Space XX

$32.99

Free Shipping over $150
30 day returns
Click & Collect Melbourne

As states and powerful companies compete in a new space race, humanity’s future on Earth and beyond is being decided right now – and women are too often being left out.

Outer space is celebrated as humanity’s next great frontier, yet not everyone is set to have an equal share in its future. Once imagined as a global commons of scientific cooperation and cosmic discovery, space is increasingly framed as a ‘warfighting domain’, fuelled by (para)militarism, privatisation and patriarchy. It is concentrating wealth and power in the private sector, dominated by a ‘broligarchy’ of space entrepreneurs obsessed with starships and galatic conquest.

Elise Stephenson led a world-first research study of gender and diversity in space, involving more than 70 countries. In Space XX, she unpacks the findings and speaks with almost 1000 pioneering women, men, trans and non-binary people, from astronauts to engineers to ethicists – including Australia’s first female astronaut, Katherine Bennell-Pegg, and Space Agent One, Megan Clark. She reveals a story of inequality, exclusion and denigration of women in STEM. And she imagines better ways forward, including practical, evidence-based ideas that allow all humanity to flourish, informed by First Nations, feminist and futures thinking.

Back in the 1960s, a group of elite American women pilots excelled in astronaut training – but their training was abandoned, and so the Moon landing became ‘one small step for man’. Sixty years later, it was announced that no woman would fly in Artemis III, a critical voyage in the ambition to return humanity to the Moon. Compelling and urgent, Space XX exposes the stakes of our extraterrestrial trajectory and argues that a more inclusive future can – and must – be fought for.

About the Author

Dr Elise Stephenson is an award-winning researcher and the deputy director of the Global Institute for Women’s Leadership at Australian National University, chaired by Australia’s first (and only) female prime minister, Julia Gillard. Stephenson is the Gender, Space and National Security Fellow at the ANU’s National Security College, an adjunct at Griffith Asia Institute and a Fulbright Fellow of the University of Washington. She was the lead researcher of three Landmark Studies on Gender Equality in the Global Space Sector (2024–26) published by the UN Office for Outer Space Affairs, containing world-first data on gender representation and policy uptake in over 100 space agencies and organisations globally, including NASA and the Australian Space Agency. Her book The Face of the Nation (2024) won the International Studies Association Bertha Lutz Prize and the Australian Political Science Association Crisp Prize commendation, and her research appears widely, including in the Hague Journal of Diplomacy and European Journal of Politics and Gender. Elise was recognised by Deloitte, Google and Energy Australia as one of Australia’s Top 50 Outstanding LGBTIQ+ leaders, and her Fulbright research on diversity in space was funded by Monash University.

Shipping & returns

Shipping Within Australia

Standard Shipping: $12.95 flat rate for orders under $150

Free Shipping: Orders over $150 (Australia only)

Carrier: All parcels are sent via Australia Post

Tracking: Tracking details are emailed once your order is shipped. If you haven’t received them, contact shop@qvwc.org.au

Delivery Time: Orders are processed within 1–2 business days. Delivery takes 1–5 business days depending on your location

Express Shipping: Not available at this time

Multiple Addresses: Each delivery address must be placed as a separate order.

 

International Shipping

International shipping is available. 
Costs are quoted based on your order. For assistance, please contact shop@qvwc.org.au


Returns & Exchanges

We want you to love your purchase. We offer returns for change of mind on all full‑priced items within 30 days of purchase.

Eligibility:

  • Item must be unused, in original condition, and in original packaging

  • Receipt or proof of purchase is required

  • Perishable items (food, earrrings, cosmetics) cannot be returned

  • Do not send returns directly to the maker/artist/manufacturer

Items returned after 30 days, or not in original condition, may be eligible for a partial refund or store credit at our discretion.

 

How to Return

Visit us in store to process your return or exchange your item(s).

Mail your return to: QVWC SHOP 210 Lonsdale Street Melbourne, VIC 3000 Australia

You are responsible for return postage costs. These are non‑refundable and will be deducted from your refund if applicable. For items over $75, we recommend using a trackable service or purchasing shipping insurance.

Please email shop@qvwc.org.au to let us know your return is on its way.

WHAT OUR CUSTOMERS ARE SAYING ABOUT US:
Such brilliant service! The whole purchase from start to finish was very streamlined. Would highly recommend 👏🏼
— Annie
Best place to shop for a gift and staff are really friendly!
— Marie
Awesome products and super quick delivery to Queensland!
— Yasmin
My favourite place to shop for presents (for me and for others) ❤️
— Sarah
Meaningful, fun and beautiful treasures from top to bottom of the store. Can't recommend QVWC enough, so happy it exists.
— Beck