IWD 2017 city event
On the 11th March 2017, West Quay played host to the largest international women’s day (IWD) event in its history. With 500 to 600 people gathered around at any one time, crowding around balconies on all floors, filling up all available space, the event was a resounding success.
Katrina Morgan, WiSET co-chair, was inspired by the lead organiser, Ishret Damani from Hampshire constabulary, to get involved and help with the running of the event. WiSET contributed 500 packs of top trump Women Scientist card game which was a resounding success with children seen excitedly playing with their parents.
A mixture of stalls, live music and performances filled West Quay with an atmosphere of excitement and joy. Communities, charities, the police, the NHS, local musicians, performers and both universities came together in a true collaboration to give the people of Southampton a real celebration of women and their achievements.
The general public were able to play with robots, get their hands on science experiments, have bone health screenings and blood pressure checks, talk with numerous women’s, refugee and human trafficking charities, don police helmets and jackets, and celebrate women from all walks of life. And the best thing was this was all for free!
The stage captured the eyes and ears of passersby with live performances from local famous artists such as The Lounge Kittens and Lucy Kitchen, intermixed with children Street dancing, traditional Indian dancing, fashion shows, spoken word poetry and much, much more.
The Art House in conjunction to the West Quay event, hosted a whole day and evening of talks and music. Organised by Devin Valentine, it was a huge hit with guest speakers including Dr Rhiney discussing domestic abuse intervention, a panel from the University of Southampton debating what it means to be a woman in science and live music performed by Southampton Solent University students.
Keep your eyes peeled for a bigger and better event next year. Watch this space.
Photos displayed on this page were taken by students from Southampton Solent University.