UNIVERSITY WOMEN

Evening Star, Issue 23180, 1 February 1939, Page 16

UNIVERSITY WOMEN

NEW ZEALAND FEDERATION^ ANNUAL CONFERENCE CONCLUDES The conference of the New Zealand Federation of University Women, which has been in session since Friday, ended yesterday morning, when officers for the current year were elected. The headquarters of the federation for the next term will be Auckland, and the new Dominion president is Mrs A. V. Cocker (Auckland). THE LONDON CONFERENCE. A summary of the proceedings of the council meeting in London, where she was one of the councillors from 2(3 different countries, was given by Miss L. Morton. It was very stimulating, she said, to be associated with headquarters in its work and realise the magnitude and importance of the federation. The university women have a great part to play and an even greater responsibility in promoting international goodwill and world peace. The administration and organisation of the council meetings made it easy for all delegates to make contact with, each other, and in private associations they learned more of tho work being done by the federation in different countries. The two great problems before the council were how to keep in touch with university women throughout the world, and hovy best to help those who had lost their homes and their livelihood by being displaced from tbeir own countries. The question of displaced women was discussed and how best to help them; in consequence of the upheaval in their countries they had» been deprived of the right to work and even live in their own country. Headquarters had decided to set aside £llOO a year for two years as an emergency fund, and it was suggested that for helping refugees the main lines were small money grants for travelling expenses, hospitality in foreign countries, help in meeting lecture fees, and assisting to place refugees With regard to the work of the exchange committee, Miss Morton said it was found that opportunities for direct exchange were so rare that while the International Federation of University Women should continue to encourage direct exchanges by collaborating with agencies which existed to promote them, the function of the Exchange Committee should be extended to include, for instance, arranging of hospitality for scholars wishing to work for a time in a foreign country. It was decided to send a questionnaire to National Associations to discover what type of institutions (libraries, hospitals, etc.) in each country would be prepared to grant facilities to foreigners, and what arrangements for hospitality could be made for them. PROBLEMS DISCUSSED. Problems of first importance to the federation were exhaustively discussed, the theme of these problems being contained in remits from the different branches. OFFICE-BEARERS. The following Dominion executive was elected: —President, Mrs A. V. Cocker; vice-presidents—Mrs W. H. Benson, Miss Marion Fyfe (Dunedin), Dr Houghton (Auckland) ; executive— Miss E. R. Edwards (Auckland), Miss Hefford (Wellington), Miss M. E. Sims (Canterbury), Miss Helen _ Fenwick (Otago) ; secretary, Mrs A. K. Turner (Auckland); treasurer, Miss Gray (Auckland).