ABIE proudly partnered with Monash University for the first time to present “Gender and the City”, a thought leadership discussion at the Australian Embassy on 19 June.

A packed house learned about the inspiring work of Australian Associate Professor Dr Nicole Kalms of XYX Lab, and French urban anthropologist Chris Blache of Genre et Ville, two women leading the field of gender-sensitive design and innovation.

Their far-ranging presentations were followed by smart insights from Ross Douglas, CEO of Autonomy, the International Mobility Summit. Moderated by Kelly Saunders, ABIE Board Member and gender equality strategist, the event stimulated new ideas for the speakers and audience alike.

Key takeaways included:

• Public space is not gender neutral
• 12 % of women who have an unsafe experience in a public place never go back, while 47 % avoid going back alone, and 1 % stop going out altogether
• The implications for women’s work, education and mobility are massive. Globally.
• The epidemic of sexual harassment remains a low priority in a mobility conversation led by engineers, startup tech companies and investors
• Public policy rightly wants us out of our cars, but the street can be unsafe for women and girls
• Women’s stories when researched on mass, become powerful
• Urban innovation must be human-centred. Tech solutions like autonomous vehicles threaten to ‘fix the problem’, clog the streets and reduce human interaction
• Urban design that integrates new elements (such as art, philosophy, gender, furniture, lighting) transforms a space.

ABIE is proud to bring its members events that stimulate ideas and provide important knowledge-sharing between Australia and France. A la prochaine!

Monash University

Monash University became a Corporate Member of ABIE France in June 2019. Monash University was established in Melbourne, Australia in 1958. Since then, it has grown to become the largest university in Australia, with more campuses across the world than any other Australian university, and over 78,000 students.