Women, Information, And The Future: Collecting And Sharing Resources Worldwide 0917846672, 9780917846670

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WOMEN, INFORMATION, AND THE FUTURE

The Schlesinger Library, in the Rade /iffe }ard Photo h} Paula 'v1 Lt'rnt:r.

WOMEN, INFORMATION, AND THE FUTURE Colkcting and Sharing Resources WorUwide

edited by Eva Steiner Moseley Proceedings of a conference sponsored by the Schlesinger Library on the History o_f Women in A1nerica and held at Radcliffe College 17-20 June 1994

Thomas J. 88ta Library

TRENT tJNIVERSITY PFT ried in t11is publication mt:!et, the minimum req uirement~ of American Na tional Standard for lnfom1auon Science Permanence of Paper for Pnnted L1brar) M:1terial. ANSI/NISO L'W.-18-1992. L ibra ry of CongreSi> Cataloging- in-Publica tion Ontn Women. 111form,1ilon, and the future t·nlletore. and dissc1ninate inforn1ation and ideas, and wanting to grapple with women ·s role in the future as well as in the past, the Advisory Committee of Radc..:liffe's Arthur and Elizabeth Schlesinger Library on the History of Women in America decided 10 convene ru1 international conference on "Women. Information, and the Future." This conference, the proceedings of which are collected in this volume. was planned as the culminating event of the library's 50th anniversary in 1993-94. The Schlesinger Library was weLI suited to hold such a conference: since 1943 the library ha:-. collected published and unpublished source materials chronicling the history of women in the United States from before 1800 to the present During that lime, the library has collected papers of pronlinent and representative women. women's organizations, and fanlilies, as well as oral history transcript,, audiotapes. ti Ims, microfon11s, and many thousands of books and periodicals. ll has become the foremost center for research on the history of won1en and their contributions to U.S. society. The Schlesinger conference had its genesis in an earlier event. In 199 l lhe Women\ Library anJ lnfonnation Center of Istanbul. Turkey, had sponsored the First Intcma11onal Symposium of Women\ Libraries. At that meeting, Patricia King. then Director of the Schlesinger Library, offered co sponsor a second conference in 1994. Building on tbis decision, the Advisory Committee further c.lecicled to expand the theme of won1en 's place in the world by considering the challenging 1,sues presented by the lnfonnation Age. The 1994 conference was the re\ull The conference took place ai, two further truths were becon1ing widely acknowledgeJ: that power and infonnation are indissolubly linked and that women have an e,senttal role in sustainable human development [n planning the 1994 conference the organ izers wishecl to explore the ways in which these ba-.ic principles tnh:ract >with one another. If women arc to continue to assert

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Women, Information, and the Future

their rightful place in Lhe world's evolving social, intellectual. political, and econonuc systems, they must investigate the issue of their access to and use of the world's growing information base. Also considered in the planning of the conference was the realization that networking among women gathered from every inhabited continent and many diverse backgrounds could generate many insights and engender confidence in their ability to cope with continual alterations to the library and information landscape. Three fundamental convictions, long promulgated by the Schlesinger Library, inspired the organizers of the conference. • Wo1nen need full and unrestricted access to in:fonnation if they are to take their righlful place in world affairs. • Women should be involved in every stage of gathering and disseminaring information and should determine what information is to be collected, how. in what fom1, and how it is to be shared. • All information gathered by the United Nations and its 185-member countries should include complete dara on women; this information should be dissenunated in a fom1 accessible to women in every geographic and de1nographic setting. The conference organizers agreed that women's infom1ation networks should be encouraged, to foster reciprocity and cooperation and to ease co1nmunication across national boundaries and geographic divides. Such information networks pron1ote tJ1e ability to think creatively and to work collaboratively and will be essential if women are to take their rightful place in the world of tomorrow. Women possess half the talent and intellectual abilities of the human race. To in1agine tllat we can improve tlle state of tJ1e world without utilizing these largely unlapped resources is now impossible. To avail ourselve of humanity"s full potential, won1en must become equal panners with men. not just in access to information but in all facets of world affairs. Time is running out-policies must be put in place rhaL take won1en as well as men into account. The need LO slate this fact indicates the mistakes of the past. mistakes that must not follow us into the future, or there will be no future for the world as we know it. The ulllmate focu!. or the 1994 conference was nothing less than the future of sustained human development-and tlle need to ensure that women arc full partners in securing a future worth having.

Patricia Miller King ( 1937-199-I) 11•as Dirrnor nf the Schlesin,:er Lihran· for lwenr-.·-onl' \'ean. Ht>r prrsonal a., li'l'II as professwnal commitml'lll made thl' conference f1tJ1.11hll', f"or ,·he wrn 1t a.1 a means to hnng the work of 11·cJ111e11's fthra, re, tn a hroade,~ more i11rcr11utio11al u11d1e11ce u11d to further d1.,~em111atio11

Preface

xv

of information to women around the glohe. Tragically. Pat was not ahle to see her selfless work brought to fruition . She died in May /994, six weeks before the opening of the conference. We have dedicated the conference and these proceedings to her memory. Pat gave unstintingly of herself ro rhe work of the Schlesinger Library and to furthering its aims and goals. All those who knew and worked with Pat felr pril·ileged. and we share a continuing sense of responsibility to cany on her work with 1/ie same devotion and commitment that she exemplified.

Introduction T H E CONFERENCE Deirdre O'Neill and Karen Phi lipps Women, Information. and the Future: Collccling and Sharing Resources Worldwide celebrated women\ progress in securing access to information. The conference also aimed to further strenglhen and faci litate efforts to collect, preserve. and interpret infon,1ation by. for. and about women worldwide. The international nature of the conference constilutcd a departure from the Schlesinger Libr..11") \ traditional focus on the United States. Women. lnforma11on, and the Future was conceived in Turkey, in October 1991, when the Women·s Library and Information Center of Istanbul sponsored the First fnternational Symposium of 'vVomcn ·s Libraries. Participating in the conference were representatives from the Bibliotheque Marguerile Durand (Paris), The Pawce11 Library (London). the International lnformalion Center and Archive'> for the 'vVomcn '" Movemcnt (Amsterdam), the Center for lhe Promotion of Women·, Studies and Research on Wo1nen (Berlin), and the Schlesinger Library. During the Istanbu l meeting. Patricia King, then Director or the Schlesinger L1hrary, offered 10 sponsor the second such conference. Pat King's per,onal commilmcnt made Won1en, Information. and the Future ro,sible. She was dedicated to rhe conference as a means to bring together not only librarians but also other inforrnation workers. Sadly, Pal died or cancer in May. In the six weeks between her death and t.J,e conference. effort!wcre redoubled to mal-c certain that it wou ld be everything she had hoped. Pat unquesuonably ,va-. pn::sent at the conference in sririt and in the hearts of many rcorle there who I-new her. Women, Information. and the Future becrune a n1cmo1ial to her. Women. !nfon11.itinn, and the Futu re expanded rhe scope of its Istanbul predeces-,01 to indude many more librarie~. grass-roots efforts as well a, establi-.hcd institution,. lnttially, the Schlesinger Library identified more than 300 worncn \ 111formal 10n cc11rer, around the world. They ranged from one woman U)'.1!1g a generator rowcred fax machine 10 collect and distribute information. to a nC\\ won1en ·,. ardu, c-. in Ru-.sia. to the U.S. Library of Congre-.s. Word of the conference spread \\ 1th ,t life or ib. O\\ n. the mailing list expandecJ 10 111dude more the 900 11.11nc,. ,u1d the preliminary reg1-..tration list gre"" rapicJI.> This en1husw..,11t and o,cr\\helming re-,ponse testifkd lo the need for '>t1ch a conference The end result \\a'> truly 1nternationnl participation. with more than 200 women (ancJ a re,\ men) Irom n1ore than 40 countries. l:c.ffort, Vvere nw l.\rae! \Vome11'.1 Network Rt•sow·n• Ce11/C'r. J,,, u.1a/e111, ra1111,• from memhers (If the Kne.\Sel {parlia111e11t) w \rlwollhifd1c11. r!lt' c(lorcl11ww1, >aJfu Fli.ulsocimcd with such -.entimcnts Public opi111on held that women's place 1.., at the bottom and that there must be something scriow,ly wrong with a woman who aspires 10 reach for the qan,. Many men needed to sec sud1 women publit:I) humiliated to teach all women a lesson. \\'omen who w. ere not '>) mpmhctic were com rorted to ls.no,\ 1hal 1hcy were not alone under the ,,;1ift1ng oppre-;-.ion or men. Thi, i, the onl) wa; l have been able to under-,tand the reaction:-. l u..,e ncccs-.itate a change in men'" roles and altitudes. Societ) v. ill be betLcr -.crvcd if the roles ol both "exes ure changed.

