Remote Rural Women's Ideologies, Spaces and Networks: Country Women's Association of New South Wales, 1922-1992

Abstract

The Country Women's Association is one of Australia's oldest and biggest service organisations. The Country Women's Association of New South Wales is an organisation with its origins in the remote rural parts of the State, but today a large proportion of its membership is in metropolitan areas and in the more densely settled coastal regions. This article examines the characteristics of the C.W.A. of New South Wales: its pride in past achievements, its network, and its growing recognition that it needs a revised mission. Using the C.W.A. Motto and Objects as a starting point, the ideology of the C.W.A. is examined, particularly the concept of 'countrywoman' and the C.W.A.'s 'service' role. Finally, potential new directions that could be incorporated into a revised mission are identified, in the context of the concepts of network, spaces, service and ideology, seen in the light of contemporary social change.