GENDER-NET ERA-NET

Final Dissemination and Policy Conference of GENDER-NET, Paris, September 2016

MPDF — 2016-11-02T11:26:21Z

The Final Dissemination and Policy Conference of the GENDER-NET project took place in Paris on September 12th, 2016 and gathered close to 300 participants from Europe and beyond to discuss the project's achievements, results and policy recommendations.

The first session on the Promotion of Gender Equality in Research Institutions through Structural Change, led by the Research Council of Norway, summarized the work carried out in WP2 and related Tasks of WP4, with insights from invited expert, and member of the GENDER-NET Expert Advisory Board, Anke Lipinsky (GESIS-Leibniz Institute for the Social Sciences, Germany).

According to Dr. Lipinsky, the GENDER-NET ERA-NET has achieved a major success by providing a conceptualized and transformative approach of structural change, in light of the variety of national and local contexts, concepts and challenges that are to be found in Europe. As a result, the GENDER-NET project has succeeded in producing tailored and responsive implementing instruments for structural change.

The second session on the Integration of Gender Analysis into Research (IGAR), led by the Spanish Ministry of Competitiveness-State Secretariat for Research, Development and Innovation, summarized the work carried out in WP3, and related Tasks of WP4, and revealed the project's new online tool for the implementation of IGAR.

Invited expert, and member of the GENDER-NET Expert Advisory Board, Londa Schiebinger (Director of the EU-US Gendered Innovations project, and Professor of History of Science at Stanford University, USA) praised the work carried out within the project, underlined the importance of training and awareness raising and prompted a closer cooperation with what is currently being done in the US (see the Gender Innovations project).

A final roundtable on Experiences and Visions on Gender Equality and IGAR from Leading Research Performing and Research Funding Organisations then followed, with eminent invited speakers to exchange on similar issues or initiatives that have been implemented in their respective institutions:

Moderator: Marcela Linková (Czech Academy of Sciences, Co-chair of the Helsinki Group on Gender in Research and Innovation)
Jean-Pierre Bourguignon, President of the European Research Council, European Commission
Sara Moreno, Vice Rector of the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Spain
Londa Schiebinger, Director of the EU-US Gendered Innovations project, Stanford University, USA
Viviane Willis-Mazzichi, Head of Gender Sector, Unit B7, DG Research & Innovation, European Commission

The key contributions and recommendations made by the GENDER-NET project were also referred to several times during the 9th European Conference on Gender Equality in Higher Education's final policy roundtable, by invited speaker Laura Lee Downs (Professor of Gender History, European University Institute) and by both Commissioner Carlos Moedas and Najat Vallaud-Belkacem, French Minister for National Education, Higher Education and Research.

Commissioner Carlos Moedas and French Minister Najat Vallaud-Belkacem stress the importance of GENDER-NET at the 9th European Conference on Gender Equality in Higher Education, Paris, September 2016

MPDF — 2016-09-15T10:10:00Z

On September 14th, 2016, last day of the 9th European Conference on Gender Equality in Higher Education host by France - which was organized alongside the GENDER-NET Final Dissemination and Policy Conference - EU Commissioner for Research, Science and Innovation, Carlos Moedas, reminded the pioneering role of H2020 in addressing IGAR and reaffirmed the European Commission's support to the promotion of gender equality in research and innovation as well as the importance of the GENDER-NET ERA-NET in identifying the efforts that remain to be done.

Watch the full video (FR) here

The very supportive closing speech given by Najat Vallaud-Belkacem, French Minister for National Education, Higher Education and Research, on what she described as a “key question for the future of our democracies” disclosed some key components of the French 2017 Roadmap on Gender Equality (among which: more detailed sex-disaggregated data, gender equality reports and appropriate measures for research and higher education institutions, cross-cutting integration of the gender dimension in research contents by the national research funding agency and better gender balance in evaluation panels). As a conclusion, and reflecting on the persisting challenges that need to be addressed both at national and European level, the Minister referred to the GENDER-NET project as a “reference and a strategic tool for the implementation of gender equality policies within the European Research Area”.

Read the full speech (FR) here

Final Dissemination and Policy Conference & 9th European Conference on Gender Equality in Higher Education (and Research)

MPDF — 2016-09-09T16:40:20Z

The Final Dissemination and Policy Conference of the GENDER-NET project will take place in the afternoon of Monday 12 September 2016, in Paris.

As the conclusion of this three-year project, the GENDER-NET Final Dissemination and Policy Conference will aim at presenting the project's achievements, good practices, main results and policy recommendations.

The event will also include the official inauguration of the project's online tool on Integrating the Gender Analysis into Research (IGAR), to assist national/regional research funding and performing organizations with the know-how to integrate sex and gender considerations into policies, programmes, plans and strategies, and raise awareness about the importance of sex and gender in research and innovation.

