International Women's Month, also known as Women’s History Month is a liberation campaign led by the Women’s Officer and Gender, Diversity & Inclusion Officer. The overarching goal of this campaign is to bring awareness to the systematic barriers experienced by women and understand the lived of experience of women in academia, the workplace and in third spaces. The campaign focuses on highlighting areas where we need accelerate action and provide spaces to uplift women driving change. With the aim of empowering and amplifying the voices of women through education and advocacy, the campaign will be centred on acceleration action on health disparities, gender-based violence and workplace equality.
Campaign Activities
ACTIVE BRUNEL X IWM: NEON RUN
This was an event held in conjunction with Active @Brunel on Tuesday 11th March. The event was run consisting of men and women, which each participant encouraged to wear neon clothing and accessories to bring awareness to women’s safety and danger women face while street running.
The objective is this event is to highlight women’s safety and bring awareness to women’s issues faced by women while running in the dark and street harassment. Further-more, the event will operate as space for women to collate and feel a sense of togetherness whilst also focusing on their health.
ACCELERATE ACTION: WOMEN’S HEALTH FAIR
This was an event held by the Gender, Diversity & Inclusion Officer, with support from Campaign Volunteers and Brunel Medical School on the afternoon of Thursday 27th March. The healthcare fair that focuses on the illnesses and long-term conditions experienced by women (e.g. PCOS, endometriosis, PMS/PMDD) breast cancer awareness, period poverty/pain and Jess’s law, HPV screening).
The aim of Women’s Health Fair was to accelerate action regarding women’s health. It focused on acceleration the early detection of women centred diseases such as breast cancer and cervical cancer though breast self-examinations and smear tests. The health fair also focused on acceleration action regarding the elimination of health disparities experience by women e.g. the pain gap and period poverty.
We engaged with over 400 students. We spoke 80+ students about HPV, smear test and why early detection is crucial in preventing cervical cancer. We spoke to over 100 students about PCOS, Endometriosis, Fibroids and Adenomyosis. We have over 50 male students step up to try their period pain simulator.