The Simone de Beauvoir Institute, Concordia University, Montreal, is now accepting applications for its 2010-2011 Visiting Scholars Program. See the website for more information.

BC Women's Hospital & Health Centre and the British Columbia Centre of Excellence for Women's Health are pleased to invite you to our lunch hour presentation.

Preventing Heavy Alcohol Use in Girls

Tuesday, April 20, 2010, Noon - 1:00 pm

Increasing attention is being focused on the use of alcohol by girls and young women, and the health consequences of their patterns of heavy and binge drinking. Young women are particularly vulnerable to acute and chronic harms associated with heavy alcohol use. This presentation will describe these health and social consequences, and key trends and issues related to use of alcohol by girls and young women. It will highlight some "promising practices" in preventing/reducing harms associated with heavy alcohol use by girls and young women, and describe a multi-partner research project underway to further investigate this work.

Presenter:

Nancy Poole, MA, PhD(C), Director, Research & Knowledge Exchange, BC Centre of Excellence for Women's Health

HOW YOU CAN PARTICIPATE:

IN PERSON: BC Women's Hospital & Health Centre, Shaughnessy D308                            

VIDEO-CONFERENCE: Book with your Telehealth Coordinator at your health authority by Friday, April 16, 2010.

If you are not part of a health authority or need assistance, contact Melanie Koo, PHSA Telehealth Coordinator at 604-875-2000 / toll free 1-888-300-3088 ext 5336, or mkoo2@cw.bc.ca

PHONE  Dial: (1) 604-707-4540.  The pass code is 423505#

Note that you/your agency are responsible for long distance charges.

The presenter's slides will be available at the time of the presentation on the BCCEWH website.

Girls Action Foundation is pleased to announce the launch of this viedeo created to showcase our Why Girls? resources. Check it out here.

Featuring the themes of Leadership, Media & Pop Culture, Sexual Health, and Violence Prevention, the Why Girls? resources are easy-to-use tools that offer fresh perspectives and add girls' and young women's voices to the current discourse that surrounds them.

Grounded in girls' realities, these tools are designed to support educators, parents, girls' programmers, the media, and anyone who would like to know more on how to address these topics in a positive and pro-active way.

To know more about Why Girls? or the work of Girls Action Foundation, please get in touch with Valérie Plante.

The Centre for Women's Studies at Brock University invites applications for a part-time instructor position to teach the course WISE 3P65, "Health Issues for Women and Girls" (calendar description: 

"Feminist analysis of definitions and dimensions of "health", socio- cultural influences on perceptions of health, and sites of cognitive and social control regarding health.") Please direct inquiries to the Director, Christine Daigle (cdaigle@brocku.ca). See posting here.

By Lynne Swanson

CMAJ published 6 April 2010, 10.1503/cmaj.109-3217

Facing rising rates of sexually transmitted diseases among young people aged 15-24, the Middlesex London Health Unit in London, Ontario, wanted to develop a novel and fun way of educating teens and young adults about sexual health.

Their solution?

“Adventures in Sex City,” an online game developed by youth for youth, in which a “Sex Squad” of cartoon superheroes — Captain Condom, Power Pap, Willy the Kid and Wonder Vag — battle the evil Sperminator, whose is bent on infecting the good residents of the city. By correctly answering sexual health questions, players can conquer Sperminator, while being instructed by Myth Maniac, the squad’s mysterious ally, about healthy sex (www.getitonlondon.com).

Read the whole article here. 

On March 25, the government of Jean Charest announced Bill 94, an act that would prevent
women wearing the niqab from accessing hospitals, daycares, schools, universities, and other
public services, and would bar women in niqab from working in the public sector. In a press
conference, premier Charest described the legislation as defending two principles: gender
equality and secular public institutions.

We oppose this legislation and strongly believe that it will restrict rather than enhance the rights
of women. As we stated in November 2007 in our public response to the Commission de
consultation sur les pratiques d’accommodement reliées aux différences culturelles, while we
agree that the government should be doing more to ensure gender equality, we argue that this is
not achieved by creating a false opposition between secular values and religion, but rather by
attending to gender-based violence, poverty, women’s health, and women’s access to education
and work. In fact, Charest’s use of the terms “secular” and “gender equality” is misleading. It is
obvious that the government’s concern is not with all religious practices, but very particularly
with Muslim practices. Furthermore, regulating women’s public religious expression and
denying them access to government services and public life is not a step in the direction of
gender equality. Bill 94 chauvinistically casts Québec as having achieved gender equality while
implying a view of Muslim communities as inherently oppressive to women.

As feminists, we are committed to supporting bodily and personal autonomy for all women, as
well as all women’s capacity to understand and articulate their experiences of oppression on their
own terms. And it is as feminists that we oppose state interventions that promise gender equality
at the expense of women’s autonomy.

