About Sophia
Sophia wants to stimulate research and education in gender studies, while establishing contacts between the Dutch and French speaking communities in Belgium and between the women's movement and the academic world.
Origin
- 1989: the idea of setting up a network to coordinate feminist studies in Belgium was born at the international symposium on “Concepts et réalités des études féministes” (Concepts and reality of feminist studies), which was organised by GRIF.
- 1990: A small group of French and Dutch speaking scholars and feminist activists joined forces and created the Sophia network
General Objectives
- promoting and developing gender research and education in Belgium
- highlighting the scientific value of gender studies
- demonstrating the importance of gender studies for developing
adequate equality policies
Specific Objectives
- building bridges between researchers working in various academic centres
- connecting the women's movement and the scientific community
- bringing together individuals from Belgium's different linguistic communities
Target group
- individuals working in academia: researchers, lecturers, students ...
- individuals engaged in political, social or cultural organisations committed to gender studies, feminism, equality and/or diversity.
Activities
Symposia
- give a s state of affairs of gender studies in Belgium or review the gender research produced on a specific topic
- offer a critical analysis of feminist theory
- give researchers a platform to network and to present and discuss their work
Sophia's Nights
- focus on 'new' or controversial themes and debates in Belgian gender research
- offer a space where researchers, students, activists, etc. can meet each other
Our e-newsletter and website
- provide general information about gender studies in Belgium and cover research, publications, call for papers, training seminars and symposia
- provide information on the past, present and future of feminist and gender studies in Belgium
- make Sophia's publications, videos and podcasts available online
International contacts
- Sophia is a member of the Atgender network and participates in its activities.
Organisational structure
- Sophia is a bilingual non-profit organization
- Sophia is sponsored by the Institute for Equality between Women and Men