Part II: I11farmation Institutions

45

Constraints for Wonien in Development Although it is generally accepted that won1en have an important role in development, statistical information on the actual contribution of women is scarce. Statistics tend to reflect only work that is accorded economic value. Because women's activities in agriculture and the household are usually unpaid and so not accorded any economic value, they are not reflected in social and economic statistics. Various forms of socioeconomic and legal barriers prevent women fro1n participating fully in development. Women in Botswana, for example. are rninors at common law regaJdless of their age. first undeJ their fathers' guardianship and after marriage under their husbands, Zimbabwe's Legal Age of Majority Act ( 1982) declared that children of both sexes reach majority at eighteen. The same legislation enabled women to enter into contracts without their husbands· consent. No real change in women's status resulted, however. Few won1en own real property to use as collateral in obtaining loans to start businesses, and few were even aware of what the act enabled them to do. rn Botswana and Zimbabwe, and probably in most developing countries, won1en Jack managerial and basic bookkeeping skills. Until women are trained in such skills, even those who have the courage to ventuJe into business wilJ not be successful.

Overcoming Const'raints Wo1nen cannot effectively participate in development until the socioeconomic and legal barriers that hinder them have been removed: L. There is a need for statistical techniques that will measure the economic value of work done by wo1nen and thereby reflect their true contribution to development. 2. Laws that disc1iminate against women in education and employment need to be changed. 3. There is a need for a change in outlook-of women as well as menregarding women ·s participation in development. The socialization proces, !>hou lc.l incorporate new views of sex roles. 4. There is a tendency for tbe sexes to be stereotyped in education; girls tend to study social !>Cience and the hurnanitie~. while boys srudy the sciences. Teachers. career advisers. and information scientists should work to eradicate stereotyping in education a nd training, and to inform girls about Life altc111atives. 5. To 1nake informed c.leci-,ions, women need information on socioec011ornic, legal. political. health. education. and other issues that affect their development and that of their con1munitics.

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Women, Infonnation, and the Future

EMPOWERMENT OF WOMEN Empowered women determine lheir own course of action and seek to find their own solutions. Empowerment is not something imposed from outside but a process by whjch an individual absorbs information and develops a strength of character that changes her from victim to victor. Empowerment is cruciaJ to women's participation in development because it enable~ them to break through tradition and other barriers and become actively involved in decision making, in efforts to acquire the means of production (land, labor, and capital), and in the implementation of development plans. Jn many societies there is a general reluctance to change gender structures. Culture serves as a pretext. Women continue to labor under the misconception that the culture, the status quo. cannot be changed: but it can be. Empowerment can be encouraged in several ways. First, it is the responsibiJity of all governn1ents that are sjgnatories to ''The Forward-Looking Strategies for Advance1nent of Won1en," signed in 1985 at the end of the U.N. Decade for Women. The signatories committed themselves to promoting "an equal share of power" for women "in guiding developmenr effons" and ·'measures to ... bring ... women into the mainstream of the development process on an equal basis with men." Govem1nents can implement the "Forward-Looking Strategies" by setting up. supporting. and financing units or ministries that encourage wo1nen's participation in the nation's affairs. In addition , a change of attitude js needed on the pan of government officials, largely male, who may be benefiting from unequal gender relations. Second, NGOs can team up with development agencies that have a serious interest in wo1nen ':-, empowerment and work with those that are not reached through government channels. Third. oral communication, which i~ an important means of communication among largely illiterate groups. should be exploited. Speaking empowers d1e con11nunicator and infonns the hearer. Finally, it i1> the responsibility of freedom-loving individuals to en~ure that in their comer of the world all persons share in the activities of the community. Thls den1ands changes in socialization and for women to change their own attitudes toward their situation and aggressively eek information and means of empowerment.

THE ROLE OF INFORMATION In A1a.u ft-fE,dia and Nationul De1•elvp111ent (l 964 ). Wilbur Schramm stated that the role of 1nfon11ation is to "bnng people into the decisions of development. to give them a ba.,i, fllr purticipaung effectively. to speed and smooth change-, dccidc for the advancement of women. however, there have been some appreciable efforts to develop women in Africa. Today women are in

Helena R. Hassan is a Senior A,,1:,t..'\111 L,branan at the Univen,ity of Science and Technology Library, Kumasi, Ghana \Vilh bachelor's and master"& degrees in library science. ,he was the pioneer hbranan of the l\.taryam B:ibangida National Centre for Women Development Library in Abuja, Nigeria She h,1s published.~ Snwll L1hrwy for the Rural \~vmun ,1 .l\,fa1111al, Women on the Moi·t• A Bibliographl' of rhe Bettitions and sends them to the chief executive for approval for purchase. Being in haste to get the library well stocked with all types of material, we had to resort to c.,pending a great deal on postage. Leners were sent to the following people anJ places: • International organizations with offices in Nigeria. and their headquarters outside Nigeria. asking for copies of all documents. reports, pan1phlels. anJ other m,llenal produced by then, on won1en. • All foreign 1111.....,ion,. requesting all available information about women in their countrie~.

54

Women, lnfonnation, and the Future • Women's organizations. Professional, philanthropic, and social groups were asked for copies of their aims, objectives. and publications. Addresses of foreign ones were supplied by foreign rnissions. • Notable Nigerian women were asked for lheir resumes as, the basis for Lhe compilation of a Nigerian women's Who's Who, as weU as for their publications. • Nigerian universities with departments or institutes involved in projects on women were asked for copies of their publications and reports. • Federal and state goven11nent ministries were contacted for copie of their publications. documents, and policy statements on women. • The NCW and state commissions were asked for copies of publications. speeches. and audio- and videotapes of all activities for and about women. • Local and foreign booksellers and publishers were asked for copies of catalogs and computer printouts on women; a list will be compiled for later purchases.

Wilh such an extensive soliciLation effort, one would have expected lhe shelves of the LDC of MB CWD to become filled and lhe number of pamphlet boxes to become uncountable. On the contrary, only half responded. About 30 percent sent publications or documents. About 20 percent wrote to say lhat they had nothing to offer. We did not hear anything from the remaining 50 percent. About 20 percent of the respondents put the library on their mailing lists; publishers, booksellers, and authors began sending complimentary copies of their books on women and in relevant fields. Until October 1993. the MBNCWD had purchased only one book-W'ebster's International Dictionary; all others were donated. Requests for sample copies were made to about fifteen journals. By October 1993 only three had responded; one sent a sample copy, one a year's free sub cription. and one an invoice for a subscription. The library subscribes to twenty daily Nigerian newspapers and nineteen weekly magazines, four of them foreign. Newspaper articles are clipped for the following subject area'>: Women and Health; Women and Education; Women and Associations: Won1en and Motherhood; Women and Crime; Women and Societal ls~ucs; Babie'\; Children; Food; Health; Education; Family and Marriage; Agriculture; and Environment and Rural Development. Subjects are arranged alphabeticall): titles are listed alphabetically within each subject. Wonewdex (Women New-.paper Index) i'> compiled monthly. Title~, volume. and number, of maga11ne., are recorded in the periodicaJ catalog. Such information i-; also indexed acearch.