Beyond the project itself, this gathering will enable an international exchange between the various stakeholders of Europe's Scientific Community, as the event will be held as an integral part of the 9th European Conference on Gender Equality in Higher Education (and Research), where over 150 speakers - researchers, lecturers, students, gender equality officers and practitioners, representatives from associations, academic decision-makers, policy makers - will be presenting their work and policies.

For the first time, France is hosting this event, which will take place in Paris, on the campus of the University Paris Diderot (12 -13 September) and at the Collège de France (14 September).

Learn more about the Conferences.

GENDER-NET WP4 Task 5 Strategic Seminar: Integrating Gender Analysis into Research (IGAR), Brussels, April 2016

MPDF — 2016-06-03T08:23:27Z

The Strategic Seminar on the integration of sex and gender analysis into research and innovation content was held on April 21st at the Norway House in Brussels. Its aim was to:

Foster the integration of the gender dimension into R&I policies, programmes and projects
Contribute to the implementation of the ERA roadmap and national ERA roadmaps on gender mainstreaming in research
Provide recommendations to the European Research Area Committee (ERAC)

This high level seminar, targeting the ERAC members, Science Europe Member Organisation leaders, members of the EC Strategic Configuration committee and GENDER-NET consortium members successfully gathered over 60 participants.

Moderated by Curt Rice, Rector at Oslo and Akershus University College in Norway; the seminar featured presentations by:

Arvid Hallén, Director General, Research Council of Norway
Peter Dröll, Director, Open Innovation and Open Science, DG RTD
Ineke Klinge, Chair, H2020 Advisory Group on Gender (download the presentation)
Carmen Vela, State Secretary for Research, Development and Innovation, Spain (download the presentation)
Jane Ohlmeyer, Chair, Irish Research Council (download the presentation)
Anne Pépin, Director, Mission for the Place of Women at CNRS & GENDER-NET Coordinator (download the presentation)

Click here to download the full programme.

See online : The article published on our partner KILDEN's website

GENDER-NET 6th Consortium Meetings, Dublin, Ireland, April 2016

MPDF — 2016-06-03T08:18:14Z

The sixth GENDER-NET Consortium meetings were held in Dublin on April 6th 2016, and hosted by the Irish Research Council (IRC).

The purpose of the meetings was to report on the progress made in the four Work Packages during the past 6 months - covering the activities from Month 25 to Month 30 of the project - and plan next key steps as well as the last reporting period activities.

A progress report on each running Work Package was presented by WP co-leaders, with a focus on the forthcoming GENDER-NET reports (D3.10, D3.11 and D3.12), the two pilot trainings to be delivered in Slovenia and Cyprus in June 2016, the selected additional joint activities, and the preparation of the Final Dissemination and Policy Conference to be held on September, 12th 2016, which will be an integral part of the 9th EU Conference on Gender Equality in Higher Education (and Research).

Satellite work meetings on WP4 activities were also organised in order to progress on the implementation of each task, with a focus on the preparation of the Strategic Seminar: Integrating Gender Analysis into Research (IGAR).

GENDER-NET WP4 Task 2 Workshop (Milestone MS13), Ljubljana, Slovenia, January 2016

MPDF — 2016-06-03T08:10:22Z

The MS13 Workshop on Joint Gender Equality Training Scheme Planning was held in Ljubljana on January 28th, 2016

As part of WP4 Task 2 on integrating common indicators for a monitoring of the qualitative achievement of gender equality policies, the consortium is in the process of developing common indicators to measure the qualitative impact and achievement of gender equality policies within universities and research organisations across Europe.

During this MS13 Workshop a set of possible indicators were presented to delegates (project partners, selected experts and representatives from selected universities in Europe) with the aim to gather feedback on their usefulness and usability.

Thanks to these inputs indicators will be refined and further tested in 2016 so as to develop a final set of proposed indicators for the end of the GENDER-NET project.

GENDER-NET 5th Consortium Meetings, Cyprus, September 2015

MPDF — 2016-06-03T08:06:06Z

The fifth GENDER-NET Consortium meetings -Steering Committee and General Assembly- were held in Protaras, Cyprus, on September 30th 2015 and hosted by the Research Promotion Foundation (RPF).

The purpose of the Consortium Meetings was to report on progress made in the four Work Packages during the past 6 months - covering activities from Month 19 to Month 24 - and to plan upcoming key steps.

The focus was more specifically on the follow-up of the First Project Periodic Report (covering Months 1-18) and the entry of potential new Beneficiaries (WP1, Task 5), as well as on the upcoming publication of our first three GENDER-NET Reports (WP2-WP3), the finalization of the WP4 workplan and the future strategies for developing sustained activities (WP1, Task 6).

Each potential new Beneficiaries (Ministry of Science, Technology and Space of the State of Israel (MOST); Science Foundation Ireland (SFI)); and new Observers (Icelandic Ministry of Education, Science and Culture (MESC); Technology Agency of the Czech Republic (TAČR); NordForsk; US National Science Foundation (NSF)) were invited to present to the General Assembly their organizations, their existing or planned initiatives at national level on gender equality through structural change and/or on the integration of sex/gender analysis in research contents and programs.

