The Conversation

Tourette syndrome is a motor disorder that begins in childhood or adolescence. Characterized by movement tics and at least one vocal tic, it's often portrayed as unrestrained swearing. However, coprolalia only affects ten percent of people with Tourette’s. Datshiane Navanayagam talks to women from Argentina and the UK about their mission to talk about this widely misunderstood condition. Lauren Wy...

There has been a marked increase in enrolment in early childhood education globally, but access and approaches differ hugely around the world. What impact does quality early years education have on children’s future outcomes and why is ‘playing’ so pivotal in helping them prepare for school? Professor Nirmala Rao researches ways of measuring the impacts of early childhood development and education...

Traumatic events can leave an enduring psychological impact. Datshiane Navanayagam talks to two psychologists about how they help women heal from trauma. Jane Abatoni Gatete heads the Rwanda Organization of Trauma Counsellors (ARCT- Ruhuka). She has over 25 years of expertise and practical experience in mental health support. As well as working as a psychiatrist in individual and group settings sh...

Have you ever finished a book or television series and wished you could stay longer in that world? Fan fiction is a thriving art form, with millions of women writing and sharing their tributes to favourite stories, by taking famous characters and placing them in new situations. Datshiane Navanayagam meets women who take part and study this world. Dawn Walls-Thumma in the USA is a middle-grade teac...

Epilepsy is a brain condition that causes repeated episodes of sudden, brief changes in the brain's electrical activity causing seizures or convulsions. It's thought 50-million people have the condition, which can't be cured. The right treatment can alleviate symptoms but diagnosis and treatment is limited in many countries. Consultant neurologist Sofia Eriksson is from Sweden and works in the UK...

Confronting the death of a loved one – or the end of our own life – can be frightening and overwhelming. And yet it is something that will happen to all of us. So how can we open up conversations about the way we want to die? Is it possible to avoid pain and suffering? And who are the people who will care for us in our final moments? Datshiane Navanayagam talks to two women who work in palliative...

Datshiane Navanayagam talks to Whitley Fund for Nature winners from India and South Africa who are protecting endangered frogs and salamanders. Dr Barkha Subba is leading the first grassroots protection for the Himalayan Salamander in Darjeeling. The scientific adviser at local NGO, Federation of Societies for Environmental Protection (FOSEP), Barkha is working to restore habitat, remove invasive...

Online romance fraud and 'catfishing' – when someone pretends to be someone they’re not - is a problem across the globe. It causes financial and emotional devastation, yet many people refuse to take it seriously. Datshiane Navanayagam speaks to two women from the UK and Sweden who have spent years rebuilding their lives after being targeted by men they met on dating sites. Pernilla Sjöholm is from...

Datshiane Navanayagam meets the women behind leading nurseries and flower farms in Germany and America. From a vase of cut roses to the perennials that brighten our gardens, these women cultivate beauty from bare earth. Danielle Dall’Armi transformed a derelict lemon and avocado farm in California into a rose farm with an international reputation. A self-taught horticulturalist, she now has 25,000...

Divorce and separation are often a time of upset and distress. Ella Al-Shamahi talks to women in Latvia and the UK whose work as mediators is about trying to find calm and co-operation in conflict. Evija Kļave is a certified mediator and sociologist. She’s also an associate professor teaching mediation at masters level at Turiba University (a business school) and sits of the Commission of Certific...

Newspaper cartooning has a long history of using satire and humour to provide social commentary on the issues of the day – but how do female perspectives inform the approach, themes and tone of newspaper cartooning? Andrea Arroyo is from Mexico City. Her work as a dancer took her to New York in the early eighties. In the US, an exhibition of her visual art was picked up to feature in the New York...

Rice nourishes 3.5 billion people worldwide with women providing the majority of agricultural labour – especially in poorer countries. Datshiane Navanayagam talks to women from India and Tanzania about their work improving the resilience of rice to climate change, and about the lives of female rice farmers. Ranjitha Puskur is a socio-economist in India leading gender and youth research at the Inte...

