00a0<\/span>we see the power of\u00a0<\/span>both\u00a0<\/span>the individual and\u00a0the collective<\/span>\u00a0in<\/span>\u00a0addressing<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>issues\u00a0<\/span>such\u00a0<\/span>as<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>equality<\/span>\u00a0and<\/span>\u00a0culture<\/span>\u00a0and\u00a0<\/span>giving voice to\u00a0movements\u00a0<\/span>like<\/span>\u00a0#MeToo<\/span>\u00a0and<\/span>\u00a0#BlackLivesMatter<\/span>. The theme for this year\u2019s International Women\u2019s Day, 8 March,<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>is \u2018Choose to Challenge\u2019<\/span>, where\u00a0<\/span>choice\u00a0<\/span>is\u00a0<\/span>one of our greatest\u00a0<\/span>tools<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In this Q&A\u00a0<\/span>Professor S<\/span>usan Harris\u00a0<\/span>Rimmer<\/span><\/a>,\u00a0Director of the Griffith University Policy Innovation Hub,<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>talks about<\/span>\u00a0her passion for gender equality, the establishment of\u00a0<\/span>Griffith\u2019s Gender Equality Research Network,<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>the importance of self-care,\u00a0<\/span>and\u00a0<\/span>how we can\u00a0<\/span>all\u00a0<\/span>champion equality<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>every day<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

‘…it was <\/span><\/span>just that general feeling any bright young girl feels<\/span><\/span>:<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/span>\u2018I\u2019m as smart as him\u2019. ‘<\/span><\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

W<\/span><\/b>hy\u00a0<\/span><\/b>are you so passionate about gender equality?<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Growing up on a sheep farm in Coonabarabran I was aware of a lot of domestic violence in our town and I reacted very strongly to the kind of destruction it brought. It is such a key area\u00a0<\/span>where<\/span>\u00a0women suffer<\/span>\u00a0and so<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>ma<\/span>n<\/span>y societal and\u00a0<\/span>structural problems are expressed through domestic violence<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span>So<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>it\u00a0<\/span>has always been particularly pressing in my journey and then\u00a0<\/span>it was\u00a0<\/span>just that general feeling any bright young girl feels<\/span>:<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\u2018I\u2019m as smart as him\u2019.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I find\u00a0<\/span>gender equality\u00a0<\/span>intellectually<\/span>\u00a0challenging<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>as it\u00a0<\/span>is such a foundational problem in our society.\u00a0<\/span>It<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>underpins\u00a0<\/span>so many other things in our world and it<\/span>\u00a0i<\/span>s constantly devalued as knowledge<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span>Th<\/span>is<\/span>\u00a0area of academic enquiry is very challenging,\u00a0<\/span>difficult<\/span>\u00a0and yet<\/span>\u00a0very<\/span>\u00a0interesting. I have an e<\/span>ndless<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>interest<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>in the lives of other women<\/span>, their\u00a0<\/span>stories<\/span>\u00a0and their\u00a0<\/span>narratives.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

