In this episode of the Trims and Talk Podcast, we sit down with two remarkable women from the University of Sheffield, Dr. Stephanie Ejegi-Memeh and Dr. Kate Fryer  for a thoughtful conversation about motherhood, academia, leadership, and community responsibility.

Released around International Women’s Day and Mother’s Day, this episode reflects on the many roles women hold as mothers, scholars, researchers, and leaders, often navigating professional spaces that have historically been dominated by men.

Dr. Stephanie Ejegi-Memeh is a Research Fellow in the School of Sociological Studies, Politics and International Relations at the University of Sheffield. Her work focuses on mental health, wellbeing, health inequalities, and the lived experiences of illness, particularly how racial and gendered inequalities shape health outcomes.

Dr. Kate Fryer is a Research Fellow in the Primary Care Research Group within the School of Medicine and Population Health. She leads the Deep End Research Alliance, a pioneering initiative focused on tackling health inequalities and ensuring that research involving underserved communities is inclusive, collaborative, and grounded in real community participation.

Both of these women have also been instrumental behind the scenes in helping create the institutional space within the University of Sheffield that allowed conversations like Trims and Talk to happen, supporting initiatives that centre  men’s mental health and honest dialogue within our communities.

In this episode we explore:

• What it means to be highly educated women and mothers working within academia
• The pressures of research environments that demand constant innovation and intellectual leadership
• Why research must be done with communities rather than on communities
• How women continue to shape institutions, families, and the intellectual spaces that influence future generations

For me personally, this conversation is also an acknowledgement. Having been raised and shaped by mothers, sisters, aunties, and grandmothers, I recognise the profound role women have played in shaping my worldview.

This episode is both a celebration and a thank you to the women whose work often happens quietly, but whose influence is deeply felt in our communities, our institutions, and our lives.