National and international farming women
By Alison Park, 08 March 2011 –
Today, March 8th is International Women’s Day, and I wish I could get to the Reading Museum of English Rural Life where the curator of the current exhibition -- Land Ladies: Women and Farming in England 1900-1945 -- is due to talk about the many different ways women have been active in food production: “Women have always been involved in farming in Britain, but until relatively recently historians have tended to ignore or belittle their contributions,” says the curator, Dr Nicola Verdon. In sub-Saharan Africa today there’s a big drive to formalise women’s right to the support that results in feeding families: farm credit, training, access to inputs and to land. There’s a petition at www.changeherlife.org to show support for justice and fairness for Africa’s women farmers. Please have a look and sign if you’re as inspired as I was. Click here for more images from the changeherlife website