Workshops – VIII Women’s Congress

3 December 2022 · K1 KANAL – Centre Pompidou

9:50–11:20 · My no means no and only yes means yes!

Agata Teutsch · Autonomia Foundation · Girl Power Center ON TOUR
In Polish · for girls aged 8–13 · 1.5 hours

Girls have the power! Participants listened to what their bodies tell them about whether they like a behaviour or want something. The workshop practised assertive communication, setting boundaries and recognising situations in which being “naughty and unkind” can be important and necessary.

Participants also created their own power pins using drawings, newspaper cut-outs, collages and existing designs.

11:30–12:30 · Hello, mindfulness! Introduction to mindfulness

Ewa Litke-Bąk
In Polish

An introduction to mindfulness in everyday life: what mindfulness is, what benefits its practice can bring and how it relates to stress. The workshop also included shared practice — a moment to stop, breathe and pay attention to what is happening within us.

12:40–14:10 · How to make a Women For Ukraine #stopwarrapeUKR protest

June Kathryn Minix · Women for Ukraine
In English

The workshop concerned a protest against the use of rape as a weapon of war in Ukraine. Women for Ukraine’s action was rooted in strong visual symbolism: white clothing, bound hands and mouths, and red paint symbolising blood and the trauma of rape. The protest itself was silent, honouring survivors and those who had died.

15:00–16:30 · Pro abortion equals pro sex

Natalia Broniarczyk, Kinga Jelińska, Justyna Wydrzyńska · Abortion Dream Team
In Polish and English

Sex and pleasure are often overlooked in conversations about abortion. The workshop examined the power and shame embedded in abortion bans and stigma: who has the right to spontaneous sex, who can decide what to do with its “consequences”, who is socially punished and who is labelled irresponsible. It explored the intersection of sex, abortion and cultural norms.

17:00–18:30 · Our bodies as battlefields

Renata Piotrowska-Auffret
In Polish and English

This discursive and choreographic workshop asked what tools of struggle corporeality itself offers us and what becomes possible when we see our bodies not only as battlefields but also as spaces of power and transformation. Participants worked with movement, voice, intuition, kinetic empathy and somatic practices.

Shared improvisation and choreographic practices were used to imagine a future in which our bodies feel safe, grounded and strong.