March 24 - 26, 2010

Toronto Marriott Downtown Eaton Centre Hotel, Toronto, ON

Rainbow Health Ontario is hosting provincial conference to address the health and wellness issues of lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans (LGBT) communities in Ontario.

Check out the latest research, health promotion, clinical and policy ideas. Learn about innovative programs and services. Network with leaders in LGBT health and social services from Ontario and beyond. View and select your workshops from a wide variety of informative presentations!

Space is limited. Register Today!

Full conference program and online registration are available on the website.

The WHRN is proud to offer four primers focused on key areas and innovative approaches in girls' and women's health and gender and health research. These documents have circulated around the globe, and have been downloaded over 2000 times to date!

The latest WHRN Primer - Our Common Ground: Cultivating Women's Health Through Community Based Research is now available! To receive a hard copy, send a self-addressed envelope before March 25th (dimensions: 9 1/2" x 13 1/2") + affix $3.00 in postage for shipment in Canada to:

Provincial Coordinator - Women's Health Research Network
Simon Fraser University - Harbour Centre Campus
Room 3277, 515 West Hastings Street
Vancouver, BC   V6B 5K3

Click here to download the free PDF.

The BC Yukon Society of Transition Houses is a non-profit umbrella organization providing leadership, support and capacity building to the anti-violence sector within BC and the Yukon, focusing on both short and longer-term transition housing and support services for women experiencing violence, as well as services for children and youth exposed to violence. We provide training, program support and advocacy to our membership. 

BCYSTH works from an Intersectional Feminist Framework incorporating a critical lens to the systems of power. Without ranking, we identify power as including our experience with and ability to access systems, our social or economic status, ability, Aboriginal, citizenship/nationalities, class, education, ethnicity, experience of colonization, gender, geographic location, health, occupation, refugee/immigrant status, religion, and sexuality. BCYSTH acknowledges that this is not exhaustive. _Draft

The position of Director, Operations & Women’s Services is a full-time permanent position. This position is expected to provide leadership and direction in the area of women’s programs and services within the organization. 

This is a permanent, full time position (35 hours per week) located in Vancouver. This position reports to the Executive Director. Salary will be based on experience. Some evening and weekend work will be required. Please submit your resume and a one page cover letter by 9AM pm PST on Monday, March 15, 2010 to Executive Director at employment@bcysth.ca.  No phone calls, please.  Only those shortlisted will be contacted.        

See the full job description here.

Deadline: April 15, 2010

Co-editors Adebe D.A. and Andrea Thompson are seeking submissions for an anthology of writing by and about mixed-race women of Black/white heritage, intended for publication, by Inanna Publications, in Fall 2010.

The purpose of this anthology is to explore the question of how Black/white mixed-race women in North America identify in the 21st Century. The anthology will also serve as a place to learn about the social experiences, attitudes, and feelings of others, and what racial identity has come to mean today. We are inviting previously unpublished submissions that engage, document, and/or explore the experiences of being mixed-race, by placing interraciality as the center, rather than periphery, of analysis.

If you have any questions about this project, please contact the Editors, Adebe DeRango-Adem and Andrea Thompson, at othertonguesanthology@gmail.com.

More info and guidelines at: www.adebe.wordpress.com and www.andreathompson.ca.

We look forward to reviewing your submission!

You think the status of women isn't improving?   Or you think we’re equal?
You might be surprised.

You are invited to a summary presentation of the 2010 Status Report – Women in New Brunswick, a statistical profile published every 2 years. 

Lunch & Learn, 12 noon to 1:30 pm

Campbellton -  Tues. 9 March 2010, Howard Johnson, in English - Rosella Melanson, ACSW.

Caraquet – mercredi 10 mars 2010, Hôtel Super 8, en français - Rosella Melanson, CCCF.
Edmundston – lundi 15 mars 2010, Pavillon Simon-Larouche, local 532, Univ. de Moncton, campus d’Edmundston, en français - Wendy Johnston, CCCF.

