BISA and PSA Workshop: Gender, race and the intersections of precarity - an interactive workshop

This workshop will reflect on the uniqueness of the gendered and racialised experiences of women academics. The workshop will be led by a collective of postgraduate, early- and mid-career women academics in politics, IR and education from around the UK. Drawing on their experience and evidence-based work, we will explore a range of issues that fall under the umbrella of gender, race and precarity across our disciplines. Topics explored will cover: equality, diversity and inclusion efforts and representation in UK higher education; The impact of Covid-19 on caring responsibilities, career projection and mental health; Rapid adjustments to methods and/in the research field; Critical interrogations of precarity in academia; and Challenges of internationalisation and mobility during and after the Covid-19 era.

The workshop is a special event that coincides with the start of the BISA 2022 Conference. It will include:

• a roundtable with the research collective, a mentoring and networking luncheon with mid-career and senior academic women;
• small-group sessions that provide open space to share experiences, concerns and solutions to some of these persistent issues in the discipline; and
• a closing session that links the issues raised in the blog series with the experiences shared and solutions generated at the workshop. 

As we reflect on what survival means for our discipline, our research and ourselves in a post-pandemic era, this workshop facilitates much-needed conversations and generates both ideas and solutions that all allow for greater diversity, access and inclusion in international studies scholarship. This is a call to action that encourages meaningful dialogue that leads to lasting change, and we look forward to welcoming you to Newcastle and to our collective project!

Event Outline

• 12:30 - 1:30 – Mentoring and networking lunch, with BISA and PSA EDI Welcome and EDI introduction and a welcome from members of the new collective
• 1:30 - 1:45 – Break
• 1:45 - 2:45 – Small group workshop – brainstorming sessions to share personal stories, observations and experiences, and generate implementable solutions to ongoing issues in academia
• 2:45 - 3:00 – Break (tea, coffee and light refreshments)
• 3:00 - 4:00 – Final session to share small group findings and next steps with our collective with BISA and PSA

This workshop is open to current BISA members, current PSA members and #BISA2022 conference attendees only. 

Conference delegates must register to attend via this page in addition to your conference registration as we need to have numbers in advance