Events
Young Nordic and Baltic Researchers Uphold the Gender Equality Principle
05 09 2019
On 12 August 2019, members of the Lithuanian Young Academy signed a joint statement of Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, Finnish, and Estonian young academies on promotion of gender equality in academia.
“Gender equality in academia is indispensable in order to ensure the quality of research that we need in resolving relevant contemporary social and environmental issues. Although the Nordic countries are often seen as the most progressive in tackling the issue of gender equality, there still exist important gender-related challenges, including academia. We think that a special policy is needed to rectify the distorted distribution of genders in appointments to academic senior or leading positions and in particular spheres of academia. Promotion of gender equality in academia will contribute to a broader diversity of research issues and attitudes,” said Katerini Storeng, the chair of the Norwegian Young Academy.
The idea of the statement on gender equality emerged at the first joint meeting of Nordic and Baltic young academies (19–20 March 2019, Stockholm) that was attended by the representatives of the Lithuanian Young Academy Dr Donatas Murauskas, Dr Olga Mastianica-Stankevič, and Dr Diana Marčiulynienė. The aim of the signed statement is to establish initiatives and strategies that could be implemented to improve gender equality in academia. The statement presents a number of prioritized proposals for all areas of academia: recruitment, promotion, research funding, work environment, mobility, scientific meetings and career issues. It is intended for Nordic and Baltic universities, research and research funding institutions.
Cooperation of the Lithuanian Young Academy with Nordic and Baltic young academies and organisations of young researchers is a unique platform opening young researchers’ interaction without borders in setting common interests and issues and in consolidating the role of young researchers in the broader context of European academic communities.
Dr. Olga Mastianica-Stankevič
