Media and public outreach
Press, articles and public activities.
2024
New Women Leaders, Same Old International Politics
The world’s top political personnel are increasingly feminist. Policy is another matter.
Link to the article here.
Homophobia in Africa: The American far-right's footprint
Investigations reveal how American far-right activists are contributing to rising anti-LGBTQ+ sentiment in Africa. With funding and support from Uganda to Nigeria, they're influencing laws and public opinion.
Link to the article here.
US Christian right has taken aim at LGBTIQ+ rights, sex education and abortion in Africa – new book
A new book – The US Christian Right and Pro-Family Politics in 21st Century Africa – reveals the role played by some right wing US Christian groups in trying to spread their social and moral influence in African countries. Sociologist Haley McEwen, who specialises in the subject, answers five questions about her book.
Link to the article here.
Den feministiska utrikespolitiken gav Sverige ett gott renommé i världen
Published 2024-01-28.
Link to the article here.
Den feministiska utrikespolitiken gjorde visst skillnad!
När regeringen under 2022 valde att slopa Sveriges feministiska utrikespolitik, menade utrikesminister Tobias Billström att politiken var en etikett snarare än ett verktyg och att det inte skulle göra så stor skillnad på innehållet att slopa den. Men det stämmer helt enkelt inte, säger Anna Berggren, Diakonias policyrådgivare inom jämställdhet och det civila samhällets demokratiska utrymme. 2024-01-16.
See the video here and read more here.
2023
Implementing a Feminist Foreign Policy: Lessons from Sweden
Webinar organized by the Expert Group for Aid Studies (EBA). The webinar was about the EBA report More Than a Label, Less Than a Revolution: Sweden’s Feminist Foreign Policy, exploring the bilateral implementation of Sweden’s feminist foreign policy. 2023-11-15.
Revisiting Feminist Foreign Policy: Exploring Sweden’s Journey and the Power of the ‚F‘-Word
Online event organized by Polis180. The online event had the aim to critically examine the concept of feminist foreign policy, with a specific focus on Sweden’s experience, in order to explore the meaning and significance of the „F“-word. 2023-10-25.
Read more about the event here.
Avskaffandet av den feministiska utrikespolitiken
Interpellation debate in Sweden's Riksdag about the abolition of feminist foreign policy in Sweden. 2023-09-29.
See the debate here.
Feministisk utrikespolitik har visst gett resultat
När den nya regeringen drog tillbaka den feministiska utrikespolitiken cirkulerade motstridiga och ofta felaktiga påståenden om vad den innebär. Både kritikerna och förespråkarna har fel. Det var inte bara "plakatpolitik" - och den kommer heller inte skrotas nu i sin helhet. Publicerad 2023-08-29.
Link to the article here.
2022
Margot Wallström: Feministisk udenrigspolitik kan ikke bremses
I 2014 blev den såkaldt feministiske udenrigspolitik født i Sverige og gjorde landet verdenskendt som ligestillingens pionér. Nu har den nye regering lagt den i graven. Sverige vil miste sin førerposition, men ideen lever videre, siger Margot Wallström. Publicerad 2022-12-03.
Link to the article here.
2021
Interview for Humanities Matter by Brill, podcast, 16 June 2021.
The COVID-19 pandemic has forced people indoors and has moved even important businesses and interactions online. Diplomatic interactions are no exception. In the second episode of the themed series Across the Rainbow, Ann Towns and Katarzyna Jezierska speak on Diplomacy, Gender and Covid-19.
Listen to the episode "Gender and Diplomacy in the Time of COVID-19"
Towards a feminist foreign policy - contributions from feminist theories of international relations
Panel talk organized by the Directorate of Women and Gender Affairs of the Argentine Foreign Ministry, with the sponsorship of the Institute of the Foreign Service of the Nation and the sponsorship of the National University of Cuyo and the Federal Council for International Studies (CoFEI). 2021-10-19.
”Varumärket” Sverige innehåller mest jämställdhet i Norden
Trots att jämställdhet mellan könen är viktigt i alla de nordiska länderna betonas det i olika stor utsträckning på ländernas officiella webbplatser, visar en jämförande studie. Jämförelsen visar också att de nordiska länderna helst använder sina egna ”varumärken” för att marknadsföra sig och inte ett gemensamt ”nordiskt” som Nordiska ministerrådet förordar. Publicerad 2021-11-19.
Link to the article here.
Forskning om kvinnor i diplomatin bryter ny mark
Länge var kvinnor utestängda från diplomatins värld. Men en tydlig förändring är på väg. I dag utgör kvinnor omkring en femtedel av världens ambassadörer. Som Wallenberg Academy Fellow har Ann Towns byggt upp nydanande forskning om de utmaningar som dessa kvinnor ställs inför och diplomatins förändringar. Publicerad 2021.
Link to the article here.
2020
2019
2018
2017
The Male Dominance in Diplomacy is Changing
The number of female diplomats in the world has increased in the last 20 years, although the most prestigious positions remain heavily male dominated. However, even this imbalance is changing, according to new research from the University of Gothenburg. 2017-10-11.
Read the press release here: The Male Dominance in Diplomacy is Changing
2016
2015
Towards a peaceful global order and gender justice in diplomacy
Invited public talk for the 350-year Symposium at Lund University, March 7 2017.
Panelist, ”Feministisk diplomati och utrikespolitik?” Almedalen, 2015-07-03.
Read more here.
2014
Female Diplomats Clash with Male Norms
The diplomatic world was long populated entirely by men. Now more and more women are being appointed ambassadors. What gender norms govern diplomacy, and how does this affect female diplomats? These are issues that Ann Towns, a Wallenberg Academy Fellow at the University of Gothenburg, wants to explore. From 2014.
Read the article here.