Celebrating 10 years of Gender Summits

Science cherishes “excellence”, but this concept is rarely explicitly defined when quality of research and of researchers is being scrutinised.  In the last few years, policy makers have recognised that gender equality, diversity, and inclusion are essential for excellence in science, scholarship and the development of societies, and belong not just in the Human Resources departments of research organisations but in science knowledge-making itself.  Despite promising advancements, many gender inequalities and exclusion issues in research participation and practice still exist in science.

Since their launch in 2011, the Gender Summits have provided a platform for dialogue where scientists, policymakers, gender scholars and stakeholders in the research ecosystem can examine the progress made and consider emerging problems and needs demonstrated by new evidence showing when, why, and how biological differences (sex) and socio-cultural differences (gender) differentiate quality of research outcomes for women and men, often with worse impacts for women.