about
Birth Café was conceived by Laura Godfrey-Isaacs - artist, midwife and birth activist.
The aim is to support open conversations about birth in order to build understanding and respect for its psychosocial, cultural and bodily significance for everyone. It's also a great excuse to eat cake!
As birth increasingly takes centre stage, through popular TV programmes, celebrity pregnancies and maternity scandals, what should be a momentous experience can seem reduced to a procedure or ‘event’ devoid of its wider significance. Conversations about birth tend to be seen as a specialist area, whereas how we are born, as well as how we give birth has a fundamental affect on all our lives.
Birth Café takes its lead from the Death Café movement, helping to provide a safe, non-judgmental space in which anyone and everyone is welcome to come and discuss their relationship to, and concept of birth.
A Birth Café can either be for a general public or for particular constituencies such as people who can or have birthed, Trans parents, adoptive parents etc. however, should always be welcoming, inclusive and diverse.
The aim is to support open conversations about birth in order to build understanding and respect for its psychosocial, cultural and bodily significance for everyone. It's also a great excuse to eat cake!
As birth increasingly takes centre stage, through popular TV programmes, celebrity pregnancies and maternity scandals, what should be a momentous experience can seem reduced to a procedure or ‘event’ devoid of its wider significance. Conversations about birth tend to be seen as a specialist area, whereas how we are born, as well as how we give birth has a fundamental affect on all our lives.
Birth Café takes its lead from the Death Café movement, helping to provide a safe, non-judgmental space in which anyone and everyone is welcome to come and discuss their relationship to, and concept of birth.
A Birth Café can either be for a general public or for particular constituencies such as people who can or have birthed, Trans parents, adoptive parents etc. however, should always be welcoming, inclusive and diverse.
Image above - Laura with co-facilitator artist, doula and birth activist Amy Dignam