Now and Men

What do men and feminism have to do with each other? How can men contribute to gender equality and engage more in care work? Hear Nikki van der Gaag discuss these questions and much more on episode 2 of Now and Men. Nikki is a feminist writer and researcher specialising in gender and development. She has a particular interest in men and masculinities, and has written a book called ‘Feminism and Men’ in 2014, as well as the ‘No-nonsense’ Guide to Feminism in 2017. She is an independent consultant and a Senior Fellow at Promundo, as well as being on the Steering Committee for MenEngage Europe. Until 2019 she was the Director of Gender Justice and Women's Rights at Oxfam GB.Some of the issues we cover in our conversation include: Why, as a feminist, Nikki works on masculinities and fatherhood.How her own experiences of being a parent and growing up as a girl have shaped her involvement in feminist activism.Different ways in which men have responded to feminism across society.Men’s role in building gender equality, and everyday things men can do as allies.What needs to change in society to get more men involved in caregiving.The impact of Covid-19 on caregiving and on gender equality.Why there is cause for optimism within emerging social movements. You can follow Nikki on Twitter at: https://twitter.com/NikkivanderGaag or on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nikki-van-der-gaag-455a883/In the episode, we mention the following pieces of work:Nikki’s book, ‘Feminism and Men’ (2014), published by Zed Books: https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/feminism-and-men-9781780329116Her ‘No Nonsense’ Guide to Feminism, published in 2016 by Verso/New Internationalist: https://newint.org/books/new-internationalist/nononsense-feminismPromundo’s State of the World’s Fathers reports: http://stateoftheworldsfathers.orgPlan International’s State of the World’s Girls reports: https://plan-uk.org/about-because-i-am-a-girl/because-i-am-a-girl-past-reportsFind out more about the organisations Nikki has been involved in: https://promundoglobal.org, http://menengage.org, https://oxfam.org.uk, https://younglives.org.uk And other organisations that she mentions: https://wbg.org.uk/commission/, https://fawcettsociety.org.uk, https://awid.org, https://youngfeministfund.orgIf you would like to give us your feedback, suggest a guest, or have a question you'd like us to discuss in a future episode, get in touch with us at nowandmen@gmail.com.This episode was hosted and produced by Stephen Burrell and Sandy Ruxton. Thank you very much to Professor Nicole Westmarland, Durham University, and Vic Turnbull (MIC Media) for all of their support in setting up Now and Men.

The Voice, Harry Potter, and fatherhood: what's the connection? Hear Dr Martin Robb talk about this and much more on episode 1 of Now and Men. Martin is a Senior Lecturer in the School of Health, Wellbeing and Social Care at the Open University. His work is based around issues of gender, identity and care, with a particular focus on fatherhood and the development of caring masculinities.Some of the issues we cover in our conversation include: How fatherhood and men’s care are portrayed in popular culture.The strengths and weaknesses of different political positions on fatherhood and men caring for children.How to understand and promote men’s involvement as fathers and caregivers.Debates about the meaning and relevance of ‘male role models’ to men and boys.Historical perspectives and how thinking about fatherhood has changed over time.How Martin’s own experiences of growing up as a boy and becoming a father have impacted on his work.Martin has a blog at: https://martinrobb.wordpress.com, and you can follow him on Twitter at: https://twitter.com/MartinRobbOUIn the episode, we mention the following pieces of work:Martin is the author of a book which was published by Routledge in 2020, entitled ‘Men, Masculinities and the Care of Children: Images, Ideas and Identities’: https://www.routledge.com/Men-Masculinities-and-the-Care-of-Children-Images-Ideas-and-Identities/Robb/p/book/9781138234550He has also edited a book (available for free as an e-book) on ‘Fathers and Forefathers: Men and their Children in Genealogical Perspective’: https://www.mdpi.com/books/pdfview/book/2628Martin, Sandy and others worked on an Open University project called ‘Beyond Male Role Models’: https://wels.open.ac.uk/research/beyond-male-role-modelsMartin, Sandy and David Bartlett have collaborated on a project for Promundo on ‘Young Men, Masculinity and Wellbeing’: https://promundoglobal.org/resources/young-men-masculinity-wellbeing-open-university-research-project-association-promundo/At the end of the episode Stephen and Sandy mention our own new book, co-authored with Prof Nicole Westmarland and several international colleagues, which has just been published by Policy Press (including as a free e-book) - ‘Men’s Activism to End Violence Against Women: Voices from Spain, Sweden and the UK’: https://policy.bristoluniversitypress.co.uk/mens-activism-to-end-violence-against-womenThis episode was hosted by Stephen Burrell and Sandy Ruxton, and was produced by Vic Turnbull from MIC Media: https://micmedia.co.uk. We are very grateful to Vic from all of the support she has given us in setting up Now and Men.

Now and Men features current conversations about masculinity, men's lives, and gender equality. It was launched in July 2021, and can be found wherever you get your podcasts!