Sarah Ackland is a force for change in the women's movement. Onetrack catches up with the architect and founder of Taking Space to discuss running as an act of rebellion and a vehicle for understanding the gendered limitations in public space.
How did you get into running?
I was twenty-one years old and working late in the architecture studio at university. I was so stressed out (as anyone who has studied architecture will know); the course is relentless and exhausting. I was suffering with PTSD at the time and I had a literal feeling of flight. I needed to run away. I went home at 2am, put on my old-school PE trainers and H&M leggings and bolted down the street. I couldn't get much further. It all went from there. The next day I tried again.
Were there any barriers that stopped you from running (or doing sport) before you got into it? Are those barriers still there?
I was the girl who at school was 'always on her period' and never wanted to take part in sports. It felt very gendered and we weren't encouraged or given role models, I think this is particularly prevalent in state-educated school experiences.
As I hit my teens years, I had a few moments where I thought running might be interesting, but by this point, I had become so disconnected from my body and expanding it, allowing my body to lurch forward with intention was beyond my mind and body's capacity. I was more concerned about how I was perceived and how I 'should' be seen, about being 'attractive' and by that I mean restrained. Societal expectations on women to be 'restrained' had impacted me heavily. There's an incredible essay about the lack of women's bodily expansion - 'Throwing Like A Girl' by Marion Young.
As I did begin to run in my early twenties it was always the spatial restrictions for women- where we couldn't go, how safe I felt, when it became dark. It was reported in 2023 that ‘92% of women are fearful when they run. (Runners World, 2023) These barriers very much still prevail.
I had become so disconnected from my body and expanding it, allowing my body to lurch forward with intention was beyond my mind and body's capacity.
Do you think running has changed the way you view your body?
Yes, I see my body more functionally than aesthetically.
What do you think would encourage more women to run?
Male allyship.
An understanding of how gender and pace correlate.
Recognition that women are not small men.
Care systems that create space and time for women to run.
Do you think male runners have a part to play in welcoming more women to the sport?
Yes, I think that for true gender equality in sports, running and our lives, men have a vital role to play and must step up to this responsibility.
It was reported in 2023 that ‘92% of women are fearful when they run. (Runners World, 2023) These barriers very much still prevail.
Do you consciously think about your safety when you're running?
Constantly. I have come to realise that running pushes up the spaces we run through, identifying the limitations for women. In public and urban spaces, it has created friction with the very literal boundaries of where women feel they can and cannot go – often variable, depending on the season and the timing of dusk or dawn. Women tend to avoid unregulated spaces, such as open spaces, parks, canals and woodlands. They will also steer clear of enclosed spaces with limited exits and limited visual range, subways, underpasses, alleyways, and multi-storey car parks. They will navigate and circumvent enclosed hidden spaces, tight passing points, uncared-for spaces, quiet spaces, subways and bad lighting.
Regardless of my research in this area, it was my personal experiences which motivated my work. I have always been conscious of not just my safety, but also of the liberation I have found in running. But realistically, this can so quickly be taken away by a comment, an unwanted look or advance.
Regardless of my research in this area, it was my personal experiences which motivated my work. I have always been conscious of not just my safety, but also of the liberation I have found in running. But realistically, this can so quickly be taken away by a comment, an unwanted look or advance.
What would you tell your younger self about running?
Start, and see what happens.
What running does for you in 3 words?
Keeps me alive.
What question do you wish I had asked?
What can men do? - But really they need to work this out themselves - its not that hard to listen.
Sarah Ackland is a runner, architect at muf architecture/art and a PhD researcher. She is the founder of Taking Space, a curated research platform for women’s collective movement and sharing to understand the gendered limitations in public space and what can be done to create change through movement. To date Taking Space has collaborated with and hosted runs at galleries across the country including Newcastle Contemporary Arts and Whitechapel Gallery. Follow Sarah on Instagram here.
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