Jonge Academie Inauguration
Every year, de Jonge Academie (The Young Academy of Belgium), selects their newest members based on scientific or artistic excellence of researchers, who have distinguished themselves in an exceptional way since completing their doctorate. On the third of March, Hannelore Van Bavel - postdoc researcher at RHEA - was inaugurated as one of their newest members. Those who are selected, join the think-tank group of early-career researchers, many of whom go on to build careers at leading universities in Belgium and abroad.
Hannelore Van Bavel was selected, based on her research on the meanings and motivations underlying female genital modifications, specifically female genital mutilation and female genital cosmetic surgery. She studies why and how such practices call for such differing moral and judicial reactions, in particular what this teaches us about the intersection of gender, race, culture and colonialism.
Vub spotlight: interview
The VUB highlighted this special reward in a feature interview.
Hannelore's current work focuses on genital cosmetic surgery, such as labiaplasty, in Belgium, the Netherlands and Kenya. The question throughout her research remains the same: "why is one type of genital modification heavily condemned, while another is socially accepted or even considered desirable?" She wishes to highlight how inequalities such as racism, colonial legacies and classism, play a role in determining who does and who doesn't gain control over her own body. The aim is to make the debate fairer, more nunaced and more inclusive.
“I have always been fascinated by social inequality and by the ways in which gender, racism and North–South relations shape people’s lives. During my Master’s in Sociology, I carried out research on minors involved in prostitution in Tanzania. Around the same time, I attended a summer school at Mzumbe University, where I met Panin — a Maasai man who had just founded an NGO within his community. When he heard that I was going on to pursue a Master’s in Gender & Diversity, he asked whether I would be willing to research female genital cutting among the Maasai. The following summer, I returned to conduct fieldwork.”
In the longer term, she hopes to build an interdisciplinary research group that studies how societies interpret and regulate bodily interventions. "What do we regard as ‘medical care’? What do we label as ‘cultural’? Who decides what is normal? And what role do gender, race and social inequality play? I want to investigate these questions through equal international partnerships and participatory as well as creative methodologies". To find out more about her motivations, you can read the full interview with the VUB.
Congratulations Hannelore! We're excited to see what this opportunity will bring for you!