Moncton – 15 mars/ 15 March 2010, Delta Beauséjour, bilingue/ bilingual – Rosella Melanson, CCCF/ACSW 

Saint John – Market Square Public Library, Mon. 22 March 2010, in English, Wendy Johnston, ACSW

Sackville – Tues. 23 March 2010, Tantramar Civic Centre, in English -  Wendy Johnston, ACSW
Fredericton -  Wed. 24 March 2010, Wilmot United Church (Carleton & King), in English - Rosella Melanson, ACSW.

Light lunch provided. 
FREE but you must pre-register: email your name, phone, group/work affiliation & which session you’ll attend, to: acswcccf@gnb.ca.
Wear NO SCENTS

Organized by the New Brunswick Advisory Council on the Status of Women

In celebration of International Women’s Day (IWD), IDRC's 40th anniversary, and the 15th anniversary of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, the International Development Research Centre is hosting a half-day event in Ottawa on Tuesday March 9, 2010. The event is being led by IDRC’s Women’s Rights and Citizenship (WRC) and Rural Poverty and Environment (RPE) programs, and the Staff Association.

The international IWD theme for 2010 is “Equal Rights, Equal Opportunities: Progress for All.”

This event will build on IDRC’s participation in the 54th session of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (CSW), and will provide a forum for IDRC’s partners to present their research findings and recommendations on key issues linked to the IWD theme. It will also encourage public discussion and exchange on the issues.

The event will feature the participation of Hon. Helena Guergis, Minister of State for Women, and Ms. Margaret Biggs, President of CIDA and IDRC Board Member. It will also include the following two panels which will feature IDRC-supported researchers:

· Vision for a Better World: From Economic Crisis to Equality

· Gendered Terrain: Women’s Rights and Access to Land

Please RSVP to wrc@idrc.ca no later than March 5, should you wish to attend.

Agenda and further details are available on the IDRC website.

For more information on IDRC’s participation in the 54^th session of the Commission on the Status of Women, please visit the website.

Tuesday March 9 at 6pm
The Centre for Women and Trans People
563 Spadina Cres (south of Harbord), Toronto ON

This workshop is FREE!

Join Chelsey Lichtawoman of The Fat Femme Mafia in an interactive workshop that will explore new ways of celebrating our bodies just as they are. We will deconstruct why the media wants us all to look like Paris Hilton, and discuss how to create and maintain body positivity in the face of the all-consuming diet industry.  The workshop will also examine myths and stereotypes around health, learning to create our own media, and will also feature a viewing of the short documentary Rubb My Chubb (Alexis Mitchell 2007) that was made about The Fat Femme Mafia that has screened in festivals across the world.

Bio: Chelsey Lichtawoman is the co-founder of the fat activist and performance troupe The Fat Femme Mafia and has been touring and performing across Canada for years.. She was also the host and curator of Granny Boots, the weekly radical queer performance night at the Gladstone Hotel. Chelsey recently had her first photography show entitled All About Her: versions of the woman exposed, which showcased her photos of Toronto queers. She can be reached at chelsey.lichtman@gmail.com.

March 18 at 12 p.m. Eastern, Dayna Scott, co-director of  National Network on Environments and Women’s Health, will discuss gender and environmental health, with a focus on research on the Aamjiwnnaang First Nation, a community of approximately 1000 Aanishinaabek people living on a reserve in the midst of Canada’s largest petro-chemical complex.

March 24 at 12 p.m. Eastern, CWHN and Prairie Women’s Health Centre of Excellence welcome Elaine Enarson, who will present Women, Gender and disaster: What’s the Connection? Enarson is a disaster sociologist and a founding member of Gender and Disaster Network Canada.

Please email info@cwhn.ca to register for one or both of these webinars.

International Women’s Day Bilingual Round Table
Monday March 8, 2010
12:00 to 1:30 pm
Lions Community Centre, 473 St. George St, Moncton

With:
David Alward, PC
Roger Duguay, NDP
Kelly Lamrock, Lib
Jack MacDougall, Green

Light lunch provided.
FREE but you must pre-register: Email acswcccf@gnb.ca or call 1-800-332-3087.

Wear NO SCENTS

Organized by:
Coalition for Pay Equity, Regroupement féministe du N.-B., N.B. Child Care Coalition,  N.B. Advisory Council on the Status of Women, Common Front for Social Justice and Moncton District & Labour Council.

