GenTIC researcher Rachel Palmén gave a communication in a thematic session at the Latin America and the Caribbean Open Science Forum (#cilac2021) as an invited speaker together with Gloria Bonder, director of the Gender, Society and Policies Area of FLACSO Argentina. The session was organized by the UNESCO Regional Chair on Women, Science and Technology in Latin America and focused on the implementation of gender equality policies at universities and research centers in the European Union and Latin America.

 

Rachel Palmén analyzed the policies of the European Union oriented to promote gender equality in R&I and presented the learning lessons of the H2020 ACT, EFFORTI and TARGET projects. In her communication, she highlighted that the implementation of Equality Plans requires careful reflection on the specific needs of each context and the facilitating and hindering factors of the process must be taken into account.

 

Gloria Bonder presented the current situation and lessons learned by the academic and scientific institutions in Latin America integrating the Community of Practice that she is coordinating within the ACT project. Gloria Bonder summarized the Latin American experiences to strengthen the institutionalization of gender equality policies at universities and pointed out that the goal of achieving structural change is a process of ongoing improvement. “The great challenge today is for Gender Equality Plans to intervene in contemporary debates about universities and how they can become more inclusive institutions, which are receptive to social needs and contribute to eliminating inequalities”, she affirmed.

 

Watch the video recording of the thematic session by Rachel Palmén and Gloria Bonder at CILAC 2021 here: