Building capacity through training
Raising awareness about gender equality is a cornerstone of implementing Gender Equality Plans. Training initiatives are key to ensure organisations are mature and knowledgeable enough to succeed in implementing the measures outlined in these plans. This holds true also for MINDtheGEPs partners who are implementing Gender Equality Plans.
MINDtheGEPs training activities, designed to engage the entire organisation, should be evidence-based, continuous and long-term initiatives. And they need to address unconscious gender biases throughout organisations. From junior to senior staff, administrators to decision-makers.
Training as part of our strategy
Training is vital for promoting gender equality, diversity, and inclusion. The European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE) outlines three key principles for effective training on these sensitive topics: engaging the entire organisation, basing training on evidence-based needs, and ensuring a long-term process.
A Gender Equality Plan should be an official, publicly accessible document endorsed by the highest authority of the organisation to which it belongs, it should have dedicated human and financial resources and establish a structured and ongoing system for data collection. But also, monitoring, and incorporating initiatives for raising awareness, providing training on gender equality and addressing unconscious gender biases.
MINDtheGEPs training activities
MINDtheGEPs partners are developing training to combat these biases and raise awareness of the cultural and structural factors that uphold gender imbalances. To make sure the training initiatives are fit-for-purpose, partners are identifying training needs through annual surveys on gender equality concepts, stereotypes, gender plan implementation, and the gender dimension in STEM and SSH disciplines. And selecting trainers from a pool of interested colleagues who are rewarded accordingly and creating an annual course schedule.
By taking a train-the-trainers approach, MINDtheGEPs partners develop gender equality training competencies sustainably. Slowly building a pool of competent trainers within their respective organisations, able to provide training through face-to-face sessions, online modules, guidance materials, and expert networks. These trainers then conduct the MINDtheGEPs-speicific training modules Empow_Lab, which provides training for junior researchers (particularly women) to enhance their research skills and career progression, and Breaktop_Lab, which focuses on raising gender awareness and challenging stereotypes in selection processes for all levels of academia and non-academic RPOs.
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Contact person
Angela Balzano
Angela Balzano is a researcher at the Department of Culture Politics and Society at the University of Turin and coordinator and Professor at the science module of the Master in Gender Studies and Policies at Roma Tre University. She has been Adjunct Professor of the course in Diversity Management and tutor in Women and Law for the GEMMA Master in Gender Studies at University of Bologna, where she was also involved in the H2020 project Plotina: Promoting Gender Balance and Inclusion in Research, Innovation and Training. Angela Balzano has worked as a translator for DeriveApprodi, translating authors Rosi Braidotti (The Posthuman), Donna Haraway (The Promises of Monsters) and Cooper and Waldby (Clinical Labor). In 2021 she published her first monographic work for Meltemi, Per farla finita con la famiglia. Dall'aborto alle parentele postumane. Angela Balzano’s role in MINDtheGEPs includes assisting the Coordinator Professor Cristina Solera. She is also one of the trainers in MINDtheGEPs’ series of Train the Trainers workshops.
Contact: angela.balzano[at]unito.it
MINDtheGEPs recommendations
Training early career researchers to promote gender equality
Empowering women in research careers: Training early career researchers to promote gender equality
Despite an increasing number of women entering research careers, few of them end up in leadership roles compared to their male colleagues. MINDtheGEPs' training initiatives target these challenges head-on, fostering skills development and creating a culture of gender equality within partner organisations. Now, we share our best practice advice in a brief format.
This brief is based on a MINDtheGEPs deliverable, which in turn is based on a combination of desk research, our expertise, partners’ experiences, and existing guidelines. This deliverable includes a set of overall recommendations supporting academic and non-academic organisations to foster the awareness of gender issues in the field of recruitment, retention and career progression. Our guidelines on planned actions are developed to help to understand and prepare organisational change, which should improve gender equality in any institution.
Krzemińska, Katarzyna., Migalska, Alexandra., Sekuła, Paulina., Stoecker, Ewa. (2024) Empowering women in research careers: Training early career researchers to promote gender equality. Zenodo. DOI: 10.5281/ zenodo.11032882
Training senior leaders to promote gender equality
Raising awareness & challenging stereotypes: Training senior leaders to promote gender equality
Gender disparities persist in academia, particularly in senior leadership positions, despite a growing number of women earning PhDs. To address this, MINDtheGEPs offers specialised training for influential roles in decision-making bodies and committees (e.g. Rectors, V-ce Rectors, Chancellors, Deans, V-ce Deans, Directors, administrative and research team leaders, managerial staff at non-academic RPOs).
This brief is based on a MINDtheGEPs deliverable, which in turn is based on a combination of desk research, our expertise, partners’ experiences, and existing guidelines. This deliverable includes a set of overall recommendations supporting academic and non-academic organisations to foster the awareness of gender issues in the field of recruitment, retention and career progression. Our guidelines on planned actions are developed to help to understand and prepare organisational change, which should improve gender equality in any institution.
Krzemińska, Katarzyna., Migalska, Alexandra., Sekuła, Paulina., Stoecker, Ewa (2024) Raising awareness & challenging stereotypes. Training senior leaders to promote gender equality. Zenodo. DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.1108227
Discover our approach
Assessing gender gaps
To identify the push-and-pull factors behind existing gender imbalances.
Desigining GEPs
To tailor and target gender action & equality plans to partners' needs, for sustainable change.
Monitoring & evaluating
To learn and to grow capacities for achieving structural change. To close the gender gap in research!
Targeting key areas
We work to increase women's participation in research and innovation by improving their career prospects, increasing gender balance in decision-making and including gender dimensions in research content & teaching, and work to improve work-life balance.
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Our partners
10 partners from 7 EU countries unite to close the gender gap in research and innovation. Ensuring work-life balance for all, and increasing women's participation in research.