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\flo111e11, Jnfonnation, and the Future

National sectoral colJections, such as the National Medjcal Ljbrary. and documentation center~ have a broad scope and cater to the information requirements of a large comn1unity of researchers. Women's studies information may form a part of this wider spectrum. Because of the increase in the number of such centers during the last decade, there is an urgent need for a resource directory to facilitate access to tJ1e1n. A major effort in this direction was the Won1en and Development Studies Information etwork, discussed below.

INFORMATION SERVfCES Bibliographic Sources and Services Alrnough the number of published bibliographies on Indian women i!> ~till limited, there has been a remarkable increa~e du1ing the last decade in the number of institutional and individual efforts made in this direction. One example is Kalpana Dasgupta, Women 011 the Indian Scene. An A1111orated Bibliography (New Delhi: Abhinav, 1976). There has also been a shift from general bibliographies to thematic and subject-~pecific one~. (For exan1ple. Suchitra Anant et al., Women ar Work in India : A Bibliography [New Delhi : Sage, 1986] and Anju Vyas and Madhu Mudgal, The Girl Child in India: A Bibliographic Compendium [New Delhi: lBH, 1992]). The scope and coverage of these bibliographie~ vary corn,iderably in terms of types of material, languages, and period covered. Some bibliographies cover only material available in particular libraries. The majority en,phasi:tc published materials in English, but consciou efforts arc now being made ro include unpublished materials and those in regional language~. A Lhree-part bibliography of resources on women by the Women and Develop1nent Studies lnfom1ation Network (see below) is an example of thi1, 1rend. }.1any women's studies documentation centers provide bibliographic services on demand, either free or for a nominal fee. Although bibliographic sources and services have come a long way during tJ1e last decade, there is a need for more systematic effort in this urea, for descripti\'e standards. and to r co1nputerized bibliographic databases.

Indexing and A bstracti,ig Services A few women\ studies centers have made a beginning at inde,ing articles on women's i-.qics. The CWDS library ha-, published a Dacu1111'11rcuio11 Buller in '\ince 1985. What started a, an in-how,c current-uwarenes~ -;el"\ ice ha.., been made available by and poe,ns that depict wo111en 's lives and experiences, photofeatures exploring the dimensions of gender in the visual media, translations from other Indian literature and world literature, and a wealth of book reviews. ll also provides a forum for won1en to voice their views on issues that directly affect their lives.

CONCLUSION At Anvesbi we are 1nost concerned with the following issues: • A classification system for women ·s studies libraries and documentation centers should take into consideration the various local issues and debates of different countries. • Collection of infom,ation and documentation is not an end in itself. but information should be disseminated to empower wo,nen. • Networking strategies should allow access to more information and avoid duplication of effort, but we need a nerwork that is feasible given the realities of time and resources. • We need an approp1iate infom1ation system, one that is sufficiently flexible and accessible to suit the needs of the center. and a loose, informal network of women ·s infonnation centers to access and disseminate inforn1ation all over India.

The Life and Times of the Womens Studies Resource Centre Alana Ze,jal-Meflor (Australia)

INTRODUCTION The 1970s were a time of political and economic growth in Australia. They were also a time of growth, strength, and assertiveness in the women's movement. Groups of women working in different areas of education questioned the funclion ing of schools and education. Wo1nen educators in tertiary (i.e., postsecondary) institutions began to develop and offer women's studies, and in secondary schools teachers questioned the curriculum and their work environment.

.FORMATION OF THE WSRC In South Australia a group of women-teachers, lecturers, and students-came together through their shared interest in women's issues and concern about the lack of information available to support research. In 1974 they submitted a proposal for a grant to establish a resource library with a focus on women and education. The group received a government grant in 1975. International Wornen's Year. The Wo1nen's Studies Resource Centre (WSRC) was founded in the back room of an education library in a teacher training college.

Alana Zerjal-Mellor grew up in Italy before migrating lo Australia. Learning new languages led to an intcre~t in information t a lernini':-.t library the WSRC has actively de,eloped a broad collection on lesbian i-.sues. Not surpri~ingly, it is one of the few libraries in Australia with ,;uch a collection. To en,;;ure that the collection held current infom1at1on. from the beginning journals were pun.:hasc organization ~ronsored the e ... tabli-,hmcnt of a \\Omen's archives at Lhe State Library in Aarbw,. Thi the luck of rci.oun.:cs. among them -.ufflc1en1 financing. standardized indexing and clas!>if'ication sy1.tcms, computeru:ation 111 '\Orne member states, coordination 111 tud1e~; fen1ale librarians in research libraries who are interested in women's ,tudie, and some of whon1 are organited in the Austnan Librarians· Associulion; and the three "lnteruniversity Women's Studies Coordination Centcn.:·

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Women, Information, and the Future

• On the basis of our experience at the National Library and with the core of autonornous and institutional women, we can offer these postulates: have patience and tenacity. for even centralized bureaucracies may eventually act: do not shy away from utopian proposals; tay in communication; develop structures and take responsibility; and not least, it should be fun to do feminist work and support consciousness-raising.

Feminist/Women's Archives and Libraries in Germany Concepts, Equipment, and Networking

Helga Dickel (Germany)

INTRODUCTION Figures about women's organizations in 1910 ~how that of 4,000 member organizations of the Association of Gen11an Women's Societies, about 400 had a library or a reading room. Most of these libraries were very sn1all and were not the main focus of the organizations. and ,nost closed in the 1920s. In most cases we do not know what happened to the books and other material after World War Tor after 1933. Some of the larger libraries and collections sutVived, in part. but the history of women's collections of the historical women's movement in Gen11any, especially of the radical feminist'>, ended with Nazis1n. New archives and libraries and some specific projects developed more recently, as a result of the wo1nen's move1nenl thal began in the I970s, as did 11etworking efforts among German-speaking won1en.

STILL-EXISTING COLLECTIONS FROM THE HISTORICAL WOMEN'S MOVEMENT The Hekne-Lange Archive The n1ost impo1tant and extensive collection of the historical women's movement in Germany that survives is the Helene-Lange Archive in Berlin. which Born m J 957. Helga Dickel earned a degree in sociology from the Universil) of Bielefeld ( 1980) and in 1982-85 wm, on the stuff of the Research Group Women ·s Srudic\ there. From 1986 to 1993 ~he wa, on the srnff or a special project of the Fem1mst Archive and Documcmauon Ccn1er, were restored. and a cacalog was proes, antl so on. Only a few projects have the resources to offer such services. A general problem is adequate financing. Almost alJ projects began without any funding except men1bership fees. Today on ly a few projects are regularly funded by either the state or the city: since reunificaLion, funding for all social institutions and projects has been reduced.

Ne1u Technologies and Co1nputerized Databases Discussions about working with computers aroused great controversy. ~10'>l project., were vehemently against the installation of computers. The firsl computerized tlalabase. of the Feminist Archive in Cologne. ktl to inlense discussions at meetings of women'!-, archives and libraries. At the tune new 1cchnology and the rc,ulting working conditions of women were di of many project membertill oppose the introduction of compuLCr,, the need for lhem 1n archi\c., anti library v. ork i.., now recogni,etl. Women began 10 train them-.,ehe.., 111 con1pu1er skill, and in special knowledge about docun1entation, information, and library -.,cicnce. Totla) databases arc available in fewer than twenty proJects. anJ there 1, onl, one databa,e \\ ith entne, on holuing'> 111

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Part fl· Infonnation Institutions

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public state libraries (in the Saarland). Other databases on women and wo1nen''> research do exist in Germany, however. One is part of a database on social sciences in the Information Center for Social Sciences in Bonn. Four others are the database of linportant Women International (Hannover). of Women Writers in Germany since 1945 (Bremen), of Women in History (Munich). and of Wo1nen's Studies and English Literary Science and Writers (University of Cologne).