OTTAWA – Labour and women’s groups have issued a report which they say is a “reality check” describing Canada’s lagging performance in achieving women’s equality. The report will be used at the Beijing +15 meeting at the United Nations in New York, March 1-12.

“Canadian women have lost ground in many areas in the past 15 years,” says Barbara Byers, CLC Executive Vice-president. “Our government has sent a report to the United Nations that paints a rosy picture on women’s equality in Canada. We have written our own document and it is a reality check on what the government is saying.”

Read the press release here.

Read the full report here.

The International Day Against Homophobia, held on May 17 every year, is a rallying event offering an opportunity for people to get together and reach out to one another. Fondation Émergence promotes, mainly on a pan-Canadian level, the International Day Against Homophobia and encourages organisations and individuals to highlight this event in their environment.

Find out more here.

CPHA, a voluntary, non-governmental organization, was formed 100 years ago by a small group of doctors who were concerned about the state of public health in Canada. CPHA was constituted through an Act of Parliament and held its first annual conference at McGill University in December 1911, attended by the Governor General, the Prime Minister of Canada and the Premier of Quebec.

Visit the site.

Ka Ni Kanichihk Inc is pleased to have received funding from Canadian Heritage to initiate a new project called “Aboriginal Women and Girls: Reclaiming Our Power” over the next year. Our women and young girls continue to experience exponential rates of violence. Reclaiming Our Power has been designed to help influence positive change through education, leadership development, and advocacy.

As we begin this journey we are currently seeking Aboriginal women to participate in a 9-week interactive and participatory training program that will focus on learning through women’s teachings and ceremony as a means to develop personal and professional leadership. Participants will:
- be interested in learning about and strengthening cultural identity and reclamation practices
- be committed to personal healing, development, and life long learning
- open to sharing their strengths, skills and gifts with other women
- be able and committed to the full 9 weeks The Group will meet once/week Tuesday evenings.

The first session is planned for Tuesday, January 26th @ 5pm at Ka Ni Kanichihk 455 McDermot Ave., Winnipeg. Please forward the attached registration form to women you feel would be interested in participating in this group.

Dear Friends:

The Royal Commission Report on the Status of Women was published in September 28, 1970. This year marks the fortieth anniversary of this significant and amazing event that changed all our lives. Forty years later, it is time to celebrate this historical achievement and to reassess and reconsider the progress of women’s equality and to celebrate the many achievements that women and men have made towards equality.

We are sending this letter to our friends and networks to bring into your awareness this landmark anniversary so that you can network and celebrate with your friends, family, organizations and remind them of this amazing and historic Canadian feminist milestone. Those were amazing times for so many of us. When we realized that forty years have gone by, it left us reflecting on how to celebrate the many achievements that have been made towards full equality in Canadian society. We are also concerned about how to let the next generation of women (and men) know about these achievements.

So, at this stage, we are interested in creating a massive online community brainstorm; we envision a renaissance of reclaiming those achievements, celebrating them in numerous fashions by creating a diversity of projects, and in general, having a whole lot of fun. Such a renaissance is needed to reclaim and empower the generations that were not actively part of that time, to know more about their own history and how much has changed, and what has been done for them and for future generations.

Some of the things we have been imagining in various conversations include: films, theatre pieces, interviews with women who participated, statistics on how far we’ve come, reviewing the recommendations that were in the actual report, and engaging governments and media to help us celebrate.

We are planting the seeds of these ideas and we are sure you will also have many of your own. Sending this letter is just an initial step in what we envision as a wonderful celebration. Let us know what you think; your ideas, your own visions, and please feel free to share this letter with the many wonderful people in your life that you think might be interested. Thanks so much!!

Carol Gordon and Luanne Armstrong

40yearslater@gmail.com

In this 2009 report by Amnesty International examining the issue of young women dying in childbirth, the authors say, “Poverty drives maternal mortality, and maternal death and injury drive families further into poverty. Complications of pregnancy and childbirth rarely kill affluent women from developed countries. Governments must mobilize the resources and take other necessary steps to ensure that all women enjoy their right to life, their right to determine the number and spacing of their children, and their right to the highest attainable standard of health, all without discrimination.”