GENDER-NET Workshops (Milestones MS11, MS12, MS14), Protaras, Cyprus, September 2015

MPDF — 2016-06-03T07:58:15Z

Three consecutive Workshops were held in Protaras, Cyrpus, on September 28th and 29th, 2015.

WP4 Task 2 - MS11 Workshop: Joint Gender Equality Training Scheme Planning

The MS11 workshop started with the presentation of two good practices examples intended to illustrate how to help peer institutions with the building and implementation of Gender Action Plans: the INTEGER Project online Guidelines (FP7, CNRS coordinator), designed for research and higher education institutions seeking to improve the position and progression of women researchers through the implementation of gender action plans; and the preliminary information on the upcoming EIGE online tool for developing a Gender Equality Plan for Research Organisations and Higher Education Institutions.

The workshop continued with a presentation of the main WP2 results about existing initiatives promoting structural change with regard to gender equality in research institutions, at national and institutional level, followed by a group discussion to find the most appropriate and effective activities to be implemented within the framework of WP4 Task 2 “Designing and implementing joint gender equality training schemes”. The consortium decided upon developing pilot trainings in two of the partner countries, Cyprus and Slovenia, which do not yet have a running Gender Equality Programme.

WP4 Task 5 & 6 - MS14 Workshop: Preparation for the Strategic Seminar on the Implementation of the Gendering of Research Contents and Programmes and its Monitoring

The workshop began with the first-steps-preparation of the high-level Strategic Seminar on the gender dimension in research and innovation (MS17) aimed at supporting the integration of the gender dimension into R&I policies, programs and projects, contributing to the implementation of the ERA roadmap and to national ERA roadmaps on gender mainstreaming and research, and providing recommendations.

The outcomes of WP3 on Gendering Research Contents and Programmes were presented by the WP leaders (MINECO, CIHR) alongside with the results of the project's deliverables D3.10, D3.11 and D3.12 and the main outcomes of the previous MS8 Workshop. The workshop continued with an update on thepossibilities for joint pilot interdisciplinary gender research calls a presentation of the republished SwafS-02-2016 ERA-NET Cofund Call framed as a follow up for the project and explicitly based on GENDER-NET findings.

WP4 Task 3 - MS12 Workshop on Gender Award / incentive planning

The MS12 workshop started with two existing award scheme examples presented by experts:

the Athena SWAN Award (Gary Loke and Ruth Gilligan from ECU, UK and Dorothy Griffiths Professor and Provost's Envoy for Gender Equality at Imperial College London, UK);
the European HR Excellence in Research Award(Irmela Brach from the European Commission, DG Research & Innovation, Unit B2, ERA Policy & Reform)

These two models led to group discussions on the possible setting of a transnational award scheme for Research Performing or Research Funding Organisations within the framework of WP4 Task 3 on drawing and implementing common criteria to establish joint Award/Incentive on gender equality/gendered research for institutions.

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Official Launch of Genderportal.eu, Brussels, April 2016

MPDF — 2016-05-25T12:22:14Z

On April 21st 2016 the EU-funded (FP7) project GenPORT has officially launched genderportal.eu at the European Parliament in Brussels, Belgium.

GenPORT is a developing online community of practitioners, served by an internet portal and made up of organisations and individuals working across the globe for gender equality and excellence in science, technology and innovation. It covers all sciences - natural and social sciences, and humanities.

GenPORT offers an arena for organisations and individuals to showcase and access the world's best research resources, practical materials, policy briefings, experiences, and interactive tools, such as e-discussions and blog entries. The creation of an online community through the portal offers a fast track to experience sharing, and supports continuing policy and practical learning in pursuit of good practices in gender equality. Constantly evolving online information and services are shaped by the activities and contributions of the portal's community members. Sharing resources on a global internet platform makes users prominent and visible to a large international expert community in the field of gender and science, and allows them to shape the portal and its contents. GenPORT also enables users to tailor resources on gender and science to their own needs, and to make them more easily accessible and searchable. After its launch the portal is now officially open for registration at: www.genderportal.eu

Contact information @GenPORT:

Dr. Anke Lipinsky anke.lipinsky at gesis.org
Laura Getz, M.A. laura.getz at gesis.org

See online : The GENDER-NET ERA-NET website as well as its firsts published reports are already on the portal !

Adoption of the Council conclusions on advancing gender equality in the European Research Area, Brussels, November-December 2015

MPDF — 2015-12-02T14:56:00Z

Following its 30 November -1 December 2015 session, the research formation of the Competitiveness Council of the European Union, under the Luxembourgish Presidency, adopted conclusions on research integrity, advancing gender equality in the European Research Area (ERA) and on the review of the ERA advisory structure.

The Council conclusions underline the importance of mutual learning and the exchange of good practices in the field of gender equality in R&I, and the outcomes of the GENDER-NET ERA-NET are explicitly referred to as “recommendations” for Member States to take into account and profit from (see page 8).