Review of the Research Institute for History and - Universiteit Utrecht

as other international journals, in edited volumes published by Columbia University Press and Routledge,
and their own books with publishers like Duke University Press, Polity Press, and ZedBooks
A 5. External validation
Feminist theory can’t be thought separately from the social movements out of which academic feminism
emerged. One of the key discussions within the feminist movement has always been the interaction between
theory and practice. For this and other reasons the members of the Gender Studies programme are
frequently invited to speak and/or publish in a variety of professional, social and cultural contexts and to
comment in the audiovisual media upon a broad range of social and artistic questions. There’s a structural
cooperation with a large number of non governmental organizations, feminist artists (authors, directors,
documentary makers, painters) and activists in the fi eld of multiculturalism, feminism and globalization both
nationally and internationally.
A 6. Internal evaluation, analysis, perspectives and expectations of the research programme
1. Strengths
The programme has a very strong international profi le and a remarkable productivity
2. Weaknesses
The size of the group remains small and as a whole the programme is too dependent on the chairs. Collaboration
with other researchers within OGC on selected projects is a good option to acquire optimum scale.
3. Opportunities
Continuing participation in European projects offers further opportunities for the programme. The graduate
programme has great attraction for students from abroad.
4. Threats
A diminishing interest in feminist issues already has its effects on student numbers, and in the long run threatens
the viability of the programme. One way to tackle this problem is to widen the scope of research, for
instance by including culture and new media.
OGC Gender Studies
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