As war flares across the Middle East, and conflicts rage in other parts of the world, it is often said that women and girls are the hardest hit by war. But what does that actually mean in practice? What are the key statistics that tell us how conflicts impact women? And what role are women playing in peace processes too? Datshiane Navanayagam speaks to two women who look at how war shapes women’s...

From “deepfakes” to “stealth filming”, women around the world are having their image stolen and shared online. Datshiane Navanayagam speaks to two women tackling this problem. Uma Subramanian works for an Indian helpline called Meri Trustline, run by RATI Foundation, which offers help for women whose image has been used. Kirana Ayuningtyas had her image digitally manipulated and shared online. She...

It's thought that around one in ten women of childbearing age have endometriosis, yet it often takes years of excessively painful periods and struggles to conceive before a diagnosis. And while there's no cure, surgery can help relieve symptoms. Datshiane Navanayagam talks to women from Hungary and South Africa working to improve treatment and diagnosis. Adrienn Salamon lives with endometriosis. S...

Datshiane Navanayagam speaks to two women who research what happens to our thoughts, feelings and behaviours when we speak many languages. To what extent do we have a “mother tongue” – and what happens if we stop using it? Dr Aneta Pavlenko is a Ukrainian-American linguist who looks at the emotional impact of moving between languages. Professor Núria Sebastián Gallés is a Spanish cognitive psychol...

Ella Al-Shamahi talks to women in Switzerland and the UK about how job sharing can boost a career and bring many benefits to both work and home life. Irenka Krone-Germann is Swiss and has written several books about job-sharing and part-time working. She co-founded the information platform, Go4jobsharing.ch and We Jobshare, an online platform which helps people find a job or topshare partner. Iren...

Ella Al-Shamahi talks to two women in Pakistan and America who use numbers to help others understand and take control of their pregnancies - by unpacking the data. Emily Oster is a bestselling author and leading expert on pregnancy, championing a data-based approach and unpacking studies and advice for mothers. She is also Professor of Economics at Brown University in America. Maryam Mustafa is a...

Datshiane Navanayagam talks to two women in France and Canada about why single-sex living spaces appeal to older women. Pat Dunn is 75 and started a Facebook group for senior women wanting to share a living space, after her husband died six years ago. There she found two housemates with whom she has lived ever since. Pat now runs a non-profit called SWLT (Senior Women Living Together) that helps o...

Datshiane Navanayagam talks to two women whose life changing illnesses led them to set up new businesses after they discovered high street clothes are uncomfortable and difficult to wear when you have restricted mobility or medical needs. Victoria Jenkins is one of the UK's leading adaptive fashion experts. She worked as a freelance garment technologist for fashion labels like Victoria Beckham and...

Have you ever wondered if there were a scandal buried in your family history? Datshiane Navanayagam meets two female genealogists from the US and Ireland to discuss the desire many of us have to dig into our heritage. Michele Soulli is an American genealogist who made headlines around the world when she tracked down the real "Brenda" from rap superstar Tupac's hit song Brenda's Got A Baby, and reu...

Datshiane Navanayagam brings together two women from the US and Australia to discuss the art of writing a political biography and whether women in politics are placed under more scrutiny than men. Helene Cooper is a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and New York Times correspondent who fled Liberia with her family following the military coup of 1980. Her biography Madame President documents the li...

Datshiane Navanayagam talks to two women who changed paths to design and manufacture their own shoes in their own countries. A former environmental engineer in India and former interior designer from Egypt explain how they found their passion. Anita Soundar was a chemical engineer before deciding to follow her need for self-expression and footwear design. While working at her father’s small factor...

How do video and board games get from idea to reality? Ella Al-Shamahi talks to two women who invent, tweak and perfect the games that so many of us love to play. Sigurlína Ingvarsdóttir from Iceland has produced some of the world’s biggest video game titles, including FIFA and Star Wars: Battlefront. She now invests in start-up gaming companies as a venture capitalist. Natalie Podd invented the b...

Two women with art galleries in Switzerland, London, Nigeria and the US talk about discovering and promoting new artists, building relationships with art collectors and the importance of supporting women in the art world. Maria Varnava is Greek Cypriot and grew up in Lagos. She founded Tiwani Contemporary which has galleries in Lagos and London. It champions artists from Africa and its diaspora to...