Women's studies in Subotica

Women's studies in Subotica

In 2022, the WSR Subotica branch revived the alternative interdisciplinary higher education program in women’s studies (WS), offered both in-person and online. This was in response to the absence of an organized WS program in Subotica (and Vojvodina) at the time, with the aim of providing women from Subotica, as well as from Serbia and the region, with knowledge on women’s peace activism, artistic and scientific contributions of women, the women’s movement, and notable women from Subotica. This year also marked the 25th anniversary of the WSR.

With the support of the Reconstruction Women’s Fund, Belgrade (RWF), the women’s studies program in Subotica is conceived as a space for acquiring theoretical and methodological knowledge in women’s and gender studies, closely linked to local activities and research, with a particular focus on women’s contributions to the cultural, artistic, scientific, political, and social life of Subotica.

Participants come from Subotica, Vojvodina, Serbia, and the wider region, including Montenegro, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Hungary. The program is delivered with the involvement of experts and activists in the fields of women’s and gender studies and the feminist movement from Subotica, Novi Sad, Belgrade, Croatia, Iceland, and the United States.

We have published publications and created video recordings about the executed programs.

The goal of the women’s studies educational program is to prepare a group of students to become future collaborators through their NGO activities. They will further contribute to the education and empowerment of others, while gaining the experience needed to engage in both independent and team-based scientific and activist work. In this way, they will help maintain continuity with the history and legacy of women’s studies in Subotica, Vojvodina, and Serbia, on the one hand, and, on the other, foster networking and collaboration among activists and experts (instructors).

In a broader context, the goal is to integrate lectures, research, documentation, and publications within WS into a coherent framework (as established by the WSR), thereby linking the history and future of WS - not only in this region, but beyond.

Until now we accomplished a total of 7 cycles of WS (2022-2025).

Dr. Margareta Bašaragin