May 1: Women in Nature – Exceptional Histories or a History of Exceptions?
IBioS invites you to join this seminar featuring Dr. Hilary Allison, which will explore women’s historical associations with plants, botany and natural history, some of the roles women have played in the development of natural history as well as the obstacles in their path, and how women engaged with the emergence of the conservation movement in the late nineteenth and twentieth centuries. It will draw on groundbreaking individual examples (well-known and lesser-known) to bring to life the rich and varied personalities in the history of women’s unacknowledged contributions to both the study of nature and early efforts to protect it.
Abstract:
Many female archetypes, especially that of the nurturer and lifegiver, have been closely associated with the care and protection of the natural world, for example, through the persona of Mother Earth. These archetypes sit at odds with how societal norms have historically pushed women into the background in the study of science in general, and of nature in particular. Yet analysis of how women have subverted roles traditionally assumed by male scientists, excelled within roles limited by historic convention, and at times completely disrupted female stereotypes, reveals a far greater impact upon the development of natural history and the early seeds of the nature conservation movement than is often appreciated.
Bio:
Dr Hilary Allison FICFor is a recognized specialist in forestry and environmental policy with a blend of academic credentials, leadership experience in major conservation organizations and strategic advisory and governance roles.
She spent most of her professional career focusing on advocacy for the protection, restoration, management and expansion of native woodland, during her 25 years at the Woodland Trust, the UK’s largest NGO for woodland conservation, and most recently as a non-executive board member of England’s government forestry agency, the Forestry Commission.
She began her career with the National Trust and is a past chair of Wildlife and Countryside Link, a national coalition of environmental NGOs in England. She is currently a trustee of Tree Aid (a charity promoting the role of trees in improving livelihoods and countering environmental degradation in sub-Saharan Africa). She also gained a valuable international perspective through a spell at the UN Environment Programme’s World Conservation Monitoring Centre in Cambridge, where she managed an expert team of scientists working on ecosystem assessment and biodiversity indicators.
In her freelance role, she was part of the UNEP Secretariat, which produced the seventh edition of UNEP’s Global Environment Outlook in December 2025 and co-authored a report for the UK Government on the impact of biodiversity loss on women. For light relief in semi-retirement, she is researching the history of women’s roles in the conservation movement and getting hands-on with woodland management in her own small wood.
Details:
Date: Friday, May 1st
Time: 12 – 1:30 PM
Location: BRC, #1014/1024 (Multipurpose Room)
*This event will be held in-person only.