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General News, Women

Media Alert – International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women – November 25

La Trobe University 2 mins read

Experts from La Trobe University are available for interview ahead of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women this Saturday (25 November 2023).

Violence against women and girls remains one of the most prevalent and pervasive human rights violations in the world. According to UN Women, an estimated 736 million women globally – almost one in three- have been subjected to physical and/or sexual intimate partner violence, non-partner sexual violence, or both, at least once in their life.

In Australia;

  • 2 in 5 women have experienced violence since the age of 15.
  • On average, one woman a week is murdered by her current or former partner.

La Trobe experts can comment on the status of women’s safety in Australia (metropolitan and regional/rural areas) and globally, and what needs to be done to make women feel safer.

Dr Leesa Hooker

Associate Professor, La Trobe University Rural Health School

Contact: (03) 5444 7984

[email protected]

Dr Hooker is a Principal Research Fellow at the La Trobe University Judith Lumley Centre, leading research streams on:

  • Preventing and Reducing Sexual and Gender-Based Violence and Child,
  • Family and Community Health

She has established expertise in the epidemiology of family violence, women’s mental health, sexual and reproductive health and parenting. Her research includes intervention trials, observation studies and systematic reviews with a focus on improving maternal and child health outcomes, and the healthcare service response to abused women and children.

 

Professor Angela Taft

Emeritus Professor, La Trobe University Office of Nursing and Midwifery

Contact: [email protected]

(03) 9479 8809

Professor Taft is a former Director of the Judith Lumley Centre (JLC) at La Trobe University. She was Chief Investigator on an NHMRC Centre for Research Excellence project looking at safer families for family and intimate partners violence against women. She is currently completing HARMONY an NHMRC-funded project on cultural competency in family violence in general practice for migrant and refugee communities.

Dr Jessica Ison 

Post Doctoral Research Fellow, La Trobe University Judith Lumley Centre

Contact: [email protected]

Dr Ison is the Co-Lead of the Preventing and Reducing Sexual and Gender-Based Violence Research Stream at the La Trobe University Judith Lumley Centre. She is also Co-Chair of the La Trobe Reducing Gender-based Violence Network. She was previously a researcher for the ANROWS "What Works" project, which built an online portal of the evidence base for best practice interventions for preventing and responding to domestic, sexual and family violence. Dr Ison’s work has a particular focus on sexual violence prevention, alcohol and other drugs, drink spiking and LGBTQ+ communities.

 

Media are welcome to contact an academic directly or via:

[email protected] 

Sue Smethurst Senior Manager Media and Communications 0418 643 520

 

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