How did feminism take root in Romania after the fall of communism — and what obstacles has it faced ever since?
In the opening lecture of the Sober Thought series, Professor Ionela Băluță traces the emergence, institutionalisation, and ongoing contestation of feminist thought and gender studies in post-1989 Romania, exploring the political, academic, and social forces that have shaped — and at times tried to suppress — this field.
📅 Wednesday, 13 May 2026
🕑 14:00 EEST
✅Register for free → https://forms.gle/tXqkwj7pbTZCkgjG8
💻 Join us online via Google Meet: https://meet.google.com/xvj-ogxd-woc
🎓 Free & open to all
Ionela Băluță is Full Professor at the Faculty of Political Science, University of Bucharest, and Director of the Centre for the Study of Equal Opportunity Policies. She holds a PhD in Sociology from the École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales (EHESS, Paris, 2005) and habilitation in Political Science (2017). She founded and coordinates the Master’s programme in Equal Opportunity Policies — the first and only programme of its kind at the University of Bucharest, and the only one in Romania affiliated with a European consortium. Her research covers gender studies, feminist history, women’s political representation, anti-gender campaigns, and biopolitics in post-communist Romania. She has published widely in Romanian and international academic venues and was Dean of the Faculty of Political Science (2016–2019).
Sober Thought: A FERBOPO Forum represents a new series of free online talks exploring the intersections of state, religion, and body politics in Romania and Central and Eastern Europe. Over the coming months, leading scholars will present their work to an open international audience — followed by a live Q&A. Sessions run 60–75 minutes and are free to attend.
This event is part of the Sober Thought series — view all upcoming sessions