Discover key insights and watch the recordings of the thought provoking webinar 'Women and Research Funding,' brought to you by TCC Africa, ScientifyRESEARCH, and SciDev.Net
by Judy Mielke, Joy Owango, Rana Dajani, Olubukola Oluranti Babalola, Jessica Wade, and Magaly Blas
Published onMar 08, 2024
Women and Research Funding [Webinar]
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As the world commemorates International Women's Day on March 8, 2024, under the theme "Invest in women: Accelerate progress," three organizations convened a webinar titled "Women and Research Funding." Co-hosted by The Training Centre in Communication (TCC Africa), ScientifyRESEARCH, and SciDev.Net, this event brought together a diverse panel of experts to discuss the challenges and solutions for supporting women in scientific research.
During the webinar, participants engaged in a candid discussion on the systemic barriers faced by women researchers, particularly in accessing funding opportunities. One of the key themes that emerged was the existence of regional disparities in funding support for women in research. European funders were noted to provide more support compared to those in other regions, with about 20% of European funders having specific funding initiatives for women. However, this contrasted with the 10% support seen in the UK, USA, and other regions.
Following this observation, the speakers offered their perspectives on addressing these disparities and supporting women in scientific research.
Dr. Judy Mielke, the founder of scientifyRESEARCH, highlighted the importance of tracking diversity funds and regional trends in research funding. She emphasized the need for greater support for women researchers, especially in regions with lower funding accessibility.
Dr. Jessica Wade, a physicist in the Department of Materials at Imperial College London, highlighted the significance of mentorship and collaboration in empowering women scientists. She advocated for transparent evaluation processes and tailored support mechanisms to address the specific challenges faced by historically excluded groups in securing research funding.
Prof. Rana Dajani a professor of molecular biology at the Hashemite University in Jordan, called for a paradigm shift in funding institutions' approach towards supporting women in research. She proposed a collaborative model where funding agencies work closely with researchers to design grants that consider the holistic needs of women scientists, including childcare responsibilities and career progression opportunities.
Prof. Magaly Blas, the director and founder of Mamás del Río (Mothers of the River), a program that aims to improve maternal and newborn health in rural areas of the Peruvian and Colombian Amazon emphasized the importance of gender-inclusive evaluation processes and urged funding institutions to implement transparent grading systems free from biases. She stressed the need for equal participation and recognition of women researchers' contributions in scientific endeavors.
Professor Olubukola Oluranti Babalola the Vice-President of the Organization for Women in Science for the Developing World (OWSD) (Africa region) echoed the call for gender representation in funding agencies' decision-making processes and proposed the adoption of metrics to measure inclusivity in funding allocations. She emphasized on the need for accountability and proactive measures to address gender disparities in research funding.
Rana Dajani, Zeena Tabbaa, Amneh Al-Rawashdeh, Ulrike Gretzel & Gillian Bowser (2021) Peer mentoring women in STEM: an explanatory case study on reflections from a program in Jordan, Mentoring & Tutoring: Partnership in Learning, 29:3, 284-304, DOI: 10.1080/13611267.2021.1927429
The Training Centre in Communication (TCC Africa), the first African-based training centre to teach effective communication skills to scientists. TCC Africa provides capacity support in improving researchers output and visibility training, scholarly and science communication. Learn more about TCC Africa at https://www.tcc-africa.org/.
ScientifyRESEARCH, an open, curated and structured research funding database – so that all researchers around the world, irrespective of location, have equal access to research funding information; and Learn more about ScientifyRESEARCH at https://www.scientifyresearch.org/.
SciDev.Net, whose mission is to use independent journalism to help individuals and organisations apply science to decision-making in order to drive equitable, sustainable development and poverty reduction. Learn more about SciDev.Net at https://www.scidev.net/.
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