Women and Non-Alignment in the Cold War era: biographical and intersectional perspectives

WO-NAM aims to uncover the pivotal roles of women in the Non-Aligned Movement during the Cold War, reshaping historical narratives on women's rights and activism through extensive research and case studies.

Subsidie
€ 1.985.458
2023

Projectdetails

Introduction

WO-NAM will provide crucial insights into the history of women’s participation in the Non-Aligned Movement during the Cold War era, studying the roles of female leaders, women’s movements, and women’s organizations.

Objectives

It will redefine existing interpretations of Cold War history and historiography by conducting groundbreaking research on the significance of Non-Aligned networks in shaping transnational debates on women’s rights within international institutions.

Research Questions

Bringing together women’s and gender history, global history, and intellectual history, the project will answer the following research questions:

  1. What was the role of female activists and leaders within the Non-Aligned Movement?
  2. How did women’s organizations contribute to nation-building, modernization, and development in their respective Non-Aligned countries?
  3. What was the significance of the Non-Aligned Movement in transnational Cold War debates on women’s rights before and during the UN Decade for Women (1975–1985)?
  4. How did women’s internationalism within the Non-Aligned Movement contribute to an intersectional vision of women’s rights, which viewed women’s oppression as inseparable from wider global inequalities?

Methodology

WO-NAM will draw on rich and diverse archival collections on women’s activism in its focus on the case studies of Yugoslavia, Egypt, Tunisia, India, and Cuba.

Research Strands

It will have four research strands:

  • Female leaders and activists’ biographies
  • Grassroots and state-sponsored women’s organizations
  • International conferences at UN and NAM level
  • Transnational knowledge production

Significance

In taking Non-Aligned women’s networks as its vantage point, WO-NAM will be the first project to address how female leaders and activists from the Global East and the Global South intervened in a variety of international institutions that were part of, or affiliated to, the United Nations, in order to shape ongoing debates on women’s rights, family planning, and development.

Financiële details & Tijdlijn

Financiële details

Subsidiebedrag€ 1.985.458
Totale projectbegroting€ 1.985.458

Tijdlijn

Startdatum1-11-2023
Einddatum31-10-2028
Subsidiejaar2023

Partners & Locaties

Projectpartners

  • UNIVERSITA CA' FOSCARI VENEZIApenvoerder

Land(en)

Italy

Vergelijkbare projecten binnen European Research Council

ERC Consolid...

Women at work: for a comparative history of African female urban professions (Soudn, Tanzania and Ghana), 1919-1970

WomAtWork investigates the historical evolution of female urban professions in Ghana, Sudan, and Tanzania (1919-1970) to highlight women's labor significance and societal impacts through diverse sources.

€ 1.822.500
ERC Advanced...

Women in the Nordic Enlightenment: Changing the narratives of early modern philosophy and uncovering women’s contribution to Scandinavian gender equality

WHENCE aims to uncover and assess the overlooked contributions of Scandinavian women to the Nordic Enlightenment, reshaping narratives on gender equality and intellectual history.

€ 2.446.884
ERC Starting...

Reconciling Peace: International Coalitions for Peace in the Era of Decolonization, 1918-1970

RECONPAX examines how peace movements influenced and were influenced by decolonization and the Cold War, revealing their impact on international coalition-building from 1918-1970.

€ 1.496.675
ERC Starting...

The Micro-Level Effects of Civil Wars on Multiple Dimensions of Women's Empowerment

WarEffects seeks to systematically analyze how civil wars influence women's social and political empowerment at the local level through a comparative study in Colombia, DR Congo, and Sri Lanka.

€ 1.784.229
ERC Starting...

The History of Feminist Political Thought and Women’s Rights Discourses in East Central Europe 1929 - 2001

This project aims to create a comprehensive history of feminist political thought and women's rights in East Central Europe, integrating diverse sources and contexts to reinterpret its evolution alongside state socialism.

€ 1.494.129