PROJECT DESCRIPTIONS The following eight projects all exist outside universities and were chosen as examples of the different and specialized work of Gem,an feminist archives and libraries. The situation of women's collections at universities is hardly different fro rn the general situation. T hey were often built up within or in connection with the centers of won1en's studies and research on won1en. The initiative usually came mostly from fe1nale students. The collections are an important supplement to the university librarie and contain mainly books, theses, and unpublished research papers on women. Only at the University of Bielefeld is there a special women's collection within the university library.

FFBIZ The Women's Research. Education and Information Center (FFBTZ) was established in 1978, in what was then West Berlin. This autonotnous feminist center broke down traditional divisions ainong research, education, and information; the d ivision between theory and practice; and the hierarchy among women in the universities (secretaries and academics). Members of the association have done research on white-collar women workers in the Weimar Republic, on women's unpaid work and family policy, and on the history of women librarians. The center holds more than 7,000 books on all areas of women's lives. It is well known for documents and grey literature from the beginnings of the new women's movement, some published in a loose-leaf edition. A computer database has not yet been developed.

Archive ofthe Historical Womens Movernent This archive, the only one that collects all documents of all the wings of the historical women's movement in Gem,any, was founded in 1983 in Kassel m, an autonomous feminist archives. library, and research center. Today it claims to have the world's largest collection of German-speaking literature about the history of the won1en \, movement. The archive's main goal is to inform w01nen and the general public about what won1en throughout history have done. toughl, and won. Members are very active in gning presenta11on'I about the ]i\es of

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Women, Infornuttion, and the Future

feminists in the past: research results are published in the archive·s own book series and its newsletter, ARIADNE. About two-third:,, of the present library's 14,000 volmnes are frmn the period 1800-1950. On ly recently ha!> computeriLntion of the large collection of infonnation begun, but it is now a priori I). Education Center and Archives for the History of Wo1nen This center is an example of a regionally focused archives. specializing in the history of wo1nen's lives in the region around TUbingen, a rural area with few written materials about women's lives. The n1ost i1nportant task or the archive1-, thus is to obtain infom,ation in the fonn or oral-history interviews with old women as witnesses of the past. This work is based on the idea that finding correlations between women's lives in the past and today is necessary for developing future perspectives. The women organized ""story cafes··-gatherings where elderly women talk about such topics as their lives during the Ntv.i era and during the war. The old women have aho given the archives letters, diaries, and other papers. Womens Education Center Denk(T)rii.unie Denk(T)riiume is a play on words: think (denk), dreams (Trtiume), and rooms

(Raume): this womeo·s education center in Han1burg includes a librar), a new!>paper archive and video collection, and a won1en\ cafe. The need for learning and training with other women led to the founding of the Education Center in I 983. The main focus of the project. which is partly funded by the city and so is one of the few projects with (four) paid workers. b on education and training: e,en1ng lectures. weekend workshops, film presentation!>. official educational holidays. long-running working groups, and language courses. The lending library contain, about 8.000 volumes, divided about equally between nonfiction and fiction. A priority is to buy rare and expensive books, which women with little money arc unable to buy. The collection also contains periodical!>. docun1entUI) and feature fihns. and news clippings. Wornen s Library and Docu111e11tntion Center for Wo1ne11's Research This project in SaarbrUcken, founded in 1989 and for the time being funded b) the state, links research and the practical use of research re,ull'- b) women outside univcr,itic!> and rc~carch institutes. The main focus of the collection is women·s research 111 social and natural -;cicnce~. femimst theof). the regional history of women and the women'i- move1nem, ,1,on1en\ politic'>. and imemat1onaJ won,en's lktion. The pro1cct ha:-., from the beginning. worked ,, 1th computers; ih umaha-.e contain-: ahout I0.000 inde,ed and abstracted titles, in.:lud111g all women\ hooks 111 the public hbranc-. in the Saarlanu. One of 11'.

Part If: lnfonnation Institutions

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planned projects is to scan the news clipping collection into the computer and index it.

Women's Media Tou,er Formerly known as the Feminist Archive and Documentation Center in Cologne. this is the only project that has always had a strong financial basis; it has used automation from the '>tart. The main focus is the new women's move1nent and, especially, the radicab of the historical movement. The main database contains 15,000 documents of feminist literature, indexed by the Gern1an Feminist Thesaw·us (developed in the center itself), by personal nan1es, and by organizational names; many of the documents also have short abstracts. Additional databasei> index the feminist journal EMMA, posters, and won1en 's periodicals. The concept behind the documentation center is, besides the preservation of the 1naterial, the compilation of n1aterial regarding the actual situation of women; the relevant social forces, such as media, science, and government: gender ideology: and the fe1ninist struggle against women's oppression. The archives will soon open its new home, a medieval tower on the Rhine. Hence the new name. Women's Media Tower (F,-auenMediaTurm).

Wo1nen's Library MonaLiesA The name is a pun, a~ .. Lies'' i'> part of some forms of the verb "to read.'' The history of this project highlights the strong commi11nent of women in East Ge1many after reunification in 1989. It is in many respects the history of one won1an, Susanne Scharff, a German/English teacher in Leipzig. Arter visiting friends in Vienna. where she was fascinated by the existing women's scene, she went to the House of Democracy, the home of the new Women's Initiative Leipzig and other political and social projects. There she found the first feminist books she had ever seen. which had been donated by women in We~t Gern1any to the emerging women's movement in the east. Although she was pregnant. every day after school she drove Lo the Women's Initiative and read and read. Excited and happy about the world of women she found, she began to collect more books and to look for money and for women to help her bui lt.I up a women's library. She saved interesting books from libraries that were being closed; son1etimes she even rescued books fron1 garbage disposal sites. After her daughter was i.,orn. she spent her maternity leave in the emergent women's library. When she had to decide whether to stay in the library or go bacl-. to teaching, ..,he chose Lo ... tay in the library, which had beco1ne ,;uch a significant part of her It fe.

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Today the library is the largest of the new women ·s libraries in East Gennany, with more than 7.000 books and about 2,000 women's journals and magazine issues. The Iibrary holds weekly evening lectures about women's research and women's fiction. A special activity is the work with girls and boys. A section wilh nonsexisl literature for children was bui lt up, and there are monthly readings and talks. ln 1993 about LS percent of the library's 450 users were children.

Grey Area: D ocunumtation Center ofthe Nongovernmental W'innen~ Move1nent in the German De1nocratic Republic Founded in 1992, the Documentation Center Grey Area collects material from and about wo111en·s activities in the former German Democratic Republic. A won1en 's moven1ent outside the govem1nental organizations did exist, but the situation was difficult for such groups. Women's and lesbian groups often got space and support from Ch1istian institutions. Western feminist literature was difficult to get, except occasionally from Western Christian partner parishes. Women had discussions in senl.inars. at prayers. at universities, and at parents· evenings. Women academics tried to introduce fe1ninist ideas into their seminars; especially at Christian education center~. femini'>t themes were accepted. T he Grey Area collection contains letters. diarie'>. circulars. records of leciures and meetings. programs, in\'itations. and excerpts of Western fenunist books. Funber materials are photographs. posters, tape recordings. and ainateur films fron1 l 984-1990, which were shown in public in the fonner GDR only once. Much of the infonnation about this time is available only through the reminiscences of the women. The main purpose of the archive!> is to provide 1naterial reflecting their O\.Vn history for women in the former East Gennany.

NETWORKING AMONG GERMAN-SPEAKING WOMEN'S ARCHIVES AND LIBRARIES Networking began in 1983, with the fir:.t meeting of four projects. Meetings take place twice a year at different archives. with an a"erage of twenty-fi\'e participating projl:cts. including two or three from Austria and Switzerland. Regular meetings also occur 111dependently in those two countries. At first the meeting~ focused mainly on the financial situation, of the archive.

lnfonnation Resources for \Vtnnen in / rel.and Despite the high levels of activity in women's studies over the past decade, there are no fen1inist libraries, arch1ve11. or women's documentation centers in Ireland. Thi.., h not because the material-, do not exi (such a-; the 1ational Library. the ational Archive'>, and the univcr-.ities). by organizat1on5, (the Employment Equality Agency, the Council for the Statu, of Women. the trade unions). and of course b) individuals. But thc1,e collect10n-.. arch1,es. and miscellaneous holding1, remain a large!) unkno\\ n and 111t1cces-.,1blc quantity; diffuse and di-.,paratc. they arc an unusable annt OIAVI in Am,1erdam.

