Daring to Lead: Global perceptions of the IFHE Position Statement "Home Economics in the 21st Century"

At the 2008 IFHE World Congress the Position Statement—Home Economics in the 21st Century (hereafter referred to as ‘he21C’)—was launched. It sets out to locate the profession in the contemporary context by serving as a platform, looking ahead to viable, progressive and assertive visions of home economics for the twenty-first century and beyond. Like the theme of the HEIA National Conference ‘Daring to Dream’, this statement sharpens the focus of home economists to explore visions for preferred futures for all individuals and families, and to challenge discriminatory and prejudiced attitudes and practices that beset them as professionals, whilst offering defensible arguments to counter such persistent injustice. A clear definition forms part of the text. This definition highlights the social justice agenda adopted by IFHE—yet, many members of the profession might be challenged by such positioning. This paper reports on the findings of a survey that investigated home economists’ perceptions of their subject discipline using extracts from the Position Statement as triggers. A large number of respondents from a range of countries participated in the study, providing invaluable global insights and pointing to the need for strategies to engage members of the profession on agendas such as advocated by both HEIA and IFHE assisting them to become catalysts rather than casualties of contemporary times.