Consent Laid Bare
2024 INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY
Chanel Contos | Angela Griffin | Vanessa Lee-Ah Mat | Moo Baulch
In a world where female sexuality has been hijacked by forces such as porn, patriarchy, and male entitlement – how can we make sexual consent a priority for everyone?
Whether it’s on campus, at the workplace or in their homes, Australians are shocked week after week at the violence visited upon women who are simply living their lives.
In 2023, the Universities Accord review found that sexual assault and harassment on university campuses doesn’t just affect the wellbeing of students and staff, it can hold survivors back from success. As a result, campus safety has been deemed a top priority for universities, so what steps are those in positions of power taking to ensure the safety of women within university spaces and beyond?
Join author and activist Chanel Contos, UNSW student activist and gendered violence researcher Angela Griffin, First Nations lead of the First National LGBT+ Sistergirls and Brotherboys experiences with sexual violence survey Vanessa Lee-Ah Mat, and Chair of national violence prevention foundation Our Watch Moo Baulch, to explore how we can utilise holistic approaches to community care when it comes to gendered violence.
UNSW is committed to creating a safe environment for all. To learn more head here.
Following the talk please join us for morning tea to celebrate International Women's Day.
This event is presented by the UNSW Centre for Ideas and supported by Adelaide Writers’ Week, The Wheeler Centre and the Sydney Opera House.
LIVE EVENT & VENUE INFORMATION
The Roundhouse is located at UNSW Sydney's Kensington Campus. Please note this is a live event only, and will not be available via livestream.
TICKETS
ACCESS
Wheelchair Access
The closest accessible drop off point to the Roundhouse is the north entrance via High Street, Gate 2, follow the road to Third Avenue and turn onto 1st Avenue West. See map for more information on getting there can be found via our interactive accessibility map available here.
Assisted Listening
The Roundhouse has a hearing loop. Patrons wishing to utilise this need to simply switch their hearing aid to the T (Telecoil) setting to pick up on the wireless signal.
Captioning
This event will be live captioned.
Auslan
Auslan interpreting services can be provided for selected talks upon request.
Contact
To book and discuss access services, please call the Centre for Ideas on 02 9065 0485 or email centreforideas@unsw.edu.au.
PUBLIC TRANSPORT & PARKING
The Roundhouse is easily accessible via public transport and the closest light rail stop is UNSW Anzac Parade (L3 line). For more information, call the Transport infoline on 131 500 or visit transportnsw.info.
Paid casual and visitor parking is offered via the CellOPark App and ‘pay by plate meters’ in all UNSW car parks. For more information head here, and the closest car park is the Western Campus Car Park is located here, on Anzac Parade next to NIDA. This car park can be accessed via Western Campus Drive through Day Avenue.
CONTACT
For all the other enquiries, please email centreforideas@unsw.edu.au or call the Centre for Ideas on 02 9065 0485.
The Centre for Ideas is happy to receive phone calls via the National Relay Service. TTY users, phone 133 677, then ask for 02 9065 0485. Speak and Listen users, phone 1300 555 727 then ask for 02 9065 0485. For more information on all other relay calls visit here.
Chanel Contos
Chanel Contos (she/her) founded Teach Us Consent, a campaign that mandated consent education in Australia. In order to achieve this, she worked closely with politicians from across the political spectrum, including prime ministers. Chanel was the recipient of the Australian Human Rights Commission Young People’s Medal in 2021, and in 2023 she was named NSW Young Woman of the Year for her persistent efforts towards eradicating rape culture. Chanel has also been presented with the prestigious Diana Award for her humanitarian work, and in 2022 she was listed as one of the BBC’s 100 inspiring and influential women worldwide. Chanel has a Masters in Education, Gender and International Development from University College London and was recently appointed by Julia Gillard to chair the Global Institute for Women’s Leadership’s Youth Advisory Committee. In 2023, she published her first book with Macmillan Australia, Consent Laid Bare, described by Marie Claire as “a blistering, unflinching – and therefore sometimes uncomfortable – look at Australia’s rape culture”.
Angela Griffin
Angela Griffin (she/her) is a Research Assistant at the Gendered Violence Research Network, UNSW Sydney. Angela has previously worked as a student activist agitating within university contexts – as well as outside – to end sexual violence on campuses and more broadly. In 2018 she served as UNSW’s Women’s Officer and in 2019 as SRC President. Before that she was on the Executive Team of the Reclaim the Night Sydney Rally. In 2021 she completed her Bachelor of Social Research & Policy (Honours First Class). As part of this degree, she completed a thesis exploring student activist experiences of their universities implementation of the recommendations included in the Australian Human Rights Commission’s 2017 ‘Change the Course’ report. In February 2023 Angela commenced a PhD exploring alternative, non-punitive pathways for universities to facilitate justice for victim-survivors of sexual violence.
Vanessa Lee-Ah Mat
Dr Vanessa Lee-Ah Mat, a First Nations Woman by genealogy, has qualifications that include a PhD, MPH, BTD and 25 plus years of experience spanning a multifaceted career, and is the CEO and Founder of Black Lorikeet Cultural Broker Management Consultant. Vanessa believes that by economically empowering Indigenous society, via culturally equitable business models, will contribute to self-determination and in turn reduce suicides. Having over 25 years experience leading cross-sectorial partnerships, Vanessa knows how to translate across cultures to ensure balanced negotiations from the grass roots to the highest level of business, politicians, and all in between. In her cultural brokering position coupled with her research area of expertise, Dr Lee-Ah Mat is the First Nations lead for the First National LGBT+ Sistergirls and Brotherboys experiences with sexual violence survey, administered by the Gendered Violence Research Network. Recently, Vanessa applied her cultural brokering expertise to Walking Between Worlds to amplify Indigenous art through NFT’s by working with 4 First Nations artists to create the world’s first genuine generative collection.
Moo Baulch
Moo Baulch (she/they) has been working in gender-based violence prevention with a focus on human rights social inclusion and peace in Australia, UK, Spain and South East Asia for more than 20 years. Moo led peak body Domestic Violence NSW through an era of significant change amidst growing public interest in the issue of gender-based violence from 2014–19.
In 2020 as Head of Customer Vulnerability at Commbank, Moo helped develop the first trauma-informed customer support team in an Australian financial institution and continues to provide advice on the development of Commbank’s Next Chapter financial abuse initiatives. In May 2022 Moo was appointed chair of Our Watch, the national prevention of violence against women organisation and is Director of Primary Prevention at Women’s and Girls’ Emergency Centre (WAGEC). Moo speaks fluent Spanish, is a proud queer parent to two young children and lives on stolen Gadigal land.
