Experts on International Women's Day

In advance of International Women’s Day on March 8, the following University of Victoria faculty members can address the question “How far have we come?” with women’s equality and organized actions on violence; a new generation championing the #HeForShe campaign versus continued bias in representations of women in media coverage; as well as differences in women’s experiences based on factors such as health, geographic location and social economics:

Annalee Lepp (Faculty of Humanities) is the chair of UVic’s Department of Women’s Studies and an expert on Canadian gender and legal history including the history of domestic violence. She can speak to sexual violence and harassment in various contexts, including with respect to Canadian university campuses. Dr. Lepp can also discuss representations of women in the recent media coverage involving well-known public personalities accused of sexual assault. (Office: 250-721-6157 or alepp@uvic.ca)

Charlotte Loppie (Faculty of Human & Social Development) is an expert in health promotion and community-based Aboriginal health research. Her research focuses on sexual and reproductive health of Aboriginal women, Aboriginal health inequities, Aboriginal HIV/AIDS, social determinants of Aboriginal health, racism and cultural safety, cancer among Aboriginal peoples and Aboriginal ethics and research capacity building. Dr. Loppie is director of UVic’s Centre for Aboriginal Health Research, a professor in UVic’s School of Public Health and Social Policy and teaches a popular course on healthy sexuality. (Office: 250-472-5451 or email loppie@uvic.ca)

Janni Aragon (Faculty of Social Sciences) is a feminist political scientist and an expert on gender and politics, social media in political and cultural contexts, women and technology, and popular culture. She is a regular blogger for University of Venus and is also an avid conversationalist on #femlead. Currently the chair of UVic's Senate Committee on Learning and Teaching, Dr. Aragon is also director of Technology Integrated Learning at UVic and a former chair of the Academic Women’s Caucus as well as the Caucus for Women and Gender Justice with the Western Political Science Association. She regularly gives talks on campus and in the community about social media, pedagogy, gender and the importance of community building and she is also an MBA mentor at UVic. (Office: 250-853-3582 or jaragon@uvic.ca)

Lynne Van Luven (Faculty of Fine Arts) is an expert on print journalism, the memoir, research into aging and using nonfiction as a tool for social change. As founding director of UVic’s Professional Writing Minor in Journalism and Publishing, her interest in social issues and the personal essay converge in much of her work. A former journalist and editor, she can speak to issues around representation and narratives about women in North American media coverage and the shifting role of women in journalism. Her current research focuses on women’s challenges as they age and cultural representations of the aging woman. Dr. Van Luven is a professor in UVic's writing department and the acting dean of the Faculty of Fine Arts. (Office: 250-721-7755 or email lvluven@uvic.ca)

Sikata Banerjee (Faculty of Humanities) focuses on women and nationalism in India. Her research on this issue has revealed that “dominant Indian nationalism—like many other nationalisms—relies on patriarchal ideas about femininity and these assumptions can easily support violence against women.” She can speak to the importance of an ongoing national conversation in India on sexual violence against women and girls. Dr. Banerjee is a professor in UVic’s Department of Women's Studies and is the associate dean of humanities at UVic. (Office: 250-721-7259 or sikatab@uvic.ca).

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