Roy Sneddon

"Exploring gender equity issues facing Theravada Buddhist Nuns in Australia"

This PhD project involves semi-structured interviews with Australian Buddhist nuns, monks and lay people in the Theravada tradition, to examine what gender/political issues bhikkhunis may face in the Australian context. There is considerable international discussion on the ongoing discrimination facing Buddhist nuns including (but not limited to):

* The full ordination of Bhikkhuni nuns
* The eight Garudhamma rules that subordinate nuns to monks
* Restriction of access to resources and education
* Suppression of the voices of Buddhist women in debate, policy and literature
* Acceptance by the sangha, laity and governments

The questions in our study have been drawn from the international literature, and we are hoping to ask bhikkhunis, bhikkhus, and lay devotees here in Australia about their perspectives on these issues. In the interviews we are hoping to cover the following themes:

* The status and recognition of bhikkhunis in Australia
* Barriers bhikkhunis face to equality
* The agency and empowerment of bhikkhunis
* Participants' perceptions of gender equality

This study represents a culturally significant group in 21st Century Australia.

Supervisor: Dr Tiziana Torresi (University of Adelaide)
Co-Supervisors: Dr Nadine Levy (Nan Tien Institute), AProf Susan Hemer (University of Adelaide)

This project is supported by an Australian Government Research Training Program scholarship
University of Adelaide Human Research Ethics approval H-2021-199