“Women’s Empowerment in the Developing World”

“Women’s Empowerment in the Developing World,” a presentation by the Olympia World Affairs Council

Thursday, September 15
7:30 PM
Olympia Center, Room 101

Our speakers will focus on women’s changing roles in the Arab world, South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa. They will discuss the political, economic and cultural issues facing women in these regions and explore the efforts by the United States and the United Nations to improve women’s status.

Our speakers are Dr. Therese Saliba, professor of international feminist studies at The Evergreen State College, and Dr. Savvina Chowdhury, professor of feminist economics at The Evergreen State College

In background, education and experience both of our speakers are eminently qualified to discuss the role of women in the developing world. Dr. Saliba, a former Fulbright scholar in Palestine, has co-edited two collections: Gender, Politics and Islam and Intersections: Gender, Nation and Community in Arab Women’s novels. She has also contributed essays to numerous journals on Arab and Palestinian feminism, postcolonial literature, media representations and Arab-American experiences. Her current research examines the gendered impacts of post-9/11 policies on Arab and Muslim American communities, particularly in the Pacific Northwest. She is also researching the role of women in the recent Arab uprisings.

Born in Bangladesh, Dr. Chowdhury grew up in Bahrain and Egypt. After coming to the United States in 1991 she has often returned to the Middle East. Her published doctoral dissertation, Everyday Economic Practices: The Hidden Transcripts of Egyptian Voices, was based on her work with the United Nations Development Programme in Egypt. Her past research in the Middle East has included working with informal financial networks where women emerge as community leaders, making small loans, mobilizing savings and investments. Her current research has focused on the role played by women labor leaders in bringing about the demise of Hosni Mubarak in Egypt.

 

Posted in World Affairs Lecture.