The Mary Robinson Centre welcomes our First Visiting Scholar, Professor Jane Freedman from Université de Paris

This week The Mary Robinson Centre welcomes its first International Visiting Scholar Jane Freedman.  Jane is Professor of Politics at Université de Paris 8, where she leads major international research projects on asylum and migration and violence against women.  She is also a Specialist in Gender Equality with UNESCO, Paris on issues relating to: Women asylum and migration; Prevention of violence against women; Gender, peace and security; and Women’s political participation, and has published extensively in both English and French.

Today, Tuesday 14th of June, in conjunction with The Centre for Global Women’s Studies, NUI Galway, we hosted a public book launch for Professor Freedman for her most recent book: Gender, Violence and Politics in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (Ashgate, 2015).  During the launch, Jane spoke about the complexities of both the war and gender based violence (both in conflict and non conflict zones) in the DRC, stating "There is no one explanation for gender or any other sort of violence," and described some of the intricacies of issues facing the country.  The talk was absolutely fascinating and left the audience keen to find out more! 

During her time as Visiting Scholar at The Mary Robinson Centre, Professor Freedman will be speaking at two further events this week. 

Friday 17th of June - Professor Freedman is speaking at Inclusive Centenaries, an event hosted in collaboration between NUI Galway, the Galway County Council Intercultural Forum and The Mary Robinson Centre, in Galway. This event will include three workshops aimed at an enhanced understanding among the wider community and decision makers about the experiences and perspectives of members of the asylum/refugee community in Ireland in 2016, especially of people living in direct provision. Mary Robinson, David Stanton TD, Minister of State for Justice with responsibility for Equality, Immigration and Integration and former Justice Bryan McMahon are also among the line-up of keynote speakers at the Inclusive Centenaries conference.

Saturday 18th of June – The National Museum of Ireland, Country Life is hosting a full day workshop Immigration and Ireland with a focus on women. It will explore the impact of immigrant policies on individuals and communities in Irish society and Professor Freedman will be giving the keynote address “Women's Experiences in New and Ongoing Refugee Crises.” It is organised as part of the Museum’s temporary exhibition Migrant Women - Shared Experiences. http://www.museum.ie/Country-Life/Events-Projects/Seminar-Immigration-and-Ireland

In addition to the activities above, Professor Freedman will also spend time during the week collaborating with The Mary Robinson Centre and the Centre for Global Women's Studies to generate commentaries, essays and articles that will be disseminated after her visit.  We are absolutely delighted to have Professor Freedman join us and look forward to hearing her share insight and knowledge at our events later in the week.
 
About the Visiting Scholars Programme:
The Mary Robinson Centre hosts the International Visiting Scholars Programme in partnership with the Centre for Global Women’s Studies, National University of Ireland Galway.  The Visiting Scholars initiative is a vital component of the academic programme and aims to bring together international scholars, experienced practitioners, and engaged communities to generate new thinking to effectively address pressing global issues.  A commitment to promoting women’s participation and leadership in implementing the sustainable development goals and devising human rights-based solutions to contemporary challenges, especially in relation to conflict, forced migration and sustainable livelihoods – underpins The Mary Robinson Centre’s International Visiting Scholars programme.