On March 4, RSUH hosted an international conference “Gender Resources for Sustainable Development: International and Russian Experience”, dedicated to the discussion of methods for studying modern gender studies.
On March 4, RSUH hosted an international conference “Gender Resources for Sustainable Development: International and Russian Experience”, dedicated to the discussion of methods for studying modern gender studies.
The plenary session was moderated by Dr. Marina Milovanova, Acting Dean of the Faculty of Sociology.
In her opening remarks, she recalled that, according to the UN definition, sustainable development is meeting the needs of the present generation while maintaining the ability of future generations to also meet their needs without restrictions.
The speakers were welcomed by Dr. Vera Zabotkina, Advisor to the Rectorate for International Affairs of RSUH, Dr. Zoya Apevalova, President of the Federation of Women with University Education, and Dr. Olga Ovcharova, Professor of the Department of Humanitarian Disciplines of RSUH.
“The topic of the Conference is very relevant. I am glad to see here not only faculty from Russian and foreign universities, but also students. This once again underscores the high interest the gender studies hold in the academic community,” Vera Ivanovna noted.
Dr. Natalia Velikaya, Dean of the Faculty of Sociology of RSUH expressed her gratitude to the participants, emphasizing the importance of gender aspects in a sustainable development policy.
“I am glad to welcome my colleagues from the known universities in Russia and from other countries. I see that gender studies have always been of interest to the academic community since this topic is significant as is the social life,” Natalia Mikhailovna emphasized.
Also, a greeting from Ms. Olga Epifanova, a member of the Federation Council of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation and a greeting address from Ms. Inga Legasova, Chair of the board of the Union of Women's Forces to support civil initiatives and projects, were read out.
In the plenary part of the Conference, presentations were made by leading experts in the field of gender studies in Russia. Thus, Dr. Galina Sillaste, Research Director of the Department of Sociology at the Financial University under the Government of the Russian Federation, drew the attention of the colleagues to the origins of new gender norms in her presentation “Methodology and Paradigm Shift in the Study of the Socio-Gender Space and Gender Equality”.
According to the expert, the positive change in these norms was influenced by the improvement of the processes of development of socio-demographic communities in accordance with the values of the new time.
During her presentation, Dr. Sillaste outlined the areas of work to achieve gender equality:
“First of all, it has to do with ensuring the vital interests of men and women as citizens of the country, the right to life and security, work and decent wages, housing and affordable healthcare, education and recreation, information and access to communication.”
The presentations by Dr. Nadezhda Shvedova, Head of the Center for Socio-Political Studies of the Institute for the US and Canadian Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, and Dr. Galina Mikhaleva, Professor of RSUH, touched upon the implementation of the principle of gender equality in the context of sustainable development on the examples of Russia and foreign countries.
The participants also discussed the mechanisms for promoting women in the social and political fields, in the area of labor and employment, the formation of a new gender order, the transformation of subjective characteristics and the gender-related aspects of modern migration processes.
As part of the event, the exhibition “Political and social advertising in a gender kaleidoscope: the experience of visualization and sociological analysis” was held, organized by the Department of Political Sociology and Social Technologies jointly with the Library of RSUH and the Center for Socio-Political Research.
The topics that aroused particular interest of the participants were those touching upon national mechanisms for gender equality, gender specifics of the political perception of power in different historical eras, women's diplomacy, socio-economic situation of Russian women as a factor in demographic development, mechanisms for promoting women in social and political areas, labor and employment, formation of a new gender order, transformation of subjective characteristics and gender aspects of modern migration processes.
The best presentations will be published in the journal "Woman in Russian Society".