Signed: The Faculty and Students of the Simone de Beauvoir Institute,
with the support of The School of Community and Public Affairs, Concordia University,
April 7, 2010

For more information, please see the Simone de Beauvoir Institute’s November 2007 feminist
response to the Bouchard-Taylor commission.
Please circulate. To endorse this statement, please e-mail: gada.mahrouse@concordia.ca
Media Contact: Gada Mahrouse, Simone de Beauvoir Institute, 514-848-2424 x 2378,
gada.mahrouse@concordia.ca

Our Bodies Ourselves is accepting nominations for the 2010 Women's Health Heroes awards.

When you hear the words “Women’s Health Hero,” who comes to mind? Your 9th grade health teacher who taught you about sexually transmitted infections? The midwife who sat with you through 15 hours of labor? The young Nigerian activist you read about who’s working to end gender discrimination in her country? Or maybe the neighbor who counter-protests at the abortion clinic every Saturday morning?

Whoever your heroes are, Our Bodies Ourselves wants to know about them! They’ve created the Our Bodies Ourselves Women’s Health Heroes awards to honor those who make significant contributions to the health and well-being of women. It’s a great way to publicly recognize people who make a difference in your life or the lives of others.

Nominations are being accepted during the month of April. Two heroes will be selected as the Our Bodies Ourselves choice and the Audience Choice, while a total of 20 nominees will be selected to join the Women's Health Heroes Hall of Fame.

To learn more or to nominate your hero, please visit the website. 

Manitoba Women’s Advisory Council (Status of Women) invites you to attend a Lunch & Learn  on the signs and symptoms of Ovarian Cancer presented by Samantha Cross, Ovarian Cancer Canada.

Thursday, April 29, 2010

Doors open: 11:45 a.m.

Formal presentation: 12:05 – 1:00 p.m.

Concourse Level, 155 Carlton Street, Winnipeg

Bring a brown bag lunch. Coffee and a healthy snack provided

RSVP to 945-6281. Space is limited.  Please cancel if you cannot attend.

The Canadian AIDS Society (CAS) cordially invites your organization to participate in the research project "Women and HIV Testing in Canada: Access and Concerns," by completing an online survey.

What: The survey aims to gather information about the issues and barriers experienced by women of diverse backgrounds when accessing or receiving HIV testing in Canada, and the strategies that service-providers have identified to mitigate them.

Who: The survey is intended for organizations, health centres, clinics and service-providers working in the field(s) of HIV and STI testing, HIV/AIDS, general health, women's health, rights and social services and related areas. We ask that 1 representative complete the survey on behalf of your organization. Please select the person you feel is in the best position to respond to questions about HIV testing and women.

Where: The survey is available here.

When: Survey responses will be collected until Friday April 23 at 5PM EST.

For more information, feel free to get in touch with the Project Coordinator at CAS
Sophie Wertheimer
Project Coordinator/Coordinatrice de Project
Canadian AIDS Society/Société canadienne du sida
190 O'Connor, Suite 800  Ottawa ON K2P 2R3
Telephone/Téléphone: 613.230.3580 / 1.800.499.1986 ext/poste 123
Fax/Télécopieur: 613.563.4998
Email/Courriel: sophiew@cdnaids.ca
Web: www.cdnaids.ca

Cancer Under the Radar: Young Adults Tell Their Stories is a poignant collection of photos, prose, art and poetry by 14 young adults sharing their personal experiences as they refl ect upon what it means to be diagnosed with cancer.

Meet the authors and have your copy signed at the book launch and reception:

Wednesday, April 28, 2010, from 5:00 pm to 7:00 pm
Montreal General Hospital, Livingston Hall
1650 Cedar Avenue, 6th fl oor, Room L6-500
> From Cedar Avenue entrance, follow the signs to Livingston Pavilion.
> From Pine Avenue entrance, take the elevator to the 6th fl oor and follow the signs.

Free admission and free parking at the hospital (Parking vouchers will be distributed at the event)

Everyone’s welcome!

Master of Ceremonies:
Gwendolyn Andrews Nacos, Founder & Director of Cedars CanSupport

RSVP: aya.radar@gmail.com

Information: 514-843-1666

Dear friends and allies,

Vancouver Status of Women is grateful for your continued support as we work to achieve self-determination for all women. Our organization is currently facing significant funding cuts and we need you to stand in solidarity us.

The City of Vancouver has scaled back funding to VSW, offering us $23,896 as opposed to the $34,592 we received last year. This cut significantly affects our operational capacity. We are appealing the recommendation and will go before the City on April 22^nd, 2010.  VSW has been an integral part of building and strengthening progressive, feminist community in Vancouver since 1971, and we want to continue doing this work.

Enclosed is a letter of endorsement. Please take a few minutes to sign your name and send it to the Vancouver City Councillors via mail, e-mail or fax by no later than April, 19^th, 2010. Below is all the information you need to send the letter.