Read the report.

August 7 - 29, 2010
Eugene, Oregon, USA

Mobility International USA (MIUSA) will host the 5th International Women's Institute on Leadership and Disability (WILD) in August 2010, bringing together approximately 25 women leaders with disabilities to strengthen leadership skills, create new visions and build international networks of support.

Apply Early! We expect to review a large number of applications for a limited number of openings. Limited scholarships may be available based on applicant's demonstrated financial need.

Application deadline is March 1, 2010.

For more information, visit MIUSA.

On the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Canadian Public Health Association (CPHA), health professionals, researchers, and policy-makers from across the country and around the world will meet in Toronto to celebrate a century of achievements. CPHA and our collaborators invite you to its Centennial Conference to be held June 13-16, 2010.

For Early Registration Savings, register online by February 26, 2010!

For further information, please contact:

CPHA Conference Department Phone: 613-725-3769 ext 126, email: conference@cpha.ca

The preliminary program and online registration are available here.

Deadline: Abstracts must be submitted by email to admin@canadianmidwives.org no later than March 31^st 2010 at 5:00pm (EST). Faxed or mailed abstracts will not be accepted.

The Canadian Association of Midwives Annual Conference will take place October 6-8, 2010 at Sutton Place Hotel in Edmonton, AB. This year we will focus on a theme that is inspiring new research, passion and debate in maternity care and research circles in many countries today: The Place of Birth. Invited Canadian and international speakers will bring current findings and expert perspectives on various birth settings, the safety of home birth and the impact of birthplace on maternity care politics, practices and outcomes.

CAM/ACSF invites abstract submissions for oral and poster presentations on this theme and other scientific, philosophical and clinical topics of importance to practicing midwives and maternity care providers, students, educators and health policy makers.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us: cam_acsf@bellnet.ca

For more information about the conference, visit our website.

For detailed instructions on how to submit an abstract, please consult the attached PDF document.

Prairie Women’s Health Centre of Excellence (PWHCE) is preparing to conduct research on older and elderly women’s use of prescription drugs and natural health products to learn about women’s current priorities and information needs, with the intent of providing additional information to women and to health planners.

The study will build on existing knowledge of women’s health researchers and gather views from women aged 65 and older, living in rural and urban communities. Particular focus may be given to the needs of women living alone, and/or in low-income circumstances, and others living in circumstances that confer risk. PWHCE is currently conducting a literature review, scanning for available resources, and formulating a study design in preparation for consultation with partners in the Spring.

We are looking for input on qualitative research methods that are effective, appropriate and sensitive to this population.

If you have ‘best’ or ‘good practices’ to share, or are involved in related research concerning older women and pharmaceutical/natural health product use or prescribing practice, we would be very interested to hear from you.

Please contact:
Harpa Isfeld, Senior Researcher 
Prairie Women's Health Centre of Excellence (PWHCE)
Email: harpa.isfeld@gmail.com
Home Office Phone: (604) 898-9172
Cellular Phone: (604) 848-4033

The Women's Health Research Network invites you to join in our upcoming event on March 1, 2010, 2 - 4pm

You may attend at any one of five sites:
Kamloops - Thompson Rivers University
Kelowna - UBC Okanagan
Prince George - UNBC
Vancouver - SFU Harbour Centre Campus
Victoria - University of Victoria

Register now! This final event will include speakers and a networking tea at each site, plus a videoconference linking all of the locations for short talks by the WHRN's Co-Leaders, including a presentation of the new WHRN Legacy Report.

RSVP to sdixon@whrn.ca.

For more information about the WHRN, please visit our website.

March 1, 2010
University of Toronto

Join us for the 2010 David Archibald Lecture, hosted by the Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse at the University of Toronto on March 1, 2010.

Alcohol: Shared and Competing Values will explore the ethical considerations, diverse values and various positions underlying discussions around collaborations aimed at addressing alcohol-related harms between the following groups:
- health care organizations;
- community agencies;
- academic and research institutions; and
- the alcohol industry.