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Black and migrant women in the Netherlands have much in comn1on: their socioeconomic position in the Netherlands, their non-Dutch history, and social ob~tacles and discrimination. They also have to struggle against sexism and racism, as well as the disadvantages and problems they experience as women. This series of problen1s sets their struggle apart from that of White women. At the same time, there are many differences between Black and migrant women in the Netherlands: their his rory and backgro und, their way of life, and their nun1bers. The differences are the basis of other differences, including religion, culture. and ethnic group. Thus, although Black and migrant women in the Netherlands have much in common. they nonetheless differ in many ways.

Fla1nboyant A special center, called Flamboyant, was founded in 1985 to support the emancipation of Black and migrant women in the Netherlands. The won,en of Flamboyant recognized that information is an important factor in the emancipation process and that to investigate the position of Black and migrant women and their problen1s, it is necessary to have access to relevant information- not only on the present situation but a]so on the history of Black and migrant women. Feeling that their information needs were not being met by existing information and documentation centers, the women of Flamboyant started their own library and documentation center. Their 1nain goal wal\ 10 collect inforn1ation not only ahout Black and migrant women but a]sofrom them. One project, bibliographical research on the sources available in Dutch libraries, resulted in a four-part bibliography on Black women. Problems encountered during this research included the diversity of 1en11s w.ed as subject headings ,md the difference between Black and Third World women . The researchers concluded that, although there was information on Black women in Dutch libraries, it was neither visible nor accessible, because of che way the subjects and publications were classified . They found the infom1aLion only by browsing and by using specific terms. They also found that the subjec~ documented were mainly health care, racism. jobs. and welfare. In short, the infom1ation in White women's libraries was insufficiently accessible and wa~ documented from White perspectives. Be ides. different status/position leads. among other things, to different inforn1ation needs. Unfortunately, Flan1boyant, including its library project. closed down about four year, ago.

PROJECT INFORMATION SERVICES The rc!->ult:-. or Flamboyant'-. research and the fact that the center do~cd led the lJAV, in October 1992, to stan the Project Information Services for and ubouL

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Black and Migrant Women, especially those engaged in scientific research and study, politics and administration. education and training. and campaigns. congresses, and other activities. The overall goal of the project is to improve information services for and about Black and migrant wornen-by UAV itself and other Dutch women's libraries. In close cooperation with the target group, a program has been under way for about three years. This program is directed at IlAV's collection-building policy, its indexing system, its publications, its consultancy activities. and so on. Financed by a special grant fro1n the Ministry of Social Affairs and Employment, this program is carried out by two project assistants: a documentalist for the projects related to information services and a specialist in the field of Black and migrant women in the Netherlands.

Colkction Building One of the progTam's collection-building effons focuses on four activities: • • • •

Surveying relevant inten1ational databases and sources Searching for "grey" material (also called ephemera) Surveying for Blacks' and 1nigrants' magazines in Dutch libraries Acquiring archives

The goal of these activities is to adjust the collection-building criteria to the information needs of Black and migrant women with regard to books, grey literature, periodicals, and archives. The focus is on cuLTent material. Priority will be given to grey literature. More generally, these activities occur in two phases: evaluating present IlAV policy, and making suggestions for improvement. An evaluation of the present collection-building policy showed that the way it is fom1ulated should lead to the avajlability of adequate 1nate1ial on Black and migrant women. To verify this availability, l did a search to find oul what the llAV has on Black and migrant women. l ba ed my search on the bibliography of Black women and a 11ew literature guide on Black and nligrant women-books that had already been compiled fron1 searches in other Dutch libraries, in accordance with the program's collection-building efforts. By using them as reference material, l had a good view of what was available in other Dutch libraries. And if they were available in other libraries, why not at the IIAV? 1 started by identifying which of the publications listed in the e two books were available in the llAV library. On the basis of that information, I analyzed the reasons some materials were not available. The preliminary conclusion is that the present policy does not cover son1e of the !)Ubjecrs, languages, periodicals. and countries of origin. Jn addition, so1ne compilations that were in the HAY library were not cataloged individually: a book with various subjects and

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authors was cataloged only by the general title, not by the individual ticles and authors. This was one reason some Black authors were not in the catalog. Thi~ part of the project is aimed at gathering information about relevant sources and databases in foreign libraries. l started by making a list of foreign libraries and writing then, to gel an insight into relevant sources and databases for collection building. Other reasons were to broaden our supply channels and to learn which systems. methods. and techniques of indexing or classifying are being u. ed with regard to information on Black and migrant women.

SURVEY OF F OREIGN D AT ABASES A~l) SOURCES

Through the network of Black and mjgranl women that we have establi::.hecl, we want to get an insight on their grey publications and to acquire relevant publications so as lo improve the rIAV collection in this area.

S EARCH FOR G REY M AT ERIAL

SURVEY OF BLACK/MIGRANT M AGAZil'.'ES I

D UTC H L IBRARIES

A search

will be made in selected general Dutch libraries of the magazines that can be relevant to Black and migrant women, even if they a.re not women's magazine . We have started with a mailing to Black and migrant women's organizations to make the1n aware of the possibility of preserving their archives at the IIAV. ACQUTRJNG ARCHIVES

Indexing!Cla.ssifying The main goal of the Information Services project is 10 make literature about Black and migrant women more visible in the lfAV catalog. The point of view of Black and migrant women is therefore very important. This phase consists of adjusting the criteria for indexing and classifying magazine a.rucles and, 1nosl important, adju:,ting our Dutch women\ Lhesaun1s. Through research and by developing adequate term:,, we want to make lhe Dutch wo1nen ·s thesaurus useful for B lack and migrant women's infomrntion a:, well. Other activities, such as networking, public relations. and improving the expertise of ILAV personnel, are meant ma.inly LO ~upport the information service project.

Creating an Information Network for Women in Russia Zoya Khotkina (Russia)

INTRODUCTION The independent women's 1nove1nent does not have a Jong history in Russia. Its beginnings are connected to perestroika (economic restructuring), part of Mikhail Gorbachev's three-part plan for creating a new, democratic Soviet Union. Until 1990, only one official women's organization existed in the former Soviet Union, the Soviet Won1en's Committee (SWC). Its purpose was propaganda on the so-called benefits of socialism for women. not truthful information about the actual situation of women throughout the country. Speaking as a monopoly and substituting propaganda for information was typical not only of the SWC, but also of other social organizations under the totalitarian regime. Beginning in J 990. women all over the country created and developed gra s-roots women\ organizations. Unfortunately, these organizations were largely unaware of each other, and hardly anyone knew about them. This is why information becatne one of the most itnportant i sues of the women's movement in Russia. The most important goals for the women's movement today are not merely an exchange of information within the movement but social visibility for women ·s problems. T he first step in thi~ direction was establishment of the Women's Information erwork (WINET). which wa!,, founded during the First Independent Zo)a Khotkina i~ senior researcher at the Moscow Center for Gender Studies, In,titute for Socl()-Econom1c Populauon Studies. Ru\sian Academy of Sciences. She h11' a Ph.D. m cconom1cs and i, founding Director of the first Russian women's arcl11ves: besides techmcal articles. ,he has published How to OrJ?a111:e Your Home Busmess.

