Elizabeth Gowing is a British-Kosovan teacher, writer, and activist.

Teaching

Elizabeth Gowing was educated at and

Magdalen College, Oxford Magdalen College ( ) is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford. It was founded in 1458 by Bishop of Winchester William of Waynflete. It is one of the wealthiest Oxford colleges, as of 2022, and ...

. She gained her teaching qualification at the

Institute of Education The UCL Institute of Education (IOE) is the faculty of education and society of University College London (UCL). It specialises in postgraduate study and research in the field of education and is one of UCL's 11 constituent faculties. Prior t ...

in London. She then taught in inner-city state sector primary schools in the London boroughs of Hackney,

Islington Islington ( ) is an inner-city area of north London, England, within the wider London Borough of Islington. It is a mainly residential district of Inner London, extending from Islington's #Islington High Street, High Street to Highbury Fields ...

, and

Lambeth Lambeth () is a district in South London, England, which today also gives its name to the (much larger) London Borough of Lambeth. Lambeth itself was an ancient parish in the county of Surrey. It is situated 1 mile (1.6 km) south of Charin ...

Translating

In 2006 she went to live in

Kosovo Kosovo, officially the Republic of Kosovo, is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe with International recognition of Kosovo, partial diplomatic recognition. It is bordered by Albania to the southwest, Montenegro to the west, Serbia to the ...

, where her partner Robert Wilton had been invited as an advisor to the Prime Minister

Agim Çeku Agim Çeku (, born 29 October 1960) is an ethnic Albanian politician from Kosovo, the former Kosovo Security Force, minister of Security Forces in Kosovo and formerly the Prime Minister of Kosovo, prime minister. Of military background, he was a ...

. She translated from Albanian to English the biography of Yugoslavia's longest-held political prisoner, Adem Demaçi, as well as the memoirs of the Ottoman and Albanian politician

Hasan Prishtina Hasan bey Prishtina, (born Hasan Berisha; 27 September 1873 – 13 August 1933), was an Ottoman, later Albanian, politician who served as the 8th prime minister of Albania in December 1921. Biography Family and early life In his memoirs, Pris ...

. She won the

Independent on Sunday ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publishe ...

and Bradt Travel Writing Competition in 2014.

Charity work and activism

In her early years in Kosovo, Gowing carried out voluntary and charitable work. In 2009, together with Wilton, she founded The Ideas Partnership as an

NGO A non-governmental organization (NGO) is an independent, typically nonprofit organization that operates outside government control, though it may get a significant percentage of its funding from government or corporate sources. NGOs often focus ...

to give some framework for such activities. While its remit encompassed sustainable development and cultural heritage as well as education, the charity came to focus on ethnic minority education and empowerment. Her book ''The Rubbish-Picker’s Wife'' recounts how she developed the charity, her friendship with an Ashkali woman, and her awareness of the challenges that Kosovo's marginalized Ashkali,

Egyptians Egyptians (, ; , ; ) are an ethnic group native to the Nile, Nile Valley in Egypt. Egyptian identity is closely tied to Geography of Egypt, geography. The population is concentrated in the Nile Valley, a small strip of cultivable land stretchi ...

and

Roma Roma or ROMA may refer to: People, characters, figures, names * Roma or Romani people, an ethnic group living mostly in Europe and the Americas. * Roma called Roy, ancient Egyptian High Priest of Amun * Roma (footballer, born 1979), born ''Paul ...

face in trying to access services and sustain community identity. In recognition of her inspirational role, promotion of volunteering and engagement with charitable work, Gowing was given the '

Mother Teresa Mary Teresa Bojaxhiu (born Anjezë Gonxhe Bojaxhiu, ; 26 August 1910 – 5 September 1997), better known as Mother Teresa or Saint Mother Teresa, was an Albanian-Indian Catholic Church, Roman Catholic nun, founder of the Missionaries of ...

Award' for humanitarianism by the Kosovo President Atifete Jahjaga in 2016. She was given a 'Points of Light' award by UK Prime Minister

Theresa May Theresa Mary May, Baroness May of Maidenhead (; ; born 1 October 1956), is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2016 to 2019. She previously served as Home Secretar ...

in 2017. In 2018, by Presidential decree, she was made a citizen of the Republic of Kosovo, where she continues to live and work. In 2021, the Kosovo Prime Minister

Albin Kurti Albin Kurti (; born 24March 1975) is a Kosovo Albanians, Kosovo Albanian politician who has been serving as Prime Minister of Kosovo since 2021, having previously held the office from February to June 2020. He came to prominence in 1997 as the vi ...

Kurti gave her a cabinet position as his government's adviser on community affairs.

Books

Translations

* 2010 ''Adem Demaçi''. Prishtina: Rrokullia. * 2010 ''A Brief Memoir of the Albanian Rebellion of 1912''. Prishtina: Rrokullia.

Non-fiction

* 2011 ''Travels in Blood and Honey: Becoming a Beekeeper in Kosovo''. Signal Books. * 2013 ''Edith & I: On the Trail of an Edwardian Traveller in Kosovo''. Elbow Publishing. * 2015 ''The Rubbish-Picker's Wife: An Unlikely Friendship in Kosovo''. Elbow Publishing. * 2017 ''The Silver Thread: A Journey Through Balkan Craftsmanship''. Elbow Publishing. * 2019 ''Unlikely Positions (In Unlikely Places): A Yoga Journey Around Britain''.

Bradt Travel Guides Bradt Travel Guides is a publisher of travel guides founded in 1974 by Hilary Bradt and her husband George, who co-wrote the first Bradt Guide on a river barge on a tributary of the Amazon. Since then Bradt has grown into a leading independent ...

. * 2022 ''No Man's Lands: Eight Extraordinary Women in Balkan History''. Elbow Publishing.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gowing, Elizabeth 1973 births Living people Alumni of Magdalen College, Oxford