Breasts, babies and universities--reflections of two lactating professors

This is a transcript of a presentation made by Mary E Black and Amanda Sinclair at the "Winds of Change" conference in Sydney on July 12, 1998. This was an international conference looking at issues around women in universities. It is reprinted here as many of the issues are of relevance to the readers of this journal. Both Mary and Amanda are experienced nursing mothers who also have high profile careers and are strongly committed to their families. In a sense they are pioneers as they speak openly about the conflicts both internal and external that they encounter. They were both asked to fly to Sydney to present this paper but decided not to, citing family responsibilities. Instead they persuaded the conference organisers to fund them to produce a video, shot in both Cairns and Melbourne and later edited into a presentation. This was shown to acclaim at the conference and provoked a lively discussion. If organisations are creative, they can do things differently and thus ensure that nursing mothers can fully participate in professional life.