Maternal Gift Economy: Breaking Through -
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Maternalism and Ethics of Care towards a Colombian Gynocracy
This book analyzes the impact of women participation in Latin American politics, using Colombia as a case study. It draws upon theoretical frameworks such as Carol Gilligan’s Ethics of Care, Heide Goettner-Abendroth’s Maternalism, Genevieve Vaughan’s Gift Economy, and Vandana Shiva’s Ecofeminism, among others. The central hypothesis posits that women exhibit distinct political characteristics, particularly in their approach to addressing social violence, which are grounded in values such as maternal care.It interrogates whether women contribute in a distinctive manner to contemporary Colombian politics. Can women participation in government, informed by the ethics of care, maternalist principles, and the gift economy, offer a partial remedy to the social fragmentation and pervasive violence afflicting Colombia?To investigate the influence of maternal philosophy and the ethics of care on public policy and governmental responses to conflict, the political trajectories of nine Colombian women are examined: Their careers are scrutinized to determine whether a political model rooted in maternal ethics can generate innovative solutions to entrenched societal issues in Colombia, such as violence, inequality, and corruption.Ultimately, this study seeks to enrich the discourse on gender and politics by underscoring the transformative potential of leadership grounded in care, empathy, and community-centered values.
Angela Cuevas de Dolmetsch is a a lawyer and the international life honorary president of the International Federation of Women Lawyers FIDA. She has a Ph.D. from London University. Her thesis was on Maternalism in Colombian Politics. She is the director of a weekly TV program el Agora, and writes a column in the Cali news paper “El Pais. She has mentored the Nashira matriarchal eco-village in Palmira Colombia. She has published several books. “Etica del Cuidado y Maternalismo Hacia una Ginecocracia en Colombia?” (2024) “Of Governments and Guerrillas” (1988) “El Hombrecillo que se tragó a Dios y otros relatos (1999). She also has articles in several publications. The following books are forthcoming: "Nashira un Canto de Amor".
Previous Special Events
Sauna Culture, Sweat and Spirituality
with Kaarina Kailo
Moderated by Letecia Layson.
March 15, 2025
This book explores spiritual and sacred practices in Finnish saunas and Native North American sweat lodges through a comparative study. It also sheds light on ancient traditions from Ireland and Galicia, tracing their evolution and shared spiritual features. The book further analyzes gendered rituals, woman-centered lifeways, and cyclical worldviews rooted in rebirth and regeneration. This book shows how these practices reflect a deep, cross-cultural matrix of symbols celebrating Heaven and Earth. It presents the Delaware Sweat Lodge and Big House as prototypes of sacred structures for world renewal and their connections to sauna cultures worldwide.
By defining key concepts from patriarchal, feminist, and Indigenous perspectives, this book challenges modern ecosocial practices. The book's interdisciplinary approach will appeal to students, scholars, and researchers of gender studies, Indigenous studies, cultural studies, religious studies, philosophy, and anthropology interested in a better understanding of how ancient rituals hold ecological significance for addressing today’s planetary crises and social imbalances, revealing like-mindedness across diverse faith traditions. Link to book
Kaarina Kailo, Ph.D., is an Adjunct Professor at Oulu University, Finland, and a writer, scholar, politician, and former professor of women’s studies, as well as a self-made artist who illustrates her books, to make science visible and more aesthetic. She has published hundreds of texts, articles, and books on comparative mythology, mother goddesses in the North, eco-mythology, ecofeminism, spiritual saunas, sweat lodges, Northern women’s culture, the gift imaginary, and the bear religion. She has held women’s studies positions in Canada and Finland and as a senior fellow at the Finnish academy. She is a fellow of the Archeomythological Institute's European branch and focuses on peaceful, egalitarian cultures such as the Danube Civilization and healing traditions, especially in the sauna. More about Kaarina Kailo.