INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY
fied 10 psychological pillars that the ultra-successful have ingrained in their approach. Beginning with the impor- tance of ‘belonging’, referencing Dame Kelly Holmes, and ending on ‘gratitude’, demonstrated by the Ironman athlete Lucy Gossage, Josie took us through her top 10 inspirational sports women and the 10 pillars of success they embrace. In her parting message Josie left us with a The way forward is through collective responsibility, solidarity and active allyship set of top tips for allyship; these included listening, check- ing subconscious behaviours, sharing our social capital, considering impact rather than intention, questioning, and watching more women’s sports! In ‘Does my bump look big in this?’ Guest speaker, Amy Wilson, asked History Soc to consider pregnancy through time and how clothing has reflected the social constructs around the space and place of women as the child bear- ers. From great pains taken to hiding the bump to full- frontal Vogue nudes, Amy explored common misconcep- tions and revealed historical truths that challenged what we thought we knew about the supposedly ‘most natural thing in the world’. The annual Art Tea Party, paying homage to Judy Chica- go’s now infamous feminist art work, provided a space – over tea and cakes – for pupils and teachers to discuss the invisible women artists, objectivation and the male gaze. In Science pupils investigated ‘Who am I?’ in an activity involving question prompts to support figuring out the fa- mous scientists through time and the percentage of these who are women. A LitSoc talk on Medea explored feminist interpretations of Euripides’ dramatic representation of a woman’s mistreatment and her ruthless revenge. And in Philosophy Circle, a talk on Feminist Ethics in the 20th century spot- lighted the movement away from traditional deontology. Celebrating the extraordinary mathematician, Britney Gallivan, and her legendary formula to calculate how many times you can fold a piece of paper, Maths Soc posed this challenge. We are awaiting the results with anticipation. In a talk on classical Greek tragedy,
This year’s International Women’s Day celebrated the amazing women who have contributed to the College over its 400 years. A place to share and space to care were our central themes for International Women’s Day (IWD) 2023, writes Sue Mulholland
W e launched the week with assemblies co-led by women and men of Dulwich. The messag- ing was celebratory, whilst also reminding us that though we have come a long way, there is still work to be done, and the way forward is through collective responsibility, solidarity and active allyship. ‘My invitation and my encouragement to those of you who believe that gender equity is not only morally right but also inherently desirable – for all of us, men and women, and for your sisters, partners and future daughters – is to do, or to continue to do, the small things that cumulatively make a huge difference.’ Marina Instone, first female History teacher at Dulwich College (Assembly, IWD ‘Space and Place’). The themes evolved all week in our lessons, clubs, so- cieties and events, which provided spaces to celebrate, discuss, listen and learn. We explored the hidden histo- ries, found out about invisible women and celebrated the contributions of women in all spaces of work, profession- al and pastoral, local and global, past and present. Women of Dulwich ‘It is hard to imagine that the first female teacher arrived at the College just 54 years ago … Happily, for women and the wider community, the College is now a much more inclusive and accepting institution.’ Fiona Angel, Senior Deputy The Women of Dulwich installation shared a collection of experiences, stories and glimpses into the past and present women of Dulwich College. Our brief stemmed from conversations with pupils, staff and many of the women who work in the College, as well as (arguably less
wellknown) women and events in our Archive. The in- stallation responded to the curiosity about how it feels to occupy traditionally male spaces, and whilst this inaugural exhibition did not feature every woman in the College, it endeavoured to include a cross-section that is in part representative. We envisage this as inspiration for further questions and conversations that will benefit all of us on our wider mission towards gender equity, equality and respect.
Dr Croally challenged the idea of gendered space, and Econ Soc dissected the work of Mariana Mazzucato, who has undertaken groundbreaking research on the role of the state in creating new innovations such as smartphones and GPS. We ended the week looking at ‘A Woman’s Place’ in art through the lens of Pipilotti Rist and Vivienne Westwood, and Climate Change Society questioned, is Greta Thun- berg still relevant? Thank you for engaging with the activities for International Women’s Day (IWD). There’s a powerful symbolism in us celebrating IWD across a full week. But we know that questions of gender equity demand 52 weeks of our attention rather than just one. Joseph Spence ◎
A key note… The women who have shaped the space for women in sport: what can we learn from them? Josephine Perry Keynote speaker, Dr Josephine Perry (Josie), spends her life working with exceptional performers and has identi-
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