If you are interested and available to attend the City Council appeal meeting on April 22, 2010 as part of a VSW solidarity contingent, please get in touch with us right away. Contact leapcoordinator@vsw.ca or 604-255-6554.

We will keep you posted on all developments.

In solidarity & sisterhood,

Vancouver Status of Women

The British Columbia Centre of Excellence for Women's Health would like to invite you to this CIHR Café Scientifique on:

Thursday, April 8, 2010
7:00 to 9:00pm
Juliet's Café
1905 Cornwall Avenue, Vancouver

Health promotion activities have traditionally focussed on individual lifestyle choices. However, this approach often fails to take into account the social conditions within which women live their day to day lives and that affect their ability to participate in health promoting activities.  Join us to discuss how addressing social determinants like gender, poverty, and housing can improve women's opportunities for healthy living.

Panel:
Mary Collins, Director, BC Healthy Living Alliance Secretariat
Ann Pederson, Director, BC Centre of Excellence for Women's Health
Pam Ponic, Community-based Researcher, BC Centre of Excellence for Women's Health
Nancy Poole, Director, BC Centre of Excellence for Women's Health

Moderator:
Irving Rootman, Adjunct Professor, Human and Social Development, University of Victoria

To download the flyer, please go to this site.

For more information or to RSVP, please email mdussault@cw.bc.ca

You are cordially invited to the 6th Annual Critical Disability Studies Graduate Student Conference on Saturday, April 24th, 9:00 am - 5:00 pm, with a reception to follow from 5:00 pm - 7:00 pm.  The event will take place at York University's Keele campus.   Participants are required to pick up a registration package in Room 1158, Vari Hall from 8:00 am.  

Hosted by the Critical Disability Studies Student Association, the conference is meant to showcase graduate students across Canada and their work relating to Critical Disability Studies.  Lawyer and disability rights advocate Mr. David Lepofsky will present as our keynote speaker.  A fine arts exhibit will be on display throughout the day, and our reception will feature classical music played by the Camerata Luna quartet.  

Abstracts for paper and poster presentations, Mr. Lepofsk's biography, campus map and directions are available on the conference website.

Registrations are accepted by email until April 9th.   To register, email cds_grad@yorku.ca and provide the following information:

1.  Name
2.  Number of Guests
3.  Dietary Restrictions
4.  Accommodation Requests

We look forward to seeing you at the conference.

Read women’s groups reactions to the U.S. health reform bill’s passing on March 21 here:

Raising Women’s Voices Blog

National Organization of Women

Catholics for Choice

Women across the globe had little to celebrate this International Women's Day in relation to HIV/AIDS, following recent devastating reports demonstrating the brutal impact of HIV/AIDS and poverty on women worldwide.

The World Health Organization's 2009 report entitled Women and Health:  Today's evidence for tomorrow's agenda showed that, globally, HIV/AIDS is the leading cause of death among women of reproductive age.  WHO states that "within countries, the health of girls and women is critically affected by social and economic factors, such as access to education, and household wealth. Such differences are not confined to developing countries but are found in the developed world."

Read the press release here.

To assist countries and practitioners, UNIFEM is launching a global virtual knowledge centre on how to address violence against women and girls.

This is a one-stop centre to support practitioners around the world in effective design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of policies and programmes that aim to end violence against women and girls. The web-based site brings together lessons learned to date and recommended practices gleaned from initiatives large and small, whether originating from the women's movement, civil society organizations, governments, the UN System or other actors. While capturing the leading experiences from all regions of the world, its primary intended audience is in developing countries and other resource-poor settings.

Available in English, Spanish and French at this website. 

June 3 - 5, 2010

University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, MI.

The purpose of the meeting is to facilitate interdisciplinary collaboration in order to promote enhanced understanding of the role that sex differences play in health and diseases.

The Organization for the Study of Sex Differences annual meeting is the leading forum for scientists to explore aspects of sex differences research at the genetic, molecular, cellular, organ, and system levels in various model systems. The field of sex-based biology is growing rapidly, and the OSSD annual meeting will promote the understanding and dissemination of novel findings about how sex differences translate into human physiological and pathological processes throughout the lifespan.

The deadline for early-bird discounted member registration is April 2, 2010.

For more information, please visit our site.

Deadline for receipt of complete applications: Friday, April 9th 2010.

McGill’s Sexual Diversity Studies Program is seeking a sessional instructor to teach SDST-250: Introduction to Sexual Diversity Studies. The class will be held in the fall semester of 2010, Wednesdays and Fridays 14:30-16:00. The cap is 150 students. There will be one or two TAs, depending on enrollment. The pay is $5,000. The course is required for all students taking the SDS Minor, and is intended as a general introduction to the study of sexuality and sexual and gender diversity from a range of perspectives across a variety of disciplines.