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Women ·s Forum in 1991. Since I 992 WI NET has developed a databa e that now contains information about more than 1,500 women's organizatjons, initiatives. events, seminars. and women leaders. The next step in creating an infom1ation network for women in Russia was the establishment in Moscow in 1993 of the Women's Inforn1ation Project ADL (arch.ive. database, library). ADL plays an important role in the development of infonnation about and for women and in the establishment or new infonnation technology as a ba:-ic tool of the contemporary Russian women's movement.

WOMEN'S INFORMATION PROJECT AOL Women's Information Project AOL is a ooogovernmental. nonprofit organization; it was founded in 1993 with a special three-year grant from the German women's organization Prau-Anstiftung upon the request of the Moscow Center for Gender Studies. The main goals of ADL are as follows: • Organization of effective information for the women's 1novement and women· s/gender studies in Russia • Collection, storage. preservation, and cataloging of books, periodicals, and other marerials and publications in the field of women ·stgender srudies • Creation of a database containing infonnation on women. women's organization:,. and initiatives as well as on meetings and events related to the women's movement • Inclusion of women ·s organizations and research centers in international and Russian networks • Planning and implementation of seminars. courses, lectures. and training sessions for won1en and won1en 's organization~ ADL fund~ arc open to all women and men, participants in the women's movement in Russia and abroad, researchers and student~ working 111 the field of women \/gender issue:,,, the mass medja, and representatives of Lhe state manage,nent bodie~. Within the framework of AOL are three projects: Women's Archive in Moscow (WAM). n database. and a library.

W'o1nen's Archive in Moscow The fir-.t sp~c1ali1eJ archives on women in Russin is the Women's Archive in Moscow (\\Al\1). founded in 1993. Its main goal is to document the history of the women's movement, ,n~ating documentary portraits of our contcmpon1ries and recon,trucung the h,-.tory 111 which women will occupy a deserved place. WAM\ m1s,1on 1, aimeJ at collecting. storing. and cataloging a.-. much material a., po.,..,ihk lkp1t:t1ng women·s life, events. and activitie, and making

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this infonnation accessible to everyone who is concerned about the women's movement. Its principles include openness for all women and men without exception. the inadmissibility of using any criteria when selecting donors of materials, and an orientation to writing biographies of our women contemporaries and depicting the history of the modem women's movement in Russia. WAM has formed six record groups, eight collections, and an archive of photographs, and has made audio- and videocassettes. At present more than 2,000 documents, 72 audiocassettes, 4 videocassettes, and more than 150 photographs depicting the women's movement in both past and present Russia are stored in the archives. Beginning in I 993 the materials of all seminars, training sessions, conferences, and meetings organized on the basis of AOL, the lndependcnt Women's Forum, and the Moscow Center for Gender Studies were being coJJected and processed for the archives. In its literature. WAM solicits donations of personal letters, diaries, anicles, photos, poems, stories and memoirs on audio- or videotape; of organizational records; and of regional women's periodicals, news clippings, and the like. WAM promises to acknowledge donations by a special stamp with the donor's name. It accepts exchange copies or photocopies of publications. buys then1 when necessary, and ~eeks information on forthcoming and on old books.

Database The database CET (Zhiset) contains data on participants in the women's movement, organizations, and events, such as foruins, conferences, seminars, initiatives, and so on. The system is simple and convenient to use. It is easy to display and print out information about leaders of women's organizations, participants in the events. themes, and so on.

Women's lnfonnation Project Library The mission of the library is to accumulate knowledge through which wo1nen can become free, strong, and sure of themselves. The library collecls literature based on fe1ninist thought, which analyzes cultural stereotypes in different spheres of activity. The collection includes books on phiJosopby, history. culture, and religion. as well as fiction in which women and men are represented in unstereotypical ways. Literature on the won1en ·s movement and feminism is available in both Russian and English. The library subscribes to Russian periodicals, especiaJJy those published by and for women. Special emphasis is on "infonnal" publications from women's NGOs. such titles as ivomen Plus (Moscow). Women's Thenu: (Kuzbass), and Business ~Vlaff numhen, 3.5 full-time employees. A, lhe nan1e indicates, during the first period in t11e life of the center ilic overall subject was history. The subject area of the WHC has gradually widened, and for many years it ha!-, been a documentation center for muJtitli-,ciplinary wo1nen ',; :.tu'>ential to the 1ntemat1onal interest in Nell' Literature on \,\'omen and the K VINNcntiall) limited, especially for orga.nizauons ltke the ltbrary that ,uffcr from a lack of fund-raising expertise and n1ust compete \\ 1th larger charitH!'> with a wide, scope. Tn the 1980-., FL benefiteu fro,n the finan cial suppon or the Greater London Council (GLC). ,vhic:h in 1984 ga\e granrs to London-ba,cd women·s organ11a11on, totalmg £8 milltnn. However. the abolition of the GLC in 1986 lclt the libr.tr} and other women\ organizations extreme ly vu lnerable. The general puhlil.. ,u,p1uon ol l~mm1sm and ignorance of the valuable work man) women ·s orga1111at1ons undert,1kc ha, e been exacerbated bv ho,tilc media and pcrpc1uateJ h) the lrnherva11\c baddash 111 national politic-., \'..htch Joe, not appear 1,1 hi! Jim111i..,lung. f·L ha, ,pent much or the past 1wcnt) years exi!>ting al the ,uh-.i,tcnLe le,d. dependent on membership subsc:nplion,. don,llion-., and !ht: occa-.1nnal 1111c tunl' 1!r,mt. It h currcnll'r. ma1m.11ned on an annual mcornl' of £7.000 10 l'O\CI thL· produl!Hlll ol the new,lcller and all running co..,t,

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In practical terms. lack of funding affect!> FL in three main areas: accom modation'>, staffing. and collection development.

Accomniodations FL is now in its fifth home since 1975 and was threatened with Joss of its present quarters in 1993. when its lease expired and the no1ninal rent was raised lo current market value. However, a grant from Southwark Council (Southwark being the borough in which the library is localed) enabled the library to cover the rent increase and negotiate a new lease.

Staffing Since the lo-.s of funding in 1988. FL has been dependent on the energy and commitment of its volunteer work force, moc;t of whon1 are either employed full lime or studying. At present it has a pool of about forty volunteers recruited through women's centers. advertisements. volunteer bureaus, and word of mouth. This obviously affects the range of ~ervices the library can offer and also detennines whether it is able to maintain its advertised hours of operation. Dependence on volunteer labor is obviously unsatisfactory insofar as the provision of a service is concerned, but there are positive aspects in that 111any volunteen, feel empowered by their involvement in running FL, and for several who were unemployed FL volunteer work led to paid employment. In "What Ts Feminist Library Policy?" a l 992 study of FL's organizationaJ structure (and an M.A. thesis at Sheffield University). Hilary Sayers commented that "the infom1al, nonhierarchical stJucture and atJnosphere of the Fenlinist Library was seen as very important and welcomed by all volunteers .... It is seen as essential to lhe Library's purpose and to running the Library in the interests of won1en ...

Colk ction Developrnent Since its inception FL has de1nom,trated com,iderable and sustained growth, but the collection has a very different character from that first envi-.aged by the founders of the WRRC. At that time rhe emphasis was on collecting research papen,, newsletters, and ephemera. Although these remain important, the books now form tJ1e most substantial pan of the collection. The nonfiction stock, which focu such as the \.Vomen\ lnternational Resource Centre, the Fen1inis1 Archive. and the Lesbian Archive. The m,~ority of these centers aJso ex_ist on shoe,;tring budgets. makmg rc!>ource -.hanng and cooperative schemes difficult to organi1c The lmk-. cstablt-.hcd ,o far arc based on referral of users and personal contacts. There " a real need 10 develop 1nore formal links an1ong 111am,treru11 and alternutivc won1cn\ \tuJie., ltbrarie~. ideally under an umbrella organin1tion that could ...crvc U\ a frn:al point for all those working in the field.