This lecture will be relevant to all those who work within the field of substance abuse, from health promotion, support and outreach, counselling, withdrawal management and clinical supervision to allied professionals who interact with individuals who have substance abuse issues.

Location:
University of Toronto, 40 St. George Street
Room 1130, Bahen Centre, Toronto, Ontario

Time:    
5:30 to 7:00 p.m. (Lecture)
7:00 to 8:00 p.m. (Reception)

Two Ways to Participate:
In person: be part of the live audience at U of T’s Bahen Centre Lecture Hall
Remotely: join us via live interactive webcast. 

Please note, participation is free and no preregistration is required.

For more information, please vsit our website.

Wednesday, March 3, 2010 at 5:30 p.m.

Alumni Auditorium, 85 University Private, University of Ottawa

The Institute of Women’s Studies of the University of Ottawa is pleased to invite you to the Shirley Greenberg Annual Lecture in Women’s Studies given by Andrea Smith, PhD, Assistant Professor, Department of Media and Cultural Studies, University of California, Riverside.

Andrea Smith is a co-founder of INCITE! Women of Color against Violence and the Boarding School Healing Project. She is the author of Conquest: Sexual Violence and American Indian Genocide and Native Americans and the Christian Right: The Gendered Politics of Unlikely Alliances. She is also editor of The Revolution will not be funded: Beyond the Non-profit Industrial Complex and The Color of Violence.

FREE ADMISSION

INFO : womenst@uOttawa.ca

It’s no longer news, but the percentage of women living in poverty is growing.

Monica Townson is an independent economic consultant on social policy and a frequent guest on television and radio. She is a former consultant to the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe. Books by Monica Townson are: Report Card on Women & Poverty;  Pensions Under Attack; Growing Older, Working Longer: The New Face of Retirement;  Health and Wealth.

Monday March 8, 2010
12:30 to 2 pm
Wilmot United Church, corner Carleton and King Sts, Fredericton

Light lunch provided.

FREE but you must pre-register: Email acswcccf@gnb.ca or call .

Wear NO SCENTS

New Brunswick Advisory Council on the Status of Women

NOTE:  Monica Townson will also speak on Women and the Recession, on Monday, March 8, 7 pm, Edmund Casey Hall, Ted Daigle Auditorium, St. Thomas University. Free. 

Sponsored by Atlantic Human Rights Centre; NB Advisory Council on the Status of Women; NB Executive Council Women’s Issues Branch; NB Dept of Social Development and St. Thomas University Women’s Studies & Gender Studies Programme

Deadline for submission: July 31, 2010

Papers are invited for a Special Issue on Women's Health and Public Policy edited by Dr. Toba Bryant, Health Studies, Department of Social Sciences, University of Toronto Scarborough.

Manuscripts may address the full range of health topics as they pertain to public policies about women's health. Particularly welcome are papers that address the social determinants of health for women and their policy implications. Also welcome are manuscripts that address issues relating to public education, and health care programs and services that meet the specific needs of diverse groups of women living and working in urban or urbanizing areas.

The Special Issue is scheduled for publication in May 2011, as Vol. X, Issue 1.  To submit a manuscript, send an e-copy followed by four hard-copies of your manuscript. Papers should not exceed 30 pages including all references, tables and appendices. All submissions will be peer reviewed by anonymous reviewers.

For more information, you may also contact Dr. Bryant at the following address:
Dr. Toba Bryant, Assistant Professor, Health Studies
Department of Social Sciences, University of Toronto Scarborough
1265 Military Trail, Toronto, ON Canada M1C 1A4
tbryant@utsc.utoronto.ca

For more information, visit our website.

The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) of the Amercian Psychiatric Association is under revision for the fifth edition. A wide variety of disorders are being examined for possible revisions, including Sexual and Gender Identity Disorders. The Sexual and Gender Identity Disorders Work Group invites review and comment on these disorders. These are initial drafts of the recommendations made to date by the DSM-5 Work Group.  Viewers will be able to submit comments until April 20, 2010. After that time, this site will be available for viewing only.

To see the proposed changes, see Sexual and Gender Identity Disorders.

For proposed changes for other disorders, visit this site.