14:09 〜 14:21
[U11-03] Fostering gender diversity in the geosciences: actions and experiences from the European Geosciences Union (EGU)
★Invited Papers
キーワード：diversity, equality, inclusivity
Equality, diversity and inclusivity (EDI) is a key strategic priority for the European Geosciences Union (EGU). As such, EGU has committed to taking affirmative actions to encourage EDI in all its forms that includes monitoring diversity across all its activities, raising awareness of the challenges faced by underrepresented groups, and promoting ethical practices throughout the geoscience community.
Although EDI has many facets, the specific issue of gender-based diversity in the geosciences has been widely acknowledged as a major challenge that needs to be fully understood and addressed. Extensive research has been conducted to investigate the different aspects of gender diversity in academia. These studies include the reasons for the decrease in the number of women in senior research positions with advancing career stage, and why fewer women receive rewards and recognition for their contributions to science than their male counterparts.
However, this is only part of the story, there is also a need to understand what actions can be taken especially by scientific societies to redress the balance, and make sure this huge talent pool is not lost as women choose to leave academia for other career paths. Organisations such as EGU need to look within to identify what we can do better, while at the same time providing the support necessary for women to have a fulfilling and successful career in the geosciences.
In 2018, EGU established its Equality, Diversity and Inclusivity (EDI) Group to provide oversight and guidance to the organisation. Creating this group not only brought EDI into clear focus for the Union as a whole but also ensured that EGU engendered these principles in its functions and fostered these values with in its membership. Under the guidance of the EDI group, EGU has initiated actions to promote diversity in all its forms. But gender diversity has been a key issue for EGU, and there has been some limited success in achieving equality within the organisation when in 2019 EGU succeeded in having a fully gender balanced Council, and in 2020 the Executive Board also achieved a similar level of representation.
Despite these advances, women continue to be at a disadvantage within the geosciences and in STEM careers in general. There is a need for definitive actions to support women in academia, and this need is even greater since the start of COVID-19 pandemic with many women having found themselves under greater pressure than their male colleagues to take on the traditional caring roles for children and other dependants at the expense of their careers.
Now is the time for scientific societies to promote gender equality both through its actions such as zero-tolerance of harassment and discrimination, and ensuring that there is a level playing field in its awards and recognitions programmes – values already embedded in EGU’s vision and strategy. Scientific societies must also provide the support and motivation for women to continue to pursue their careers through mentoring schemes and strong role models, while at the same time ensuring that their peers treat them fairly and with respect.
EGU prioritises equality, diversity and inclusivity but there is still a lot more to do. The data on the proportion of awardee nominations, first authors on papers submitted to the EGU journals and abstracts, and candidates for EGU governance positions show that, while there are improvements at all levels, women are still very much an underrepresented group in the geosciences.
Although EDI has many facets, the specific issue of gender-based diversity in the geosciences has been widely acknowledged as a major challenge that needs to be fully understood and addressed. Extensive research has been conducted to investigate the different aspects of gender diversity in academia. These studies include the reasons for the decrease in the number of women in senior research positions with advancing career stage, and why fewer women receive rewards and recognition for their contributions to science than their male counterparts.
However, this is only part of the story, there is also a need to understand what actions can be taken especially by scientific societies to redress the balance, and make sure this huge talent pool is not lost as women choose to leave academia for other career paths. Organisations such as EGU need to look within to identify what we can do better, while at the same time providing the support necessary for women to have a fulfilling and successful career in the geosciences.
In 2018, EGU established its Equality, Diversity and Inclusivity (EDI) Group to provide oversight and guidance to the organisation. Creating this group not only brought EDI into clear focus for the Union as a whole but also ensured that EGU engendered these principles in its functions and fostered these values with in its membership. Under the guidance of the EDI group, EGU has initiated actions to promote diversity in all its forms. But gender diversity has been a key issue for EGU, and there has been some limited success in achieving equality within the organisation when in 2019 EGU succeeded in having a fully gender balanced Council, and in 2020 the Executive Board also achieved a similar level of representation.
Despite these advances, women continue to be at a disadvantage within the geosciences and in STEM careers in general. There is a need for definitive actions to support women in academia, and this need is even greater since the start of COVID-19 pandemic with many women having found themselves under greater pressure than their male colleagues to take on the traditional caring roles for children and other dependants at the expense of their careers.
Now is the time for scientific societies to promote gender equality both through its actions such as zero-tolerance of harassment and discrimination, and ensuring that there is a level playing field in its awards and recognitions programmes – values already embedded in EGU’s vision and strategy. Scientific societies must also provide the support and motivation for women to continue to pursue their careers through mentoring schemes and strong role models, while at the same time ensuring that their peers treat them fairly and with respect.
EGU prioritises equality, diversity and inclusivity but there is still a lot more to do. The data on the proportion of awardee nominations, first authors on papers submitted to the EGU journals and abstracts, and candidates for EGU governance positions show that, while there are improvements at all levels, women are still very much an underrepresented group in the geosciences.