See the posting here. 

April 15th, 2010, 10am – 4:30pm
Founders Senior Common Room, 305 Founders College

Keynotes: Urvashi Butalia, Zubaan Books, India & Malathi de Alwis, University of Colombo, Sri Lanka
Invited panellists include Alison Crosby, York University,
Honor Ford-Smith, York University, and Alissa Trotz, University of Toronto

Email cfrevent@yorku.ca to RSVP

Presented by Centre for Feminist Research with support from IDRC and others.

The United Nations' Commission on the Status of Women (UNCSW) is currently underway in New York City.  There is a large delegation of Canadian NGOs and labour groups in NYC to attend the UNCSW. 

For more information on the UNCSW, please see visit this site.

Each year the two-week UNCSW session has a theme.  This year the theme is "Beijing +15" and looking at how countries are implementing the Beijing Platform for Action to better meet CEDAW obligations 15 years after the inception of the Platform.

You can find a joint shadow report by FAFIA and the Canadian Labour Congress here.

You can watch a 5 minute video featuring FAFIA's Executive Director, Kate McInturff and  Canadian Labour Congress Executive Vice-President, Barbara Byers, at the UNCSW discussing the Canadian NGO presence and proceedings during the meetings.

Mira Hall from the Centre for Northern Families attended the Yellowknife CEDAW Workshop and is in NYC as part of our two person delegation attending the meetings.  She is writing a fabulous blog documenting her experience.  You can follow her blog.

The Government of Canada had the opportunity to address the UNCSW.  Minister of State for the Status of Women, Helena Guergis, delivered her address on behalf of the government. 

Action Canada for Population and Development has issued this Call to Action for international colleagues to inform them of recent events in Canada.

On June 25-26, 2010, leaders from some of the world’s most powerful countries will gather in Huntsville, Canada, for their 36th annual G8 Summit. The G8 meeting will be followed by a meeting of G20 leaders in Toronto, Canada (June 26-27, 2010).

Earlier this year, on January 26th, 2010, the Canadian Prime Minister, Mr. Stephen Harper, announced his intention to make maternal and child health a development priority for the upcoming G8 Summit. He said that “Canada will champion a major initiative to improve the health of women and children in the world’s poorest regions.” 

Read the Call to Action here.

On May 8th mothers, daughters and women of all ages will have an opportunity to learn and gain a better understanding of health issues and concerns that may affect them. Attendance at our Women + Health Conference is a proactive step for women to take toward understanding the health of their mind and body. Our conference will focus on helping women take charge of their health and wellness. It is important in the process of educating women on health issues and giving them the tools they need to effectively manage their health and well-being.

The Women + Health Conference will bring together health experts and health product/service providers to deliver an educational and entertaining day for women of all ages. Health and wellness experts Dr. Larry Ohlhauser, Dr. Pratap Chokka, Dr. Nan Schuurmans, Michelle Cederberg and Dr. Ruth Collins-Nakai will provide knowledge and advice on nutrition/fitness, heart health, work/life balance, stress management, depression and more.

We invite you to spend time this Mother’s Day weekend with your mother, daughter and friends learning from the health experts and connecting with over 40 health product and service providers.

Conference information

Monday March 29, 2010
10:00-11:15 PST

In 2009 a national, virtual Community of Practice (vCoP) provided the opportunity for a "virtual discussion" of issues, research, and programming related to girls' and women's substance use in Canada. The vCoP involved planners, decision-makers, direct service providers, educators, NGO leaders, policy analysts and researchers working to implement the National Framework for Action to Reduce the Harms Associated with Alcohol and other Drugs and Substances in Canada.

This webcast will:

* Discuss the benefits of applying sex/gender/diversity based analysis in the substance use field

* Share highlights of the virtual discussions on topics, such as girls' substance use, trauma-informed approaches to addiction treatment, and women-centred approaches to harm reduction

* Introduce 4 resources that were developed out of the collaborative learning process

To register, please email: spederson@cw.bc.ca

To download the event's flyer, please go to this site.

See the ARM website explaining why the Association for Research on Mothering, The Journal of the Association for Research on Mothering and Demeter Press are closing May 1, 2010, due to York University’s refusal to provide base funding to the association, its journal and press. The Executive Officer of the Faculty of Liberal Arts and Professional Studies (FLAPS) has assured ARM that all membership and subscriptions for 2010 and beyond will be reimbursed on a pro-rated basis.

Deadline for applications is Friday, March 26, 2010

July 5-9, 2010

University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC

The Institute of Gender and Health's second annual summer institute for trainees will be held at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, BC from July 5-9, 2010. Applications are now being accepted for the 2010 Summer Institute. For information about the summer institute and how to apply:

CIHR Institute of Gender and Health 2010 Summer Institute.