Tell us a bit about yourself?

Hi, I’m Jocie! I’m a second year medical science student. I really want to become a doctor one day, that’s one of my biggest passions in life. I’m loving uni and all the opportunities it’s given me. I’m involved with a lot of activist-y things around uni as well as in the broader community. I guess I try to live in a way that’s serving other people and fighting social ills around us; that’s where I find fulfilment.

I love the ocean, jazz and old-fashioned music… hanging out with friends, cooking  together, reading... going for bushwalks, doing yoga and getting in touch with nature… being spiritual.

Reclaim the Night’s coming up soon, tell us about that!

Reclaim the Night (Reclaim the Night Facebook event link) is an annual protest to raise awareness about violence against women. It’s an opportunity for everyone in the community to stand up, have their voice heard and object to issues such as domestic and family violence, sexual assault and harassment. As we see regularly in news, with 69 women having been killed already this year as a result of gendered violence, and 1 in 5 Australian women experiencing sexual assault, this is such a systemic problem in our society, rooted in sexism and pervasive attitudes that are denigrating to women. It’s just so tragic that we keep seeing all these deaths as a result of gender violence, and not nearly enough is being done about it.

As an organisation we stand up for women’s equality, and their right to feel safe. This year’s event is on Friday 30^th October. It’ll be super fun, there’ll be a picnic beforehand with food and performances from local feminist comedy groups, and speeches from remarkable women activists. Then we’ll have a protest walking through the CBD, starting from Victoria Park near Sydney Uni.

What are you hoping the event will achieve?

We really want to gain attention of community leaders and the government and pressure them into taking serious action. Recently in NSW the “Going home staying home” reforms were introduced. These are creating a big problem endangering the safety of many women, especially those escaping harmful situations such as domestic abuse being unable to access services. The state government has grossly taken away so much funding from women’s shelters and frontline services which are being forced to close down.

This year in particular, Reclaim the Night is also trying to represent a diverse range of women’s experiences. For example, Indigenous and migrant women are extremely overrepresented in statistics of gendered violence, as well as recent horrendous reports of rape perpetrated against asylum seekers and in detention centres. Issues faced by trans and queer women also often go unheard. We want to shine a light on this and reflect on how some women are adversely affected more severely than others amongst us.

What do you think young people can do about gender equality?

Be informed, first of all. Be an expert on what’s going on; make yourself aware of the issues. But also be wary of political spin and don’t always trust what you hear. Seek opportunities to take action on the issue - there are heaps of awesome campaigns running that you can jump on board with. Start small - changing the culture of gender inequality begins with shifting the attitudes of those around us, including friends, family and classmates.

How do you keep yourself informed?

For me, it’s about joining networks that discuss these issues and offer real women’s perspectives; hearing from activist friends; the news… I’ve also been privileged to go to educational events at uni, such as the Global Health Short Course and Crossing Borders Asylum Seeker Panel, run by Medical Student’s Aid Project, which gave incredible insight regarding international health issues and inequities, especially maternal health.

What else are you involved with on campus?

Well, aside from clubs and societies like Hep B Free and Whitlam Club, I’m pretty active in the Student Representative Council (SRC). I’m part of the Women’s Collective, where we can all come along to meetings to discuss important issues female students face and how we can enact change on them.

I think one of the biggest problems is sexual assault… We’ve heard anecdotally from students that assault and harassment on campus is a big problem, but there’s no data on it... That means universities aren’t being held accountable to taking action, implementing better reporting procedures and policies, and providing services to better support student welfare. That’s something we’ll be fighting for next year through the SRC.

Anything else?

I’m currently launching UNSW Women in STEMM [Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics and Medicine] Network! It’s a network connecting undergrad and postgrad students, research, academics and alumni to advocate for equity and opportunities for women in STEMM. We also hope to lobby the university to implement better equity targets and strategies, do more outreach to school students, that’ll be really fun!

These are fields with significant gender biases that the Sciences aren’t something that women should do; there are great structural barriers for women in these professions. At UNSW women make up only 25% of professors and this is even worse for senior academic women in STEMM. For example, abhorrent sexual harassment involving the Royal College of Surgeons has been in the news recently, with women asked to give sexual favours in return for career opportunities...

This is a really important issue, because gender equality is a right – it is our right as women to have equal access to educational and career opportunities, and seeking justice on this is really important… We have such talented professional women achieving so much for our communities and they deserve the access to equal opportunities.

UNSW STEMM Facebook page

Who are some of your female role models?

I’m always really inspired by the women around me - friends and family - I feel so lucky to have amazing female role models!

I was really inspired by Julia Gillard becoming the first female Prime Minister, especially seeing all that she had to deal with. The criticism, the unnecessary comments on her appearance, not having children, being unmarried– all these really sexist attitudes disrespected her position and achievements, but she showed remarkable strength … other  political leaders like Tanya Pliberseck and Penny Wong are also really inspiring.

In international health, there’s Dr Catherine Hamlin, a surgeon who’s done amazing work in Ethiopia assisting women with fistulas and other obstetric issues… In developing countries there is such poor access to the most basic healthcare and maternal health is a huge problem... In these settings it is so great seeing women taking initiative to provide quality healthcare and make it sustainable, by empowering women who have had surgery to develop vocational skills, and by training local midwives… Making real sustainable change is the key to ending poverty.

If you could give a piece of advice to young people thinking of volunteering, what would it be?

Believe in yourself! Never underestimate the capacity and strength of young people working together. If you team up with friends and people who share the same passion, dreams and sense of injustice as you do, there’s nothing you can’t achieve. Believe in yourself, believe in your capabilities, and work hard. All the resources you need are within you…

We’re so young, just open your eyes and your mind to all the opportunities there for you, and all the human struggles we face globally, as a society, in your community, with family and friends. Always be an activist, always be asking yourself, what is unjust here? and how can I change that?

Broaden your perspective as much as you can. Work on yourself and your ability to understand different people’s perspectives and what they’re going through. I truly think the greatest thing we can develop in ourselves as humans is compassion and empathy.