Lesbians go public? Die (Un-)Sichtbarkeit von Lesben und bisexuellen Frauen in Polens öffentlichem Diskurs

"1989 erwies sich als Schlüsseljahr für das zivilgesellschaftliche Engagement in Polen. Die Demokratisierung der polnischen Gesellschaft ermöglichte es den BürgerInnen, sich in vielen Bereichen der Gesellschaft zu engagieren. Eine öffentlichkeitswirksame Hauptströmung der sozialen Bewegungen ist heute die LSBT-Bewegung (Lesben, Schwule, Bi- und Transsexuelle), die zwar keine Massenbewegung darstellt, aber das Thema der Anerkennung von Schwulen-, Lesben-, Bisexuellen- und Transgenderrechten in den öffentlichen Diskurs einbringt. Der Beitrag fragt nach dem Problem der 'Unsichtbarkeit' polnischer Lesben und bisexueller Frauen in den sozialen Bewegungen und im öffentlichen Raum. Genannt werden hierbei auch Ereignisse, die für die Entwicklung der lesbischen Identität und die Frauenemanzipation in Polen eine Schlüsselrolle spielten." (Autorenreferat)"1989 turned out to be a key year for civil society commitment in Poland. The democratization of Polish society allowed citizens to get involved in various parts of society. Today, one main strand within the highly visible social movements is the LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) movement which, despite not being a mass movement, integrates the question of the recognition of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender rights into the public discourse. In this article, we investigate the problem of the 'invisibility' of Polish lesbians and bisexual women in social movements and in the public domain. Also, we reflect on incidents which have played a crucial role for the development of the lesbian identity and the emancipation of women in Poland." (author's abstract

Communities of practice and gender equality : fostering structural change in research and academia in Central and Eastern Europe

This chapter examines to what extent Communities of Practice (CoP) can facilitate conditions for effective gender equality interventions in research and academia in Central and Eastern Europe. Drawing on the experience of the Community of Practice for Gender Equality in Central and Eastern Europe, this chapter particularly reflects upon the needs and expectations that have been voiced by the CoP members. It also examines the usefulness of CoP as a mechanism fostering the necessary conditions for advancing gender equality, including the agency of change actors and the engagement of organisational stakeholders, building up gender know-how, access to practical tools for designing evidence-based interventions, managing resistance, and framing gender equality within wider concepts and human and financial resources