CIDHAL's Documentation Center Helping to Build Feminism in Mexico

Rocio Sudrez-Lopez and Leopoldina Rendon Pineda (Mexico)

INTRODUCTION CLDHAL (Co1nn1unication, Exchange, and Human Development in Latin America) Women's Center in Cuernavaca. Mexico, began its work in 1969. We are the oldest women's organization in the country. We began by setting up a documentation center to translate and dissen1inate information about women's issues and to organize seminars and conferences on feminist themes. Our overall aim has alwayi, been to contribute to the growth and development in all spheres of women ·s lives: from personal and fan1i ly to social and political. We work from a feminist perspective, taking gender, class, and ethnicity into account.

CIDHAI!S ACTMTIES Ln l 977 we began to work directly with women in poor rural and urban comn1unit1es, trying to respond to lhe women·~ basic needs and demands. Along with

Femm,~t sociologist Rocio Su;jrez-L6pez has for lhe last ten years represemed ClDHAL to Lhe m~s media. defining lhe problems of Mexican women and propo$ed femimi;t soluuons. She 1s a member of CIDHAL's board of direcwr~, ha.~ lectured on women's 1%ues, and haJ> published newspaper anicles on women's issues and an e,say about women's NGOs m Mexico. Leopoldioa Rend6n Pineda is Technical Coordinator at lhe CIDHAL Documenwtion Center. For twenty-three yearUpport the idea o f 111,1ruct1on do not u... ually have to pay for it, while librarie, do. so we mu..,t con'>ider means th,11 an.! as cn,1 and personnel effective as possible. way-. that pro\ 1dc bcnehts and .1, oil.I dra,, bach.s One piece of advice: heg111 with a \mall program. fl n, eas) and pleasant Lo he ahk• to ,1ud ,1cce,., a.,.,1,tance, and a ,ucce. backed up with observed and recorded data: and to provide a sound basis for the furure development of the Library and policy planning. To conduct the stud}, we had to hnd out what nnd hov, much we had. and where it was; the result wa, a color-coded IOl'aLion plan. The next ,tage was to ~uney groups of holdings. What \va, the intellectual content ol the group? \Vas it classified or cataloged? If -.o. ,, hat about indexes? lnJi\ 1dual item'.'. were sampled and their appearance and condiuon described, as were the tyre and condition of thelJ boxc:. or enclo.,ures and the way., to acce,.., that p.uticular m,Hen.tl. A ... tanda.rd vocabu lary wu.., u,ed on ..i hw,1c funn -,o that tluta could later be ana1 11cd in detail.

Survey Findings I he ,un l': ,ho\\Cd the ,ame problem, ari:-.ing again and again: the chalknges 0 1 ,1gc ,tnd h1-.t1incul ,1gn11lcuncc of hold111gs, combineed for suburbs with primary function of living/ sleeping: for many women, a place lo work; for many men, a place to sleep BT Suburbs RT Grass widows One characteristic of a women's thesaurus is that many terms are used that explicitly define aspects of women's Lives (e.g., motherhood), although many general terms have to be used. but as related to women (e.g .. heallh insurance, midlife crisis). Our thesaurus i'> unique in that the M INUS-W (-V) PRI CIPLE

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generaJ terms always apply to wornen. \\Theo the terms are used in relation to men, we w,e (-v) (the initial of Lhe Dutch word for woman/en) to express this. For information on men, an extra step has to be taken: for example, health insurance (-v). midlife crisis (-v). This principle is used especially for the names of occupations. The Dutch language uses a masculine and a fen1inine uffix for 1nany professions. Often in a thesaurus, tbe male form is chosen because the female form rueans something different or denotes an occupation with much lesi,. i>talus. But our thesaurus use:-. the female form only when the content of the occupation is in fact different. and it b also used for n1ales in those occupations, with the '"(-v)" Lo indicate that males are meant. The following examples should make this clearer: Secretaris (traditionally masculine) is an asi,istant to the director of an important decision-making position (e.g., state secretary): in our thesaurus Secretaris is a fen1alc state secretary and Secretaris (-v) a male state secretary: Secretaresse (the usual femaJe form) is a fema le rypist: Secretaresse (-v) rs a male typbl. Similarly, Bibliolhecaris is a female library director: Bibliolhecaris (-v) a male director. Bibliolhecaresse is a female library assistant: Bibliothecaresse (-\) a male assistant.

Use and Maintenance ofthe Thesaurus The thesaurus is now used as a complete systen1 in about ten centers. These cemers have for the most part a broad. general collection covering all aspects of women's lives. Two centers use a shorter version, con1piled especially for them from rhe onginal. Other centers are waiting for speciaJ, in-depth adaptations. At IIAV we started using the thesaurus approximately one and a half yean, ago. This was a huge operation. We were w,ing three .,ystems: a cla!-.1-,ification system for the library, subJeCt headings for documentation, and broad categories tor our bibhographic.:al journal, Lo,•er. They haJ to be merged and transformed into 110e nc\\ one. We now use the thesaurus for books, periodical articles. historical documentation. and our current research Jatabm,e. Shortly we will index the audruvrsual material!-. with the thesaurus as well. Maintenance indudei,. adding tenns and correcting mistakes. The pcrn di do1111e ( 1994), a bibliography of women'\ books. an often leads co insult.., and conflict!-.. which discourage women ·s participation . Women arc also lilel) to ha\.c le,s acces~ to and experience with computers than men have, so guidance that pron1otes efficient use n1ay be especially welcon1e. To date few true reviews of any lists cru1 be found. There is no obviou!-. impediment lo re,rew 1nc1dcncc \\ a~ e~1wci.1II) high in the winter of 1993: pncumoma pre\'cntion and management V.l'll" thc1elorl.' incluJed 1n one cpi~odc.

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Repackaged Printed Material 1n preparing publications to acco,npany Lhe radio episodes, p1iority was given to material concerning technologies to increa-,c production (e.g.. plnnting wheal in standing couon crop) or reduce loss (e.g., maize slorage). Because of the low level of literacy in rural areas. it was decided to use the poster format. with large script and clear illustrations. When the amount and naLure of the material required it. pan,phlets were printed. ln both cases. simple Urdu was used and Lhe technical language checked lo ensure that rural women would understand it.

Feedback and Monitoring The project has certain built-in mechanisms for n1onitoring the radio programs. The estabLishment of the Listening Centers ensures that a certain n1inimum number of women actively listen to Lhe progra,n each week. Their comments are communicated to the project team through preprinted postcards and letters. After each episode, the team knew the approximate nun1ber of women who heard the prograin, whether they liked the story. whether the technology was u1,eful and relevant. and listeners· funher infon11ation needs. To en1,ure that supervisors' correspondence reflected the opinions and need, of the women in each center, the project team visited the centers. This process continued until the end of the radio broadcast. lnternally, reports are written after each field visit or meeting, and the project team maintains diaries. The team is documenting the project, for itself and donor agencies and as a model for other organizationtecl and defend their lamil::,. d,111. and tnbe agam,t outside a11ad,, and to uphold lhc highest moml charm.:k-r, a., bt.:lntmg l111L' warnor:,. J\,larriage for love or sexual attraction was seen u.1., unheroK a.nu disniumged The primal') purpose of all indi, iduab was the pcrpctuatwn 11! the hlood 1ml', anJ Jefenl. the :.tate needed to maintain women in their double roles. By making women responsible for both public and family production, the state was relieved of the necessity to develop an infrastructure of social service . Tho e services that existed barely helped women in their task. The amount of unpaid ,vork at home, by son1e estimates, amounted to thlny hours a week for the average Soviet woman. The state was able to relocate resources out or the social infrastructure and into military production. Second, the ideological need was to legitimate the Soviet policy of equality between the sexes. Sex equality has been one of the strongest arguments in defense or the Soviet way of life and for inany years was actively used in Communist Party rhetoric. Fortunately, many women were indeed provided with equal access to work and education. But unfortunately, official policy discredited many notions of real equality and feminism. which explains the stubbornness with which many women reject these notions today. Transition to a Market Econo1ny

