Future women
SDG

Special Events

Discover the special events planned during the conference, offering unique opportunities for networking, collaboration, and engaging with industry leaders and fellow attendees.

Pre-Conference Workshop

Dr. Dominique Eugene

Dr. Dominique Eugene

Pre-Conference Publication Workshop on “Navigating Rejections”

Date: 09th October 2025 | Time: 03:00 PM – 04:00 PM IST

Overview:

Rejection is an inevitable part of any professional or academic journey—whether it’s a declined journal submission, job application, or funding proposal. Navigating rejections means developing the emotional resilience to handle setbacks, the critical thinking to learn from feedback, and the motivation to keep moving forward. This process transforms rejection from a discouragement into an opportunity for growth, refinement, and eventual success.

 Key Takeaways

  • Rejection is a normal and valuable part of growth
  • Learn to separate your work from your self-worth
  • Identify constructive feedback and use it to improve
  • Build emotional resilience and persistence
  • Create a strategy for revision and resubmission
Dr. Psyche Williams-Forson

Dr. Psyche Williams-Forson

Professor in the Department of American Studies at the University of Maryland College Park, USA.

Pre-Conference Publication Workshop on “Decolonizing the Pot: Gender, Race, and Power in Food Writing”

Date: 11th November 2025 | Time: 04:00 PM – 05:00 PM IST

Overview:

Decolonizing the Pot: Gender, Race, and Power in Food Writing” is a critical exploration of how food narratives and practices are deeply intertwined with issues of gender, race, and power. This topic delves into the ways in which colonial histories have shaped food cultures, often marginalizing or misrepresenting the culinary traditions of people of color. It challenges dominant food narratives by highlighting the contributions and experiences of marginalized communities, particularly focusing on how food writing can either perpetuate or resist these power dynamics.

Key Takeaways

  • Historical Context of Food Colonization
  • Intersection of Gender and Food
  • Power Dynamics in Food Narratives
  • Representation and Identity
  • Ethical Responsibility in Food Writing

Guided-to-Publish: Mastering the Art of Publication

Founding of Women’s Studies: An International Journal in 1972, and her experiences as the Editor for 54 years

Professor Wendy Martin is a scholar of American Literature and American Studies. During her distinguished career she has taught at Queens College, C.U.N.Y; Stanford University; the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; UCLA and the Claremont Graduate University where she served as the Chair of the Department of English for 24 years (1987-2010) (2018-19). She is also the Founding Director of the Transdisciplinary Studies Program (2005-2013), and she has served as the Chair of the Faculty Executive Committee (1998-2001) and the Director of the Tufts Poetry Awards (2010-2015).

Professor Martin is an internationally known scholar of American Literature with a focus on American Women Writers. She has written numerous scholarly articles and written and edited many scholarly books and short story and essay collections. One of her best known books is An American Triptych: The Lives and Work of Anne Bradstreet, Emily Dickinson, and Adrienne Rich.
Some of her other books include All Things Dickinson [2 volumes]: An Encyclopedia of Emily Dickinson’s World; Best of Times, Worst of Times: Contemporary American Short Stories from the New Gilded Age; The Cambridge Introduction to Emily Dickinson; We Are the Stories We Tell: The Best Short Stories by North American Women Writers Since 1945.

Professor Martin is the Founding Editor of Women’s Studies; An Interdisciplinary Journal (1972) which she continues to edit. The Journal is celebrating its 54th year of publication this year, and it publishes eight issues a year and is internationally distributed.

Professor Wendy Martin

Workshop Speaker

Panel Discussion

The Future of Feminist Activism – Strategies for driving change locally and globally. Closing the Gender Pay Gap – Addressing economic inequalities and reskilling for inclusivity

Anita singh

Centre for Women’s Studies and Development Banaras Hindu University
India

Prof. Anita Singh

Moderator

Centre for Women’s Studies and Development Banaras Hindu University
India

Assoc Prof. Tomoe Naito

Associate Professor, Faculty of Economics, Seikei University, Japan
Ph.D. in Public Economics

Assoc Prof. Tomoe Naito

Panel Speaker

Associate Professor, Faculty of Economics, Seikei University, Japan
Ph.D. in Public Economics

Founder and Chair Women’s International Foundation & Director Imperial Institute of Leadership and Strategy
Sri Lanka

Ms. Seroshi Nandasiri

Panel Speaker

Founder and Chair Women’s International Foundation & Director Imperial Institute of Leadership and Strategy
Sri Lanka

"Elephant in the Room”: A Small-Group Exercise

An “Elephant in the Room” generally refers to an issue that many people know is clearly present and important, but that nevertheless does not get openly addressed, usually because it is so difficult and/or unpleasant to discuss. With respect to gender, specific aspects of the following issues may sometimes often become the “elephant in the room.”

  • Gender stereotyping that we face every day as men/women/third gender
  • Everyday sexism
  • Domestic violence o Lack of Legal Protection
  • Lack of bodily autonomy
  • Political representation
  • Sexual and reproductive health
  • Property rights
  • Gender bias in education
  • Gender bias in the workplace

and so on (i.e., anything else conference-related, broadly defined.)

Anita singh

Centre for Women’s Studies and Development Banaras Hindu University
India

Prof. Anita Singh

Moderator

Centre for Women’s Studies and Development Banaras Hindu University
India

Open Networking Space

Visioning 2035: Women Shaping the Future

This Open Networking Space is designed to collectively envision where women should be by 2035, identify shared priorities across contexts, and co-create research collaborations, partnerships, and policy actions that can turn today’s ideas into future impact.

Our goal is not to solve everything today, but to clearly imagine the future we want to see and identify what must begin now to make that future possible.

There will be 3 main spaces will work through three interconnected spaces; all framed around the question:
What must change between now and 2035 for women to truly thrive?

  • Research & Knowledge – Visioning 2035
  • Partnerships & Collaboration – Visioning 2035
  • Policy, Practice & Implementation – Visioning 2035

The insights captured through the rapporteur reports from all tables will be consolidated into a post-conference Visioning 2035 Rapporteur Report, which will be published on the FOW website.

This report will not only serve as a record of collective thinking at FOW 2026, but will also directly inform the conceptual development, themes, and strategic direction of FOW 2027 and FOW 2028, ensuring continuity, learning, and long-term impact across editions of the conference.

The Visioning 2035 Open Networking Space is aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals—particularly SDG 5 on Gender Equality—and responds to the UN’s post-2025 focus on accelerating delivery, accountability, and sustainability of global commitments for women. The outcomes will also contribute to broader global women’s agendas, including the Beijing Platform for Action and Women, Peace and Security frameworks.

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