Dear all,
it has been almost half a year since we launched the GENDERACTIONplus project, and we have managed to achieve quite a bit already. We have produced three initial deliverable reports. We have carried out a survey to assess the capacity-building needs of the consortium members and based on this we have planned our first mutual learning workshops. The GENDERACTIONplus has also carried out its benchmarking survey, which is the starting point for our next activities.
Our new website has been launched, and we have organised our first citizen engagement event with student and early-career researcher organisations to discuss their attitudes, experiences and needs in combating gender-based violence including sexual harassment. Their input will support the implementation of GENDERACTIONplus, the H2020 UniSAFE project and supported the conference organised by the Czech Presidency of the Council of EU dedicated to combating gender-based violence in academia.
There is of course much more, see for yourself and enjoy the first news from us!
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A word from the coordinator
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Marcela Linková
GENDERACTIONplus coordinator
It's great to be back - to work and exchange with colleagues and friends who care about gender equality in research!
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I have said on multiple occassions this year that we are in a good spot because gender equality has been affirmed as a priority for the European Research Area, we are seeing major advances in some European countries and - and this is personally important - gender-based violence has our firm attention.
Following the publication of the UniSAFE survey results which should put us all on alert, the conference we at the Czech Centre for Gender and Science organised last week within the framework of the Czech Presidency brought together all the relevant types of stakeholders, from representatives of student and early-career organisations, universities, research funders, university and research umbrella organisations and policy makers. The outcome of the conference is a call for action, and it is my sincere hope that it will find resonance and that individuals as well as institutions will endorse it on the heels of our Minister.
Addressing gender-based violence intersectionally is an underlying pre-condition for changing the academic culture. And this is what we are after!
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Between 8 and 10 June 2022, a kick-off meeting of the GENDERACTIONplus project was hosted by the Institute of Sociology of the Czech Academy of Sciences in Prague, Czech Republic. We have met our team’s old and new colleagues and discussed the work ahead.
Click 👉 here 👈 to see the snapchots!
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GENDERACTIONplus appointed members of its Advisory Board. The AB consists of five experts and stakeholders, reflecting the project values, priorities, key topic areas and target audiences.
We are happy that our GENDERACTIONplus AB is now fully appointed, and very much look forward to taking the project forward with Sergej Možina, the co-chair of the ERA Forum, Yvonne Benschop from Radboud University, Adrien Braem, Senior Policy Officer, responsible for ERA policies and gender and diversity at Science Europe, Jörg Müller from the Open University of Catalonia and a member of our Horizon Europe sister project INSPIRE focused on research and analysis on inclusive gender equality in research and innovation. Last but not least, the member is Ágota Dávid, a science attaché at the Permanent Representation of Hungary to the EU.
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1st GENDERACTIONplus citizen engagement event
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GENDERACTIONplus held its first stakeholder engagement event on 21 September 2022 to discuss ways to tackle gender-based violence in academia. Representatives of student and early-career researcher associations from across Europe shared their views and needs during an online workshop.
In response to an online poll, 77% of the representatives attending the workshop said that their organisation had addressed the issue of GBV. Some of the key issues highlighted during the discussions included a need for robust institutional policies and procedures for reporting and handling cases, more training and awareness raising, clear and convincing definitions of gender-based violence as well as reliable data and evidence to support effective actions.
The input gathered during the workshop was incorporated into a Call for Action launched as an outcome of the conference “Ending gender-based violence in academia: Toward gender-equal, safe and inclusive research and higher education” which took place on 24-25 November in Prague, as part of the Czech Presidency of the Council of the EU. In addition, the recommendations will be used to inform the H2020 sister project UniSAFE as well as the GENDERACTIONplus project work package focused on gender-based violence.
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Knowledge and skills needs in GENDERACTIONplus identified
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To launch its capacity-building activities, the GENDERACTIONplus consortium carried out a needs assessment survey aimed at assessing project partners’ knowledge and skills, as well as their priorities and needs. The results will guide the development of the capacity building plan for the policy and RFO Communities of Practice (CoPs).
The results show that respondents have a good understanding of the institutional and policy context at regional and national level (institutional functioning, legal and policy context, relevant stakeholders) and of GEP design and implementation. Intersectionality, gender+ approaches and dealing with resistance stand out as points of common and high interest. The gender dimension in research is also a highly relevant for both the CoPs.
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Benchmark data was collected in the course of October and November. We are currently working on data analysis and you can look forward to our first outputs early next year. In January we will have our first internal workshop, which will focus on citizen and engagement activities. And in early February we are planning to join the celebrations of the International Day of Women and Girls in Science.
Follow us on Twitter and on the web! |
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In September, we published our new website with information about our activities and the GENDERACTIONplus project. The address remains same: genderaction.eu. More content will be added in the following months. The old GENDERACTION website has been archived under h2020.genderaction.eu and all outputs remain available.
We hope you like the new look!
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New developments in gender equality in R&I
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We are following closely the developments at national level in EU countries and elsewhere.
A new amendment to the Spanish law on R&I brings an alignment with the EU framework by including the institutional change to support inclusive and gender-sensitive research environments and the integration of the gender dimension in research projects and sex/gender analysis in content. Ireland launched an implementation plan for ending sexual violence and harassment in Higher Education Institutions. In the Czech Republic, one of the main research funders has published a new funding programme containing a specific call for the inclusion of women in the IT sector. The gender dimension of research and team diversity are among the evaluation criteria of project proposals.
From 2023, one of the research funding organisations in Australia will set targets to award equal numbers of Investigator Grants to women and men in a new commitment to address gender inequities in research funding.
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Endorse the Call for Action to end gender-based violence
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Working towards Safe and Respectful Higher Education and Research for All: Call for Action to End Gender-Based Violence is an outcome of the Czech Presidency conference Ending gender-based violence in academia: Toward gender-equal, safe and inclusive research and higher education organised by the Centre for Gender and Science of the Institute of Sociology of the Czech Academy of Sciences on 24 and 25 November 2022 in Prague under the auspices of the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports of the Czech Republic. The full version of the Call for Action is available here.
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💡 Penny for your thoughts?
We would greatly appreciate hearing from you. Tell us what you thought about this e-mail by contacting us at: info@genderaction.eu
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