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Description
United Nations research on development shows that women are not as visible in public and cultural spaces as men. They are less often invited to serve as experts on TV, and are rarely the protagonists in our history books. Women on the research team with the UPGEM project working in the field of physics described hardships in their careers due to gender stereotypes. They spoke about the lack of role models, which caused them to feel „like they don’t belong,” despite talent, knowledge and their accomplishments. The research concluded that having the ability to relate to the example of other women working in a given field strengthens the morale, increasing their chances to get involved in the public sphere. That is why our goal is to highlight women in sciences and public life to the citizens of Łódź. We will interview the 1981 hunger march participants, the largest and often forgotten demonstration from the Polish People’s Republic era in Łódź. Mothers with children were at the helm of the march. The most inspiring stories will be published in a book form. During the summer vacation season, we will organize an urban game dedicated to women rebels (which was a name given to the participants of the hunger march), and those working in public life. The goal is to showcase the tradition of women’s activism and women Łódź that worked for the public benefit. The game will be directed to the youth, seniors, and young families.
Summary of project results
Research by the United Nations Development Programme shows that women are not as visible as men in culture and public spaces. They are less often invited on television as experts and rarely appear as heroines in history books. In research by the UPGEM science project team, women in physics described career difficulties they experienced due to gender stereotypes. They spoke of an acute lack of role models that made them feel ''out of place'' when exploring physics despite their talent, knowledge, and achievements. This research concludes that it is empowering for other women to be able to relate to the example of a woman active in a particular field, and, consequently, this increases the chance of their involvement in public affairs. This is why, with our activities, we wanted to make the presence of women in science and the public sphere more visible to the citizens and residents of Łódź.
We interviewed participants of the 1981 hunger march, which was the largest but often forgotten demonstration of the communist period in Lodz. At its head were women with children in prams. We published the most inspiring stories in the form of a book. We also organized an urban game dedicated to women rebels (this is what the participants of the hunger march are called) and those active in public life. It aimed to show the tradition of women''s activities, present socially engaged female citizens of Łódź, and present civic activism activities in a friendly form. The game was aimed at young people, seniors, and families with children.
In addition, we organized workshops focusing on everyday heroines. At these workshops, participants were able to present women from their families who were important to them, and on this basis, the reasons for women''s low involvement in public life were discussed.
From the evaluation surveys, we know that, through our activities, we have managed to break down stereotypes among residents/others and show women as heroines to be emulated. In addition, we were able to effectively counteract the exclusion of senior citizens. In our project, they played a key role. They told us many of their stories or reflections and even shared their photos. We remain in regular contact with them so that we often recommend them to the local media when, for example, they want to write about the hunger march.