Lunch Hour Talks
LUNCH HOUR TALK 18 June2026
Thursday 18 June 2026
Speaker: Dr Zephie Comino-Cerny
Topic: Madge Barnes and Annie Praed: Australia’s first women graduates in Dentistry
Unlike the first women to graduate in Medicine, Veterinary Science, Law and Engineering, Madge Barnes and Annie Praed were members of the inaugural cohort to be awarded the Bachelor of Dental Surgery in 1903 at The University of Sydney.
In this talk, drawing on her PhD research, Dr Zephie Comino-Cerny explores the factors that enabled these two women to join that inaugural graduating class and trace the pathways that led them to this significant moment in the history of professional Australian women.
Zephie is a graduate of The University of Sydney holding a Bachelor of Dental Surgery and a PhD. In between these degrees, she studied English towards a BA at the University of Newcastle, though family and professional commitments prevented completion.
Zephie’s interest in women dentists arose from questions about her own career choice. In her graduating class there were three women; parity in dentistry was not reached until the late 1990s.
Her research began with oral histories of early women dentists and correspondence among early women dentists in New South Wales, leading her to focus on Madge Barnes and Annie Praed, the first two women to graduate in dentistry from The University of Sydney.
Where – The meeting room at the Customs House Library, at Circular Quay. 31 Alfred St – at Circular Quay, opposite the station. Take the lift (back LH corner of the foyer) to the second floor.
When – The talk will begin at 12.15, The room is open from 11.30 for tea/coffee/sandwiches.
Entry – $20 JSNWL members $25 non-members
PLEASE BOOK BY NOON Monday 15 June 2026
Phone the library on (02) 9571 5359 or email
Lunch Hour Talk 16 April 2026
Thursday 16 April 2026
Speaker: Dr Kate Laing
Topic: Sisters in Peace – Women and Pacifism in Australia
Is preparing for war the best means of preserving peace? This question has never been solely the concern of politicians and strategists. In 1915, during the First World War, the Women’s International Congress at The Hague was convened after alarmed and bereaved women from both sides of the conflict insisted that their opinions on war and the pathway to peace be heard. From this gathering emerged the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF), which to this day campaigns against militarism and nuclear weapons. In Australia, the formation of a section of WILPF connected political women to a worldwide network that sustained their anti-war activism. This talk will focus on the history of WILPF in Australia and an exploration of how their archives were collected and made accessible.
Dr Kate Laing received her PhD from La Trobe University and has published on Australian feminist history in peer-reviewed journals. She has worked at various universities teaching Australian history and as a researcher and project officer. She is currently working as an historian at the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade in the historical publications section that publishes Documents on Australian Foreign Policy.
Where – The meeting room at the Customs House Library, at Circular Quay. 31 Alfred St – at Circular Quay, opposite the station. Take the lift (back LH corner of the foyer) to the second floor.
When – The talk will begin at 12.15, The room is open from 11.30 for tea/coffee/sandwiches.
Entry – $20 JSNWL members $25 non-members
PLEASE BOOK BY NOON Monday 13 April 2026
Phone the library on (02) 9571 5359 or email