What led you and\u00a0<\/span><\/b>Professor\u00a0<\/span><\/b>Sara<\/span><\/b>\u00a0Davies<\/span><\/b>\u00a0to conven<\/span><\/b>e\u00a0<\/span><\/b>the\u00a0<\/span><\/b>Gender Equality Research Network<\/span><\/b>\u00a0at Griffith<\/span><\/b>?\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Across<\/span>\u00a0various disciplines at\u00a0<\/span>Griffith there w<\/span>ere<\/span>\u00a0a\u00a0<\/span>lot\u00a0<\/span>of people<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>bring<\/span>ing\u00a0<\/span>a gender lens to their\u00a0<\/span>r<\/span>esearch\u00a0<\/span>but\u00a0<\/span>there was no<\/span>\u00a0means to\u00a0<\/span>find them.\u00a0<\/span>The\u00a0<\/span>Gender Equality Research Network<\/span><\/a>\u00a0(GERN)<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>unites these interdisciplinary researchers and provides some curation around the gender framework<\/span>\u00a0they<\/span>\u00a0appl<\/span>y\u00a0<\/span>to their research.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The initial focus for\u00a0<\/span>GERN\u00a0<\/span>was Early Career Researchers and mentoring.\u00a0<\/span>We also<\/span>\u00a0realised that not only were\u00a0<\/span>we interested in gender\u00a0<\/span>re<\/span>search<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0and doing better gender research<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0but\u00a0<\/span>we were interested in\u00a0<\/span>academi<\/span>a and\u00a0<\/span>its gender\u00a0<\/span>biases<\/span>.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>W<\/span>e started a\u00a0<\/span>mentoring\u00a0<\/span>program<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>talking about\u00a0<\/span>research engagement at a\u00a0high level<\/span>\u2014<\/span>those big promotion pieces, monograph writing, quality journal writing, research and grant winning.\u00a0<\/span>W<\/span>e felt a lot of women miss th<\/span>e<\/span>\u00a0kind\u00a0<\/span>of\u00a0<\/span>active<\/span>\u00a0mentoring that seems to happen more naturally for some, but not all, of our male colleagues.<\/span>\u00a0We have\u00a0<\/span>a lot of men\u00a0<\/span>in our network\u00a0<\/span>conducting\u00a0<\/span>gender research of a very high calibre<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>and\u00a0<\/span>not just\u00a0<\/span>around\u00a0<\/span>masculinities<\/span>\u00a0but around\u00a0<\/span>feminis<\/span>m<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>and\u00a0<\/span>queer theory<\/span>.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Research is lonely and isolating and<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0difficult<\/span>;<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>researchers need to feel\u00a0<\/span>seen,<\/span>\u00a0they need lots of encouragement and they need to engage with someone on their research journey. GERN is a joint enterprise across\u00a0<\/span>the University and we provide bespoke experiences to spread that feeling of solidarity and encouragement.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

‘Research is full immersion in lived experiences<\/span><\/span>\u2014<\/span><\/span>yours,<\/span><\/span>\u00a0and others<\/span><\/span>\u2019…’<\/span><\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Wh<\/span><\/b>at\u00a0<\/span><\/b>is the Athena S<\/span><\/b>WAN<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/b>charter and why is it\u00a0<\/span><\/b>so important?<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

T<\/span>he\u00a0<\/span>Athena SWAN\u00a0<\/span>UK\u00a0<\/span>charter and framework<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>were<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>established\u00a0<\/span>to address the under<\/span>–<\/span>representation of women<\/span>, trans and gender diverse individuals<\/span>\u00a0in<\/span>\u00a0science, technology, engineering,\u00a0<\/span>maths<\/span>\u00a0and medicine (<\/span>STEMM<\/span>)<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>Griffith\u00a0<\/span>was the first Australian institution to receive an\u00a0<\/span>Athena SWAN<\/span>\u00a0Bronze Institutional Award<\/span><\/a>.\u00a0<\/span>T<\/span>he award\u00a0<\/span>recognizes our\u00a0<\/span>commitment\u00a0<\/span>to\u00a0<\/span>increas<\/span>ing our\u00a0<\/span>talent\u202fpool, recruit<\/span>ing<\/span>\u2014<\/span>and keep<\/span>ing<\/span>\u2014<\/span>more women and\u00a0<\/span>working toward\u00a0<\/span>chang<\/span>ing\u00a0<\/span>the structural problems that are forcing women out of those areas.\u202fIt<\/span>\u00a0i<\/span>s\u00a0<\/span>a\u00a0<\/span>very rigorous\u202f<\/span>framework\u00a0<\/span>and\u00a0<\/span>the institutional\u00a0<\/span>imperative to encourage diversity and inclusion across the\u00a0<\/span>U<\/span>niversity, on every equity criterion not just gender<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>focus<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0is\u00a0<\/span>what really interests me<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

