What you’ll do
Hear Dr Sigrid Vertommen discuss her research on women’s roles in “reproductive labour” in the global fertility industry as she explores the boundaries between gift-commodity, motherhood-work and altruism-profit in the fertility industry.
Over the past two decades, surrogate pregnancy has transformed from a small-scale activity into a booming 30-billion-dollar “baby business”. Women, overwhelmingly from the global South and East, are recruited as egg-cell providers or surrogates to provide the “gift of life” to intended parents.
The talk will draw on archival material and ephemera from Wellcome Collection’s library, such as promotional material from The Fertility Show. After the talk, you’ll have the opportunity to look at some key documents from the archives and ask questions.
