GENDER-NET ERA-NET

MOST (Israel)

Ilham Bounaira — 2017-08-11T16:15:50Z

The Ministry of Science, Technology and Space of the State of Israel (MOST) is promoting a national initiative for the advancement of women in Science and Technology. The Israeli government has indeed decided in 2000 on the establishment of a "National Council for Women in Science and Technology" that works in cooperation with the Ministry. In May 2014, the Chief Scientist of the Ministry, Prof. Nurit Yirmiya, was nominated as the Chairperson of the new Council. The Council operates through three committees for the advancement of girls and women in: Education, Academy and Industry. The committees meet on a regular schedule and each one has specific goals and programs. Together, the committee members assist with coordination among the governmental, public and private sectors to advance women in Science and Technology through coordination of the activities in this area to the European Union; Initiatives and activities with the purpose to advance women in Science and Technology including support for projects to advance women in education, academy and industry; Raise the public awareness to the problems involved in the advancement of women in Science and Technology.

Team members:

Sky Gross, Director, Division of Social Sciences and Humanities
Ilana Lowi, Director, Division for International Relations

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.

Official Launch of the GEAR Action Toolbox developed by EIGE in collaboration with EC DG RTD, Brussels, October 20, 2016

MPDF — 2016-11-02T11:03:15Z

On October 20th 2016 the European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE) officially released its new interactive toolbox for reinforcing gender mainstreaming in research and higher education institutions: the Gender Equality in Academia and Research (GEAR) tool. It is the result of the cooperation between EIGE and the EC's DG Research and Innovation, and builds on the experience and knowledge of a number of projects, institutions and experts.

The online GEAR tool, targeted at all staff, from the bottom to the top, working in research and higher education institutions, follows in the footsteps of other initiatives, such as the FP7-supported INTEGER project (and its Online Guidelines, released on April 2015) and the GENDER-NET ERA-NET, to offer a comprehensive step-by-step roadmap for implementing gender equality plans.

The tool also proposes Background information, Practical Guides, Resources and Inspirational Examples to assist you in the process. The new GENDER-NET IGAR Video and online tool (Deliverable D3.11) are identified as helpful instruments, and can be found under the “Integrating the gender dimension” section (see link).

To learn more about the EIGE toolkit, and check the short guide and watch the promotional video.

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.

IRELAND: Higher Education Institutions Will Risk Funding Penalties if They Fail to Address Gender Inequality, June 2016

MPDF — 2016-07-01T09:46:00Z

Our GENDER-NET partner, the Irish Higher Education Authority (HEA), published on June 27th 2016 their report on the national review of gender equality in higher education carried out since 2015. Compiled by the Expert Group commissioned by HEA and chaired by former EU Commissioner Máire Geoghegan-Quinn, the report publishes key statistics & findings, as well as "ambitious and radical" recommendations for Higher education institutions, HEA, Irish research-funding agencies and other stakeholders to "focus on how organisation and culture must change to achieve gender equality". Next step for the HEA is to develop a detailed implementation plan, which will include a "robust system of follow up evaluation and performance monitoring linked to funding through the HEA's strategic dialogue process". The report, referring to GENDER-NET as an example of policy implementation, is available on the HEA's website

"Two thoughts at once - pilot project on both gender equality and gender perspectives"

MPDF — 2016-06-03T08:45:40Z

The Norwegian KIF Committee published an interview of Anne Pépin, Coordinator of the GENDER-NET project and Director of the Mission for the Place of Women at CNRS, entitled “Two thoughts at once - pilot project on both gender equality and gender perspective” in their online Magazine.

The article depicts the specificity of the GENDER-NET ERA-NET and its focus on both gender equality through structural change and the integration of sex and gender analysis into research.

See online : "Two thoughts at once - pilot project on both gender equality and gender perspectives"

GENDER-NET Strategic Seminar, Norway House in Brussels on April 21st, 2016

MPDF — 2016-06-03T08:32:03Z

Our GENDER-NET partner KILDEN (affiliated to the Research Council of Norway) published on June 2nd 2016 an article on the GENDER-NET Strategic Seminar held at the Norway House in Brussels on April 21st 2016, in which RCN Director General Arvid Hallén reflects on his organisation's commitment on the integration of gender analysis into research (IGAR).

The GENDER-NET ERA-NET initiatives and recommendations on IGAR are put forward, and so is the European Commission will to see the project's partners and observers pursue their "living gender equality lab" experience, through the ERA-NET Cofund scheme opened for proposals in the framework of H2020.

See online : The article " Norway not good enough on mainstreaming gender perspectives in research"

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).