H<\/span><\/b>as\u00a0<\/span><\/b>Sustainable Development Goal 5, Gender equality,\u00a0<\/span><\/b>ha<\/span><\/b>d\u00a0<\/span><\/b>an impact on gender research<\/span><\/b>?\u00a0<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The\u00a0<\/span>UN\u00a0<\/span>gender equality goal<\/span><\/a>\u00a0has been\u00a0<\/span>a\u00a0<\/span>very useful research tool in the sense\u00a0<\/span>that\u00a0<\/span>it generates data around various indicators\u00a0<\/span>that are tracked by governments around the world<\/span>. This\u00a0<\/span>is\u00a0<\/span>very useful because so much that happens\u00a0<\/span>in<\/span>\u00a0women’s lives is not recorded, measured, visible<\/span>\u00a0or\u00a0<\/span>findable<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span>When I first started working on rape as a war crime\u00a0<\/span>as\u00a0<\/span>an\u00a0<\/span>H<\/span>onours student<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0and even as a late year law student<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0you could not find any\u00a0<\/span>data<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>for<\/span>\u00a0love nor money<\/span>. It was all anecdotal, bits and pieces that you had to kind of put together.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Getting reliable data that you can track over\u00a0<\/span>time and<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>having<\/span>\u00a0the ability<\/span>\u00a0to interrogate the way governments are collecting that data,<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>has increased the quality of<\/span>\u00a0gender<\/span>\u00a0research<\/span>\u00a0and enhanced our ability to find out the real story<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span>The Sustainable Development Goals\u00a0<\/span>are a vision of something that is attainable<\/span>;\u00a0<\/span>making\u00a0<\/span>progress on th<\/span>ese\u00a0<\/span>goals\u00a0<\/span>leads to\u00a0<\/span>better nations<\/span>\u00a0and<\/span>\u00a0better regions.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

What is one piece of advice you would give to researchers?<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I would tell them about the importance of self-care<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span>Research is full immersion in lived experiences<\/span>\u2014<\/span>yours,<\/span>\u00a0and others<\/span>\u2019<\/span>\u2014<\/span>and in problems and problem-solving<\/span>.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>Research is hard and research topic<\/span>s<\/span>\u00a0can be very emotionally difficult.\u00a0<\/span>In\u00a0<\/span>the morning<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0I can\u00a0<\/span>be thinking about Brittany Higgins and\u00a0<\/span>in the afternoon<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0I can be looking at gender war crimes and assessing what is\u00a0<\/span>going to happen to women when the Taliban take over in Afghanistan.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>And this emotional immersion\u00a0<\/span>isn\u2019t<\/span>\u00a0unique to gender studies. O<\/span>ther types of researchers face the same issues, just in different ways<\/span>:<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>for instance<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>a<\/span>\u00a0cancer researcher or\u00a0<\/span>a researcher <\/span>work<\/span>ing\u00a0<\/span>with\u00a0<\/span>autistic<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>kids<\/span>.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>I think a lot of researchers need to exercise more self-care<\/span>;\u00a0<\/span>within a university\u00a0<\/span>y<\/span>ou\u00a0<\/span>must\u00a0<\/span>have a stronger ethic of care.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Looking at this year\u2019s t<\/span><\/b>heme<\/span><\/b>, \u2018<\/span><\/b>Choose to Challenge\u2019, how can\u00a0<\/span><\/b>individual<\/span><\/b>s<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/b>practice\u00a0<\/span><\/b>gender equality?\u00a0<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In my opinion,\u00a0<\/span>p<\/span>eople<\/span>\u00a0should choose\u00a0<\/span>to challenge Parliament as a workplace\u2014it should be an exemplary and safe workplace for men and women.\u202f<\/span>That\u2019s<\/span>\u00a0our place, that\u2019s our Parliament,\u202fthat\u2019s our money and they are the people we elect.\u202f I’m hoping people choose to challenge it\u202f<\/span>and\u00a0realise<\/span>\u00a0that they can do something about it.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I think people should call out bad behaviours. Particularly if they see anything\u202frelated to gender identity and a young person, they should be protecting them, calling it out because we know\u202fwe lose so many young people to suicide\u202fand homelessness. Stick your neck <\/span>out and\u00a0<\/span>visibly\u00a0<\/span>be\u00a0<\/span>an ally.<\/span>\u202f<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

And\u00a0<\/span>if you\u202fstruggle\u202f<\/span>calling out bad behaviour, then\u00a0<\/span>you can do the opposite. You can celebrate people.<\/span>\u00a0If you are seeing people treating First Nations<\/span>\u00a0Peoples<\/span>,\u00a0<\/span>colleagues<\/span>\u00a0or\u202fstudent<\/span>s<\/span>\u00a0in\u202f<\/span>a good<\/span> way,\u202fgo in and tell them how great they are.<\/span>\u202f<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In my mind, t<\/span>here<\/span>\u202fare\u202fabsolutely\u202f<\/span>no\u202flimits on the type of human\u202frights work you can do wherever you are.<\/span>\u202f<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Profile
Professor Susan Harris Rimmer, Director of the Griffith University Policy Innovation Hub<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

