07/07/2023
In this July 2023 editorial, Nuala Caffrey, the EMA Officer of Gender and Diversity, presents what is done to monitor and improve gender and diversity within EMA actions.
Dear Colleagues,
As the Officer of Gender and Diversity within EMA, my role is to monitor and improve gender and diversity outcomes across the many actions of EMA, including the Joint European Magnetism Symposia (JEMS), the European School on Magnetism (ESM), the awards, and the online seminar series.
The upcoming JEMS conference in Madrid is a highlight in the EMA calendar. In a new development this year all attendees will be asked to abide by a Code of Conduct. In taking this step, we hope JEMS 2023 will be a welcoming, safe and respectful event for everybody, regardless of gender, race, disability, age, sexual orientation, etc. Of course, this will require buy-in from all members of our community and so we urge all attendees to make themselves familiar with the Code and to notify an organiser if they believe there has been any violation of it.
One issue that is often raised is the under-representation of women speakers in scientific meetings. This can have knock-on effects on women’s career development. To this end, it is instructive to determine the gender balance of speakers at the upcoming EMA events. At JEMS 2023, 33% of the plenary talks, 25% of the semi-plenary talks, and 40% of the invited talks will be given by women. At JEMS 2022, the proportions were 20%, 40% and 23%, respectively. At ESM 2023, 23% of all lectures will be given by women. As women comprise approximately 40% of those receiving a PhD and 20% of senior faculty positions in the physical sciences in the European Union (She Figures report, 2021), the speaker balance broadly reflects the proportion of women in our community. This will continue to be monitored in the future, particularly as female academics are known to have been disadvantaged to a greater extent by the disruption caused by the Covid pandemic.
Finally, for those of you planning to attend JEMS 2023, please join the special Women in Magnetism Meetup which will be held on Thursday, 30th August. Organised by Prof. Arantxa Fraile Rodríguez, Universitat de Barcelona, it promises to be a dynamic event, featuring round-table informal discussions related to the specific challenges associated with being a woman in magnetism over all career stages.
If you have any ideas, suggestions, or comments related to gender and diversity in EMA, please do not hesitate to contact me.
With best regards,
Nuala CAFFREY, Officer for Gender and Diversity