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Woman's Hour: DIY dancing at home; Transgender athletes; Ugandan women; Eco novels

23/06/2021

DIY dancing at home; Transgender athletes; Ugandan women; Eco novels

BBC Radio 4 - Woman's Hour, DIY dancing at home; Transgender athletes; Ugandan women; Eco novels

Dancing at home; Transgender athletes; Ugandan Women; Eco novels

Dancing at home - where do you do it? Transgender athletes and sport; Western Ugandan women evicted from their homes; Novels and the human impact of environmental disaster.

Nightclubs are shut, dancing at weddings is not allowed and gigs and festivals are still uncertain.  If you want to dance you have to do it at home.  Woman's Hour shares your DIY dancing stories and gets tips from Guilty Pleasures DJ, Sean Rowley and Strictly dancer, Amy Dowden. 

Laurel Hubbard is going to be the first transgender athlete to compete at the Olympics which starts next month. It's controversial, and she'll make history. She'll be part of the New Zealand women's weightlifting team at Tokyo. Laurel came out as transgender in 2013 - and qualifies for the Olympics on the basis that her testosterone levels have been kept below a certain level for at least a year. But how does a reduction in testosterone affect other aspects of the body - such as haemoglobin levels, muscle mass and strength - that could influence competitive performance? And what research is needed to help inform the balance between inclusivity and meaningful competition in sport? Joanna Harper, a PhD researcher at Loughborough University talks about her latest study.

Imagine having your home destroyed, losing your livelihood, and then being  intimidated by those now on the land. That’s what hundreds of women in Western Uganda say has happened to them; they were violently evicted from their homes to make way for a sugar plantation. In an investigation for Woman's Hour, they've told us they are now left with no option but to live in extremely poor conditions in a makeshift camp, where they face physical and sexual abuse from the plantation workers.  To make things worse, many of their husbands have abandoned them while they find employment elsewhere. The UK provides overseas aid for these woman as they fight for compensation for their lost land. But, that UK funding is due to end soon, even though after five years a legal dispute over the land is still unresolved. 

Two novels - one published tomorrow and one just out in paperback explore the human impact of environmental disaster through the lives of girls and women. They both ask - what is really important to us? What lasts when everything we think we need is stripped away?  Kate Sawyer, author of 'The Stranding', her first novel,  and Diane Cook, whose book 'The New Wilderness' was shortlisted for The Booker Prize last year, discuss their work.

Presenter: Emma Barnett
Producer: Kirsty Starkey


Interviewed Guest: Joanna Harper
Interviewed Guest: Sean Rowley
Interviewed Guest: Amy Dowden
Interviewed Guest: Sostine Namanya
Interviewed Guest: Kate Sawyer
Interviewed Guest: Diane Cook

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DIY dancing at home; Transgender athletes; Ugandan women; Eco novels

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