Book Panel: Fewer Children, Longer Lives: Population Ageing, Pronatalism and New Social Divides
4:00pm - 6:00pm /
Thursday 30th April 2026
/ Venue: SLSJ Events Space School of Law & Social Justice
Type: Seminar /
Category: Department
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This event marks the launch of Dr Anna Shadrina’s new book, The Babushka Phenomenon: Older Women and the Political Sociology of Ageing in Russia (UCL Press, 2025).
Once a niche demographic concern, the politics of population change has become a frontline issue for populist and far-right movements globally. Confronted with the predictable realities of ageing societies – low fertility and increased longevity – governments are reaching for pronatalist policies rooted in conservative gender norms. This panel examines the intersection of population ageing with politics at regional and global levels. The panel draws on a key strength of Dr. Shadrina’s book – its capacity to walk the line between humanity and society, offering insight into the human experiences of women who absorb the negative impacts of structural gender inequalities.
Dr Shadrina’s book exposes the human cost of post-socialism in Russia, where older women are expected to help their adult children combine paid employment with family life by providing unpaid childcare, housework and housing. This provision is enabled by the babushka phenomenon – older women’s willingness to adopt the position of post-professional and post-sexual members of society who prioritise the interests of the younger generation. The book explores why and how the contributions of grandmothers to social reproduction are systematically depoliticised.
Once a niche demographic concern, the politics of population change has become a frontline issue for populist and far-right movements globally. Confronted with the predictable realities of ageing societies – low fertility and increased longevity – governments are reaching for pronatalist policies rooted in conservative gender norms. This panel examines the intersection of population ageing with politics at regional and global levels. The panel draws on a key strength of Dr. Shadrina’s book – its capacity to walk the line between humanity and society, offering insight into the human experiences of women who absorb the negative impacts of structural gender inequalities.
Dr Shadrina’s book exposes the human cost of post-socialism in Russia, where older women are expected to help their adult children combine paid employment with family life by providing unpaid childcare, housework and housing. This provision is enabled by the babushka phenomenon – older women’s willingness to adopt the position of post-professional and post-sexual members of society who prioritise the interests of the younger generation. The book explores why and how the contributions of grandmothers to social reproduction are systematically depoliticised.