briefly/women:

Blind Women to Hold International Meeting in Australia, November

The second Blind Women's Forum sponsored by the World Blind Union will take place in Melbourne, Australia, 16-19 November. The meeting will be held just before the WBU annual assembly for the year 2000. Details: Kicki Nordstrom, WBU Vice President, email kino@iris.se

briefly/women:

Oyster Gril

A new book, Oyster Gril, a collection of writings by Australian women with disabilities, is available for A$12 + A$4 postage from Betty Bone, Australian Women with Disabilities Network, 2 Flete Ave., Armadale, Victoria, Australia 3143. Details available via email from martmc@onaustralia.com.au

briefly/women:

Contribute to Book for Disabled Women in Developing Countries

Contributors are needed for a new book aimed at women with disabilities in developing countries. The editors are looking especially for those who may have examples to contribute how women and their allies have organized for change. Planned as a guide to assist disabled women around the globe to take greater control over their health and lives, chapters will address: living independently, sexuality, reproductive health, childbearing, infant care, mobility, abuse and organizing to make the medical system and workplace more responsive to needs.

A project of the Hesperian Foundation, the editors have formed an advisory committee of women with disabilities from 20 countries to provide ideas on content and review draft materials. Grassroots groups of women with disabilities from10 countries will "pretest" materials. If you would like to assist by providing technical advice, or review chapters, please contact the Hesperian Foundation, 1919 Addison St., Suite 304, Berkeley, CA 94706 USA; tel 510 845 1447; fax 510 845 9141; email hesperian@Hesperian.org

briefly/women:

News from Hong Kong

The Association for Women with Disabilities was formed in Hong Kong on March 8. Details: Karen Ngai at City University of Hong Kong, email: scngai@cityu.edu.hk

briefly/women:

International Meeting of Deaf Women held in Australia

Approximately 130 people attended the Special Interest Group meetings on women organized by the World Federation of the Deaf during its World Congress in Australia this past summer. According to a report by Roslyn Rosen of Gallaudet University, the group identified four top priorities for further action:

• Exploration of whether there should be a logo for deaf women to enhance positive visibility and pride;
• Exploration of whether the WFD should establish a Deaf women's commission and begin to hold conference for deaf women;
• Identify funds for training of deaf women and establishment of projects, especially in developing countries; and
• Recognition of the dearth of studies about deaf women and the need for WFD to establish a committee to explore this area, especially utilizing the World Wide Web.
• Additional issues explored by the group included the fact that cross-cultural studies and training are needed to counter the oppression deaf women face in their communities; and that the problems associated with sexual abuse, mutilation and sterilization also need research and resources to change perceptions and re-establish self-esteem among those who have been victimized.

briefly/women:

Australian National Leadership and Mentoring Training Workshop

Women With Disabilities Australia (WWDA) has secured funding to conduct a National Leadership and Mentoring Training Workshop for women with disabilities. The Workshop will be held later in the year, possibly in June in Melbourne. A woman with a disability from each State and Territory will be selected to attend the Workshop through an Application Process. Successful applicants will need to be able to demonstrate that they have an ongoing commitment to the work of WWDA. Contact: Carolyn Frohmader, Executive Director, Women With Disabilities Australia (WWDA), PO Box 229, Dickson ACT 2602. Tel: 02 62421310; Fax: 02 62421314; Mobile: 0407 301 746; Web: http://www.wwda.org.au

briefly/women:

Call for Papers

We are calling for abstracts for a special edition of Violence Against Women: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal. The edition will focus on women with disabilities and violence. We welcome papers from academics, practitioners and women with disabilities. The journal also includes poetry, personal accounts and is published by Sage. It has the biggest distribution of any Sage journal and is now published monthly.  Academic papers are refereed. We are especially interested in accounts written by women with disabilities from a personal perspective. We need abstracts by email/fax by 5th March 2000. Final papers by 15th May 2000.  Edition will be published at the end of this year. Please contact us if you are interested: Dr Lesley Chenoweth, School of Social Work & Social Policy, The University of Queensland, BRISBANE 7072, AUSTRALIA. Tel: +61 7 3365 1252; Fax: + 61 7 3365 1788; Email: L.Chenoweth@social.uq.edu.au

briefly/women:

Request for Survey Participants

We are looking for participants in our study regarding health decisions for women with physical disabilities. In addition to a paper and pencil survey that we can send you in the mail, you can participate in our study by visiting the web page: http://www.utexas.edu/nursing/html/HRTIntro.html

It should take you about 30 minutes to complete the survey and you will be payed $10 for your participation. The information you provide will remain confidential just as it would if we were to send you the survey in the mail, however, the on-line version gives you the opportunity to take the survey without ever opening a booklet. Again, feel free to complete the survey on-line or reply to me with your mailing address and we'll put a copy in the mail. Also, feel free to tell any other eligible women about our study. Contact: Jeff Cookston, Nursing Research Lab - Department of Educational Psychology, SZB 504, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, SON 3.102Q, Tel: (512) 232-4766, Email: cookston@mail.utexas.edu