Celebrating Women on South Georgia

International Women’s Day is celebrated globally every year on 8th March. It has been around for 115 years and aims to promote gender equality and women’s rights. Each year there is a theme and for 2026 it is ‘Rights. Justice. Action. For ALL Women and Girls.’

Our team on island this year has been predominantly female – a stark contrast to when Grytviken was a whaling station with mainly male workers! We had our Curators, Jayne and Helen, visiting at different times in the season and three Operations Assistants, Livvie, Emily, and Rachel. Our Off-Island Operations Manager, Lauren, joined us for the final eight weeks on island. And although it now seems long ago, we also had our out-going on-island Operations Manager, Deirdre, with us for the first eight weeks too! 

We decided to use this opportunity to ask the wonderful women who work here some questions about life on the island. 

What first inspired you to pursue a career connected to the polar region? 

Lauren: My mum and dad raised me with the motto ‘do whatever makes you happy’. I wasn’t raised to believe I couldn’t do something because I was a woman or because I was from a working-class family. I saw an advert for a role in Port Lockroy, and I thought ‘that would make me happy’ so I applied. It’s such a magical place and my interest in the polar regions definitely grew once I got here. 

Helen: I had a specific interest in South Georgia because of my family’s connection with the whaling history. 

Rachel: I wanted to live somewhere extreme, somewhere that would test me. 

What does a ‘normal’ day look like for you on South Georgia? 

Livvie: It depends on if we have a visiting ship in. If we do, we open up the museum then go on to the ship to do a presentation and fundraise for the charity. Then we come back on shore, do tours and work in the shop. If there’s no ship in, we do a range of different operational tasks. This might include anything from waste management, social media content, restocking the shop. We sometimes do object care for our collections and object maintenance. 

What’s something about working in such a remote environment that people rarely understand? 

Lauren: Everyone knows your business and where you are at all times. You’re extremely remote but very perceived. 

Helen: I think people don’t understand how busy you are here. People assume you’re bored or have no work to do but both of these couldn’t be further from the truth. 

Is there a woman – past or present – who inspires your work here? 

Livvie: Nan Brown wrote Antarctic Housewife and was the wife of a gentleman who ran the radio station at King Edward Point. She was an incredible writer, and her book shines a light on an otherwise overlooked part of South Georgia history. She was an integral part of the operations and community. Her strength, resilience and good humour is a common thread running throughout the book and contrasts typical stereotypes of ‘housewives’ at that time. 

What’s the most unexpected skill you’ve picked up whilst working here? 

Helen: Welding. We were taught to weld one season in case we ever needed to use the skill in the museum. 

Lauren: Using a tilly lamp, especially as they all look like they belong in the museum! 

Rachel: Making so many different types of bread. 

How has South Georgia changed you either personally or professionally? 

Helen: Professionally, South Georgia has changed me because it pushes you in lots of ways you didn’t think were possible- in terms of the skills you need to learn when you’re here. It helps with confidence too, as you don’t have others to rely on whilst you’re down here. Personally, it has made me realise what things are important in life. It makes you think differently about the way you live when you’re not in South Georgia. 

Livvie: I feel able to try new things without the pressure of finances or the world around me. You can experiment with new things here as everything is at your disposal, and everyone close to you, is someone you know is rooting for you. I can excel my cooking abilities with the abundance of free good quality ingredients. I have a gym next door to my house; I have mountains and hills to advance my outdoor navigation skills, a workshop with tools and materials free to a good home. I’ve tried skills here that have zero consequence if they are a success or a failure, and that is a very liberating thing, because it pushes you further, gives you confidence to give things a go! You know that everyone is going to encourage you to go further out of your comfort zone and support you when you live on South Georgia. 

What do you want future generations to know about South Georgia? 

Lauren: Humans can do better, we went from whaling to an ecosystem in recovery- it is possible to fix things. Also, you can make a paneer out of Nido and that needs to be passed on! 

Helen: Humans are visitors to South Georgia. We’re here for a short time and we should respect the land around us and remember that we make an impact. These can be good or bad, but we should be aware of that. 

What advice would you give to women considering a career in the polar regions? 

Lauren: Go for it. 

Helen: Make your mark.