Gender Equality in Academia and Research
The GEAR tool is currently being updated. Some inconsistency may occur.
Key resources
Here you can find important resources and relevant web-links, such as:
European Commission’s webpages related to gender equality in research
- The European Commission’s e-library with key publications dealing with gender equality in research.
- She Figures provide key statistics on the position of women in science in the EU, across disciplines and academic positions. Latest issue: She Figures 2015 (and the She Figures 2015 - Handbook), European Commission. Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union.
- The European Charter for Researchers and a Code of Conduct for the Recruitment of Researchers are two documents, addressed to researchers as well as to employers and funders in both the public and private sectors. These documents are key elements in the European Union's policy to make research an attractive career.
- The Charter for Researchers mentions, among other things, that employers and funders “should aim to provide working conditions which allow both women and men researchers to combine family and work, children and career. Particular attention should be paid, inter alia, to flexible working hours, part-time working, tele-working and sabbatical leave, as well as to the necessary financial and administrative provisions governing such arrangements” (page 17). It also emphasises gender balance, stating that “Employers and/or funders should aim for a representative gender balance at all levels of staff, including at supervisory and managerial level. This should be achieved on the basis of an equal opportunity policy at recruitment and at the subsequent career stages without, however, taking precedence over quality and competence criteria. To ensure equal treatment, selection and evaluation committees should have an adequate gender balance.” (page 18).
- The Code of Conduct for Recruitment mentions, among others, that selection committees should have an adequate gender balance, that the recruitment process and criteria need to be transparent and that for the assessment of merit, both quantitative and qualitative criteria have to be taken into consideration. (pages 25-26)
- European Commission (2012). Structural Change in Research Institutions: Enhancing excellence, gender equality and efficiency in research and innovation. Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union.
- European Commission (2013). Fact sheet: Gender Equality in Horizon 2020. Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union.
- European Commission (2014). Gender Equality in Horizon 2020. Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union. The purpose of this guide is to provide the Commission/ Agency staff, potential applicants, the Helsinki Group, National Contact Points, as well as experts’ evaluators and other actors involved in the implementation of Horizon 2020 with practical guidance on the effective application of the current Gender Equality provisions. This means integrating Gender Equality issues at each stage of the research cycle: from programming through implementation, monitoring and programme evaluation.
EU-funded institutional change and related projects
- EGERA - Effective Gender Equality in Research and the Academia (2014-2017)
- FESTA - Female Empowerment in Science and Technology Academia (2012-2017)
- GARCIA - Gendering the Academy and Research: combating Career Instability and Asymmetries (2014-2017)
- GEDII - Gender Diversity Impact – Improving research and innovation through gender diversity (2015-2018)
- GENDER-NET (2013-2016)
- GENDERTIME (2013-2016)
- GENERA - Gender Equality Network in the European Research Area (2015-2018)
- GENIS LAB - Gender in Science and Technology Lab (2011-2014)
- GENOVATE - Transforming organisational culture for gender equality in research and innovation (2013-2016)
- GENPORT - Gender Portal (2013-2017)
- HELENA - Higher Education Leading to ENgineering And scientific careers (2009-2011)
- HYPATIA - Gender Tools for more STEM careers (2015-2018)
- INTEGER - INstitutional Transformation for Effecting Gender Equality in Research (2011-2015)
- LIBRA - Leading innovative measures to reach gender balance in research activities(2015-2019)
- PLOTINA - Promoting gender balance and inclusion in research, innovation and training (2016-2020)
- STAGES - Structural Change Toward Gender Equality in Science (2012-2015)
- SHEMERA - SHE Euro Mediterranean Research Area (2011-2014)
- TRIGGER - TRansforming Institutions by Gendering contents and Gaining Equality in Research (2014-2017)
Resources from the European Institute for Gender Equality
- European Institute for Gender Equality (2016). Gender Equality in Research and Academia - Step-by-Step Guide. Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union.
- European Institute for Gender Equality (2016). Analytical paper on integrating gender equality in research and higher education institutions. Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union.
- European Institute for Gender Equality (2016). Opinion paper on the positive impact of gender mainstreaming in research and higher education institutions. Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union.
- European Institute for Gender Equality (2016). Roadmap to Gender Equality Plans in research and higher education institutions - a short guide. Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union.
- European Institute for Gender Equality (2016). Roadmap to Gender Equality Plans in research and higher education institutions - success factors and common obstacles. Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union.
- EIGE’s institutional transformation tool offers guidance on structural change towards gender equality in public administrations.
- EIGE’s online tool on Gender Equality Training.
- Eurogender’s Stakeholders Directory to find gender experts and trainers in your country.
- Country specific information about the EU Member States' legal and policy frameworks related to gender equality and gender mainstreaming.
Relevant documents from the Council of the European Union
- Council of the European Union (December 2015). Council conclusions on advancing gender equality in the European Research Area. Brussels: Council of the European Union.
Literature about gender equality in research
- League of European Research Universities (2015). Gendered Research and Innovation: Integrating sex and gender analysis into the research process.
- League of European Research Universities (2012). Women, research and universities: Excellence without gender bias.
- Gendered Innovations presents a summary of selected literature on institutional transformation in research organisations, presented in three sections: 1) disparities between women and men; 2) subtle gender bias; 3) solutions and best practices.
- GenPORT: Gender and Science Policy Briefs: From “Where to start” to “How to innovate”
- A bibliography on Cognitive Bias and Gender Stereotypes, from the Gender Bias Learning Project.
- Rice, Curt (No Date). 6 Steps to Gender Equality: and more essays about how every university can get more women to the top and why they should. Tromsø: University of Tromsø.
- Horvath, Manfred. Gender Equality at European Universities of Science and Technology, based on the CESAER Gender Equality Survey 2014.
- An annotated bibliography of recent studies covering gender bias in academia, while also taking intersectionality into account, is available at hastac (an interdisciplinarity community of humanists, artists, social scientists, scientists and technologists that are changing the way they teach and learn).
Tools to support gender equality institutional change
- The Athena SWAN Charter, managed by the Equality Challenge Unit in the UK. This Charter scheme, promoting the advancement of gender equality, was launched in 2005 in the UK and in 2015 expanded to Ireland.
- The StratEGIC toolkit is a rich resource, drawing on the experiences and insights gained by institutions that participated in the (US) National Science Foundation’s ADVANCE programme for Institutional Transformation. The toolkit contains 13 Strategic Intervention Briefs, 15 Institutional Portfolios, 11 videos featuring institutional change leaders talking about the experiences and challenges faced and sharing advice.
- The Norwegian Committee for Gender Balance and Diversity in Research compiled on its website a set of resources that are relevant for those working on gender equality in the research field. It provides arguments, examples of Gender Equality Plans, an overview of the applicable Norwegian legislation as well a set of possible measures that can be used to promote gender equality.
- The Swedish Secretariat for Gender Research developed guidelines for mainstreaming gender in academia. The purpose of the guidelines is to facilitate the establishment of gender mainstreaming, for example during problem assessment, prioritisation and organisation. The guidelines are based on the Secretariat’s experiences from the related project Gender Mainstreaming in Government Agencies (GMGA), as well as the latest research on and evaluation of gender mainstreaming in public administration.
Repositories and databases
- GenPort: A repository of resources on gender and science. You can also search for experts in different scientific fields in particular countries
- AcademiaNet is a database of outstanding female scientists from a variety of disciplines. This database can serve as a resource for identifying experts, (keynote) speakers, panelists, jury members, etc.
- Do you need to find a Gender Trainer to organise a training at your organisation? Search on Eurogender’s Gender Trainer Directory.