Transition from a command ro a market economy has left many sector of the population vulnerable and unprotected against the traumatic social changes that have taken place. The effects of the newly enforced reforms are markedly different on different social groups. Women- previously the main work force and consumers in the heavily subsidized public sector (health care. education, food service-... cultural services)-now have almost no access ro resources or h1gh-pay111g Job, and are increasingly tied to their reproductive roles. The gender as) mmctry in many spheres or economics. especially in the private \ector. is quite visible and has already been noted by such researchers m, Nanette funk, se~ her ''Women and Post-Communism:' in Gender Politics and PoH-Com1111111i,m (New York: Routledge, 1993). Exclusion of women from cconoma: activity. leaving them in lower-paid jobs. and increasing fema le unemployment (women comprhe up to 78 percent of the unemployed). beside~ ha\ing an extremely negative effect on morale. will result in considerJblc Cl' nnomic los..,c, f-or unemployment statistics. see, for instance. the article by Zo).i Khotkina in ivomt·11 in Ru.1sia. edited by A. Posadskaya ct al. (London: \\~r-..l> 1994. pf). K5 108). Curn:n1 poltc) tends to reduce Jobs m women', expern,e and to encourage \\omen\ earl) rellrcment. rrolonged maternity leaves, and -,imilar measure-;.

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These measures are seen as a temporary solution to unemployment, but they may prove inefficient in the long run. The human potential of women-who comprise large numbers of skilled workers, technical staff, teachers, and doctors~ould play a crucial role in reconstructing the economy and in development of the private sector.

Toward Gender Disaggregation Many of these changes ren1ain unrecognized and invisible. The national bureaus of statistics and of census are largely dependent on contracts and are poorly subsidized by the state. As of J 994 no assessment had been done in Ukraine regarding the status of women. In the absence of any statistics. it is doubly hard to emphasize gender disaggregation, but it should be developed, at least as an alternative approach. lt 1night be that foreign agencies interested in assessing aspects of social development in Ukraine will apply some of these methodologies when studying the Ukrainian situation. It might aid a better understanding of various trends in employment, migration, and reproductive patterns, and, in the final analysis, facilitate the adoption of more gender-sensitive social policies. It should be noted, however, that gender disaggregation does not and will not bring i1nmediate improvement in the lives of women in the former Soviet Union. It is a positive step but no panacea. Real changes in the position of w01nen can happen only when women themselves take an active role.

Regional Information Support on U7omens Health Rita Raj-Hashim (Malaysia)

Interaction and djscussion with nongovemment organization (NGO) leaders, key government officials, the media, and international organizations as well as grass-roots women clearly indicate a need for more regional information resources on the latest research. analyses, perspectives. and action on women's issues. Organizations want ready-to-use infonnation in the form of systematic databases, policy and program guidelines, research findings, and news on women from women's perspectives.

PROBLEMS AND NEEDS One major problem womeo·s groups face in relation to w01nen and development is access to up-to-date and practical national and regional information and resources in order better to plan, implement, and evaluate programs. Often, national organizations are more in touch with international bodies or Westen1 sources of information than they are with countries in their own region that share similar histories, cultures, and levels of socioeconomic development.

With a master'" degree in Public Administration, Rita Raj-Hashim has extensive work experience m public and private organaza11on~ and wi1h family planning. population. and women·s de1,elopment 111 Malay~ia, Asia. and the United States. She is founding director of the As1nnPac1fic Re~ourcc and Research Centre for Women (ARROW). a regional NGO incorporated tn Malaysia m 1993.

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Wonzen, lnformtttion, and the Future

Won1en·s and develop1nent organizations want to know which programs, \trategie!>, and actions in their own region have benefited women the most. They want to know what the success factors were and how they can replicate such effort . Most res.earch at national and regional levels on women and development focuses on docun,enting and analyzing women's situations in various sectors but does not include a critical analysis of policies, progran1s. and organizations aimed at improving the situation. There is a great need for research and evaluation to assist in ))Uch strategic planning.

WOMEN'S HEALTH In Asia and the Pacific region since the late l 980s, awareness has increased tbat policies and programs related lo women's health have often been designed and implen1ented without the input of women's own perspectives of their needs. NruTo~ conceptualization of women's roles together with Limited understanding of the realities of women ·s live has often led to programs that limit women ·s acces., to the heallh services they need, and to services that are inappropriate and inconvenient for women, that regard women a objects or target . This has a negative effect on wo1nen·s self-esteem. It diminishes women's right to quality health services and their right to decide about reproductive issues, such as childbearing. choice of contraceptive technology and sexual protection. childbirth pracLices. and sexuality. A number of women's organizations. generally NGOs. have begun to advocate for changes in national health programs, using such various strategie as taking part 111 government health planning committees. organizing awarenes seminars, and establi'ihing alternative models for service delivery and education that are women centered. Some family planning organizations, uch as the national family planning associations of Indonesia and Malaysia. for example, and the International Committee on Management and Population (ICOMP). are attempting to reorient their services and programs to be more sensitive to women ·s nl!ed:-. At the san1e time, government women's ministries or departments in such countries as the Philippines, Papua New Guinea, India, and Malay,ia are fom,aJizing their concern for women in national women ·s policies ank and want to protect themselves, they face difficulty in talking about sex with their partners-who may not be monogamous-and trying to negotiate ~afc sex. Issues arise that couples find hard to discuss, such as fidelity. ,;exuality. and plea~ure. Heterosexual sex is today the dominant means by which the HIV viru. is uansm.itted throughout the world. The number of infected women increases daily. Besides increasing women's morbidity and mortality, Lhis bas psychological. social. m1d economic impact.

A woman's reproductive function is an impottant component of her personality, whether because of personal desire or social stricture. Given the possibility of perinatal transmission of the HlV virus to a fetus, motherhood represents the perpetuation not of life but of the disease. PSYCHOLOGICAL IMPACT

On a micro basis. the sociaJ impact of Al DS is felt in the dismantling of the family. In general. parents become aware of their own diseac;e when their children begin to show symptoms. In most cases, fathers die first and mothers try to stay alive in order to take care of the children. When both parents die, grandparents (usually grandmothers) assume care of the children, whether HIV-infected or not. Integrating HIV-positive children into society b a problem; school, are not prepared lo receive then1. Such children are discriminated against by schoolmates, parents. teachers. and school employees.

SOCIAL ll\lPACT

Eco~OMIC IMPACT Today, women represent 35.1 percent of the work force in BraZII. In a discriminatory society in which women workers are vaJued less than men, ernployers arc unlikely to be supportive ofwon1en who lose time from work. whether because of their own illness or to care for sick relatives.

ABIA ASIA-Brazilian Interdisciplinary AlDS Association-is a nongovemment organ1zalton (NGO) founded in 1986 and aimed at pron1oting education and information in order to prevent and control the HIV-AIDS epiden1ic. A nonprofit organization without political. religious. or other links, A BIA has a widl! range of inforn1ation. education, and prevenrion progran1s. in addition to producmg analyses of the de, elopmcnt of the epidemic in Brazil. It also 1nonitor-, puhlit.: health ATOS policies, fights against discrin1ination and prejudice, and stimulate'.-. solidanty as a way of confronting the epidemic, in a pem1aneot delen-.e of human rights. The AIDS. Reproductive Health. and Public Policies Project wa); developed 'wllh the ~upport of the Forti Foundation. The project articu lates three major theme ... relatt· with similar and complementary intere ts anc.l need, (thi), also broadens ABIA's access to infom1ation) • Participation in networks • Collaboration in other institutions· publications • Collaboration witJ1 the media • Electronic conferences • Speukmg v. ith Brazilian and foreign visitors-researchers and Journalist\ \Ccking not bibliographical infonnation but an oral statement about the '.late of the cpiden1ic and ABIA's objecli,es. plans, and acl!om, • D1,tribut,011 of mntenal produced by ABIA • Tr,11n10g "mult1plier',," those who will 'ipread infom1aiion about the cpi