What does the next five years look like for you?\u00a0<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

It is genuinely inspiring to\u00a0<\/span>be\u00a0<\/span>work<\/span>ing\u00a0<\/span>with the members of the\u00a0<\/span>Climate Action Beacon<\/span><\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<\/span>to be\u00a0<\/span>thinking about climate justice<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>through<\/span>\u00a0a gender lens,<\/span>\u00a0for the next five years.\u00a0<\/span>I\u2019m<\/span>\u00a0really interested in e<\/span>xamining\u00a0<\/span>how we are going to navigate a world where climate impacts are\u00a0<\/span>continually<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>escalating\u00a0<\/span>and\u00a0<\/span>change the way we think about these issues so that we\u00a0<\/span>manage<\/span>\u00a0the transition with more\u00a0<\/span>of a\u00a0<\/span>human rights lens\u00a0<\/span>instead\u00a0<\/span>of just an economic growth lens.\u00a0<\/span>I<\/span>t is quite new for me.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Gender equality\u00a0<\/span><\/b>research<\/span><\/b>\u202f<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Read<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>Professor S<\/span>usan Harris\u00a0<\/span>Rimmer\u2019s<\/span>\u00a0research<\/span><\/a>\u00a0a<\/span>nd\u202flearn\u202fmore about\u00a0<\/span>gender equality<\/span>\u00a0and inclusiveness<\/span>:<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Women, Peace and Transforming Security: Visions of the Future of Women, Peace and Security for NATO<\/span><\/a>,\u00a0<\/span>2020<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Introduction to the Research Handbook on Feminist Engagement with International Law<\/span><\/a>,<\/span>\u00a02019<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Celebrating and Interrogating Women and National Security<\/span><\/a>, 2018<\/span>\u202f<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The future of women\u2019s economic empowerment in the Indian Ocean region: governance challenges and opportunities<\/span><\/a>, 2017<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Gender,\u00a0<\/span>Governance<\/span>\u00a0and the Defence of the Realm: Globalising reforms in the Australian Defence Force<\/span><\/a>, 2016<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Gender and Transitional Justice: The Women of East Timor<\/span><\/a>, 2010<\/span>
\n\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Access Griffith Research Online\u00a0<\/span>(GRO)\u00a0<\/span>for more\u202f<\/span>research on\u00a0<\/span>gender equality<\/span><\/a>.<\/span>\u202f<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Every\u00a0day\u00a0we see the power of\u00a0both\u00a0the individual and\u00a0the collective\u00a0in\u00a0addressing\u00a0issues\u00a0such\u00a0as\u00a0equality\u00a0and\u00a0culture\u00a0and\u00a0giving voice to\u00a0movements\u00a0like\u00a0#MeToo\u00a0and\u00a0#BlackLivesMatter. The theme for this year\u2019s International Women\u2019s Day, 8 March,\u00a0is \u2018Choose to Challenge\u2019, where\u00a0choice\u00a0is\u00a0one of our greatest\u00a0tools.\u00a0\u00a0 In this Q&A\u00a0Professor Susan Harris\u00a0Rimmer,\u00a0Director of the Griffith University Policy Innovation Hub,\u00a0talks about\u00a0her passion for gender equality, the establishment of\u00a0Griffith\u2019s Gender Equality Research Network,\u00a0the importance of self-care,\u00a0and\u00a0how we […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":152,"featured_media":17359,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,172,5,3],"tags":[162],"class_list":["post-14598","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-academics","category-researcher-profile","category-researchers","category-students","tag-general"],"acf":[],"modified_by":"Vanessa Gatt","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/testblogs.griffith.edu.au\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/36\/2021\/03\/Professor-Susan-Harris-Rimmer-Director-of-the-Griffith-University-Policy-Innovation-Hub.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/testblogs.griffith.edu.au\/library\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14598","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/testblogs.griffith.edu.au\/library\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/testblogs.griffith.edu.au\/library\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/testblogs.griffith.edu.au\/library\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/152"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/testblogs.griffith.edu.au\/library\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14598"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/testblogs.griffith.edu.au\/library\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14598\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/testblogs.griffith.edu.au\/library\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/17359"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/testblogs.griffith.edu.au\/library\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14598"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/testblogs.griffith.edu.au\/library\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14598"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/testblogs.griffith.edu.au\/library\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14598"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}