IGU Commission on Geography and Gender
9:00-15:00, Wednesday 20 January, 2010
Room TBC

The Commission on Gender and Geography is a group with about 350 members from 60 different countries in all parts of the world. The Commission has an active program in many countries, organising one or two meetings each year and expanding its intellectual network through academic publications, newsletters and the website. The Commission on Gender and Geography maintains a website at: http://igugender.socsci.uva.nl/

The aims of the IGU Commission on Gender and Geography are to:

• create a comfortable platform for women and men to exchange ideas concerning feminist and gender studies in geography;
• present and discuss new research on these issues;
• create collaborations in research and other academic work among students and scholars working on these themes.

The central theme of the Commission on Gender and Geography in the period between 2008-2012 is: ‘Gendered Perspectives: Connecting Across Difference’. This theme allows the Commission members to focus on gendered differences and the theoretical and practical meanings and implications of the connections that can be made to bridge such differences. We intend to explore this theme through various lenses such as geographical education, and scales from global to local. 

Activities for Commission on Gender and Geography, and Commission on Tourism, Leisure and Global Change

Our two Commissions will join together on Wednesday. Robyn Longhurst and Anne-Marie d’Hauteserre will meet delegates in the foyer on the Ibis Hotel at 10am. You will have an opportunity to meet each other and we can discuss any particular requests that you may have for our time together.

In general, however, we suggest the following:

10.10 Brief walk around the city of Hamilton stopping at various buildings, shops, and monuments of potential interest to geographers teaching and researching gender, and tourism.

10.45 Visit the Waikato Museum – a tourist site in Hamilton. Our visit will include the ‘Assume Nothing: Celebrating Gender Diversity’ exhibition.

12.00 Lunch – various options either in the city, or on campus (using your vouchers). We will discuss these options with you.

Return to campus for a screening of ‘Top Twins: Untouchable Girls’ movie which is the story of two lesbian sisters. The movie is part biopic, part New Zealand historical record and part comedy. We highly recommend it to anyone interested in critical thinking and politics. The screen time is 82 minutes.

2.45 We will take you to the University Marae for the Powhiri (welcome).

Assume Nothing: Demystifying and Celebrating Gender Diversity

Transsexual, intersexual, pan-sexual – when you enter TheNewDowse’s touring exhibition Assume Nothing at the Waikato Museum you will be greeted by a series of intimate portraits and a long list of terms that illustrate the diversity of gender identity. Photographer Rebecca Swan says this list is by no means exhaustive. She comments

“There are terms like transgender, transsexual, whakawāhine, fa’afafine, hermaphrodite or intersex, as well as drag kings and drag queens. But within those boxes, every person’s way of identifying their gender is unique. Not everyone fits neatly into these categories. The title sums it up – although sometimes it’s challenging, I try not to assume anything about anyone’s gender identity or in-fact anything about them including their sexual identity.”

Swan’s intimate portraits of people who have alternative gender identities will be shown at the Waikato Museum from 31 October, 2009 until 14 February, 2010.

Featuring several well-known personalities, such as politician Georgina Beyer, performer Carmen Rupe, activist and educator Mani Bruce Mitchell and artist Shigeyuki Kihara, the exhibition profiles over 20 people who define their own gender identity. Swan says greater awareness of the diversity of gender identity is an important step towards reducing stereotypes and discrimination.

“I believe discrimination based on any form of difference, occurs predominantly through a lack of awareness. I have such huge admiration for everyone in Assume Nothing who generously share themselves with complete strangers via the book, the film and the exhibition. I believe it's this vulnerability that moves people and that's the bridge to understanding and respect. That's the essence of the project for me"