“Give to us clear vision that we may know where to stand and what to stand for, because unless we stand for something we shall fall for anything.” (Peter Marshall)
From the early beginning, June 2009, it was our main objective of this journal to provide a forum that united scientific work with debates and opinions related to the different fields of obstetrics, perinatology, gynaecology and reproductive health. Cross-breeding with other disciplines such as sociology, psychology, philosophy, law, ethics, health economics was the ultimate and final goal. Free access to its content was an obligatory step because universal and global health care issues need to reach interested people all over the world.
Thanks to the Board of the Flemish Society of Obstetrics and Gynaecology (VVOG), the members of the editorial board, the universities and the highly appreciated contribution of the pharmaceutical industry, we succeeded to publish 16 issues and five Monographs in the past four years.
It was our artistic reviewer Koen Vanmechelen who was able to give FV&V in ObGyn a different but very attractive look when compared to other scientific journals. The confrontation of art and science turned out to be unique and will be continued in the future.
From June 2013 the Walking Egg non-profit organization will take over ownership from the VVOG, a mutual agreement between the VVOG and the Walking Egg npo. It was decided that the VVOG remains the first partner and that the journal will continue to be the “International Scientific Journal of the VVOG”.
To raise global awareness surrounding childlessness, family planning and mother-care and to make reproductive care in all its aspects universally available and accessible is the first goal of the Walking Egg npo. To organize open discussion platforms on topics related to human reproduction is another important scope of the journal.
Cross-breeding between disciplines, between South and North, East and West, between facts, views and vision, this is what FV&V in ObGyn aims to stand for.
I sincerely hope that this next step will be as exciting and challenging as the previous one, with a lot of original scientific work, interesting debates, PhD Summaries, strong opinions and unexpected viewpoints.
Willem Ombelet, editor-in-Chief
My Walking Egg
Art is a commitment to the planet and its inhabitants. It invites people to find a new experience of engagement. The Walking Egg embodies that principle. It deals with the quality of life for every single woman, with the vital female right to an offspring. This is a difficult problem in a world that suffers from human overpopulation and bears the dire consequences of inequality and poverty. A Malthusian catastrophe seems to be in the make. But the question is this: what is ‘too much’ and who decides what is too much? The solution, so I believe, is never found in simple logics or drastic measures. The Walking Egg will ensure infertile and ostracized women of motherhood and a chance at a better life and a place in society. Accomplishing this paves the way for a better and more sustainable world.
Koen Vanmechelen, artistic reviewer
