Author: HOLLY KNIGHTS

History Beyond the Class Room Project description

For my project I am working with Zonta Northern Beaches, a branch of the organization Zonta International. Internationally Zonta aims to improve the legal, political, economic, educational, health, and professional status of women through service and advocacy. Zonta’s motto is to create; a world where no woman lives in fear of violence, and where gender equality is a reality. At Zonta Northern Beaches they empower women and girls through the Study Grants, supporting women and children leaving domestic violence, creating Breast Care Cushions for women with breast cancer as well as pack birthing kits to ensure safe deliveries in under-resourced and crisis-affected areas worldwide. I have had an ongoing relationship with Zonta Northern Beaches since I was in year eight as both my sisters and myself were recipients of their study grants. Since I have participated in Zonta events and helped them run birthing Kit packing days.I am excited by the opportunity to give back to them after all they have done for my family and myself .

After meeting with Margaret White and Robyn Milat, two Zonta volunteers last week, who among their many roles are also the club’s archivists, I think for my project I am likely to create a history page for their website. Zonta Northern Beaches already has a well established website (Which is linked here), but their website does not have a history page. Additionally within our meeting both Margaret and Robyn expressed some concern with how they felt their club was perceived. They believed some members of the wider community did not understand the diversity in their membership; they believe that some people think that Zonta northern beaches is a tea group for older women. This furthering their concerns that what they actually do is not understood by the community or properly reflected by their website. I hope to help Zonta by creating a history page which reflects both the history of their club as well as the history of some of their members. As part of the History page I would like to create a timeline of the club’s history since it was founded as Zonta Warringah to the present day as Zonta international. I would also like to record a video which documents a group oral history between some of the older and younger Zonta Northern Beaches club members.. I want to ask questions which reflect both their own personal history with the club such as how they joined, as well as the history of the club itself. I hope for this to be included as a video on the history page to help create a multimodal and engaging page. Furthermore, I want to use the feminist action as a grounding framework of my Historical inquiry, of which the Zonta Northern eaches club was founded in the 1970s.