International Council for Science, GenderInSITE and the International Social Science Council join forces towards applying a gender lens to international scientific research production and coordination

The workshop looked at conceptual frameworks such as the Pathways approach to applying a gender lens to international research initiatives. Also discussed were current best practices by international organizations and individual experiences of women scientists in leadership positions.

Highlighted among these best practices were the activities of the ICSU Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR) including the 2016 Women of the Antarctic Wikibomb, the INASP GenderMainstreaming in Higher Education Toolkit, and SciDevNet’s free online course Integrate gender into your scientific research and GenPort.

A follow-up GenderInSITE-ICSU-ISSC report is currently under discussion, also in collaboration with the Institute of Development Studies, in order to highlight current pathways – and related barriers and challenges – from the individual and institutional perspectives towards furthering application for the gender lens in the production and coordination of scientific research.  This report will explore how gender has been and can be incorporated into large international scientific research production and coordination.

This activity is in line with the International Council for Science’s Statute 5 on the Principle of Universality of Science which also promotes equitable opportunities for access to science and its benefits, and opposes discrimination based on such factors as ethnic origin, religion, citizenship, language, political or other opinion, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability, or age.