Tell more women’s stories: New History Trust chief
The History Trust’s chief wants to amplify diverse voices – overseeing events like the legal history of same-sex relationships in colonial times in this month’s History Festival. One local historical fiction author supports the move saying history has traditionally been written “for men and about men”.
As the History Trust of South Australia’s new CEO Justyna Jochym oversees her first History Festival this month, she is committed to telling the stories of diverse South Australian communities.
Jochym, whose academic background covered social justice, women’s history and Eastern European history, planned to continue amplifying these themes already explored by the History Trust.
“We are the institution that is responsible for preserving and promoting the social history of South Australia, and that is the social history of all the peoples of South Australia,” she told InDaily.
“So, I think we will continue to tell a very plural spectrum of stories, because they reflect South Australians and South Australia.
“That includes women’s histories, Aboriginal histories, multicultural stories, and LGBTQIA+ histories, all of which are central to understanding who we are as a community today.”
This is reflected throughout this year’s History Festival program, with events focusing on women’s, First Nations and queer communities in South Australian history, including Her Side of the Story: Women Shaping South Australia, 1830-1840, and Love and the Law: A Legal History of Same-Sex Relationships in Colonial SA.
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“Importantly, these histories are not peripheral to South Australia’s story. They are foundational to it,” Jochym, who moved to Adelaide in 2018 after being head of international cooperation and development at Krakow Festival Office in Poland, said.
Fiction author and historian Lainie Anderson, who is a trustee at the History Trust, said that history has traditionally been written “for men and about men”.
However, she said that in the past 50 years, there has been a movement to highlight the role and achievements of women in history.
This included her work in researching the history of Kate Cocks, who was the state’s first woman police officer and the subject of Anderson’s novels, The Death of Dora Black and Murder on North Terrace.
“People are really wanting to know more about women in history because we’re surrounded by stories about men, statues of men, most Adelaide streets are named after men – so, it’s good to just get women back into the story,” Anderson said.
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“If we don’t tell women’s stories, we’re only telling half the story.”
She spoke of Australia’s first woman prime minister Julia Gillard, Lady Marie Galway, who was the first president of the South Australian Red Cross, and renowned Aboriginal leader Dr Lowitja O’Donoghue.
Anderson, who regularly shares stories about women in SA’s history, also referenced writer, preacher and social reformer, Catherine Helen Spence.
Justyna Jochym’s top History Festival picks |
SA Kitsch: The Strange Stuff That Makes Us GreatPresented by Pink Shorts Press & Frida Las Vegas (Stavroula Adameitis) |
Dunstan’s ChildrenPresented by Festival Hellenika |
The Australian PavilionPresented by Irfan & Sobia Hashmi |
Bush Foods and Other Useful Plants of Interest Before European SettlementPresented by Fleurieu Environment Centre |
Community Weaving ProjectPresented by Kyla McHughs & Alexandrina Library |
Queer Archives Roadshow & WorkshopPresented by Queer Archives Collection of SA |
Overland to Darwin and BackPresented by Brenton & Amanda Whittenbury and Brenton & Donna Taylor |
Jochym, who has led the History Trust for the past eight months, said the opportunity to shape the conversation around democracy, migration and mobility appealed to her, as well as the History Trust’s impressive asset portfolio.
This May, Jochym is overseeing her first History Festival, which revolves around the theme of connections.
“We really wanted to tackle the sense of disconnection in the world today, and to help the public and audiences think about how we connect inter-generationally across metro and regional areas, across different themes and really create those bridges in our program,” Jochym said.
Among Jochym’s highlights for the 2026 program are SA Kitsch: The Strange Stuff That Makes Us Great, which is presented by Pink Shorts Press in collaboration with Frida Las Vegas on May 21.
“I think that is going to be a great event that helps us think about not only what we understand as kitsch today, but what we might understand as kitsch in the future,” she said.
“What are we creating today that might be slightly odd, slightly cringeworthy, that in 20, 30, 40 years’ time, somebody’s going to be calling the kitsch of the 2020s.”
Jochym began her role as CEO of the History Trust in September 2025, having previously led Festival City ADL – the peak body for South Australia’s major festivals – for five and a half years.
South Australia’s History Festival is running until May 31. This year’s theme is Connections, and the festival features more than 550 events spanning 16 SA regions.
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