Periodic Reporting for period 1 - AGRIGEP (Assessment and implementation of Agriculture and Life Science Universities’ first Gender Equality Plans in widening countries)
Reporting period: 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31
The reason why GE is important for agriculture is that women are the backbone of the rural economy, especially in developing countries. They make up almost half of the world’s farmers, and over the last few decades, they have broadened their involvement in agriculture.
Therefore, it is important that women are not under-represented in agricultural areas and consequently in education and research as well. The fundamental drivers of sustainability and economic growth are the people themselves. If only one gender is encouraged to participate in a sector, the talent pool is halved.
Therefore, the main goal of agriculture and life science focus universities is to become more gender-equal by increasing the number of female researchers, improving their career prospects, and integrating a gender dimension in research as well. The goal of the AGRIGEP project is to perform a sector-specific, responsible assessment and support the implementation of the first GEP of these universities with specific measures and sector-specific actions.
The AGRRIGEPS project, with the joint efforts of six consortium partners, aims to i) perform a responsible assessment of widening RPOs' current status on GEP implementation, ii) improve capabilities through intensive capacity building, and iii) develop and implement agriculture and life-science targeted GEP with sectorial specific measures and strategies. These results could lead to long-term institutional reforms. Additionally, this project will work to establish the inclusion of GE issues within the RPOs’ educational system and the professional training of their students. To reach these goals and the project objectives, advanced partner institutions that are specialised in GE will mentor and help with the assessment and capacity building of three widening country-origin universities. The realisation of these objectives and the implementation of inclusive GEPs will enhance the inclusiveness, reputation, attractiveness, and research excellence of widening country RPOs. Moreover, it will promote the transformation of institutions and advance GE within the European Research Area (ERA) as well.
In summary, the following project results were achieved during the RP1:
• Project roadmap was defined, finetuned, and approved at the Kick-off meeting. Supporting documentation and tools were developed and shared with partners (D1.1; MS1; MS2).
• Project platforms were established both for efficient internal (project data site, SharePoint, mailing lists) and external communication, networking, and support dissemination (project website, social media channels, subscription for newsletters, connection with sister projects, connecting stakeholders) (D2.1; MS3).
• Skills and knowledge transfer webinars, training, and mentoring were started through specific WPs (WP3, WP4).
• Education materials for RPOs’ staff and students were started to be developed based on the needs of widening RPOs, using the results of the assessment exercise (WP4; D3.1).
• Publications (Fact sheets, newsletter, flyer, press releases) were published on project sites and open access Zenodo platform, targeting both scientific and public, and preparation of scientific papers is in progress (MS3; D2.1; D2.2).
• Stakeholder mapping of RPOs’ was completed to assess their current network, identify potential new stakeholders, and identify actions to improve it. This will increase the visibility and the long-term impact of the project (WP2; MS5).
• A Policy Brief was developed on the topic of “Implementing Gender Equality Plans (GEPs) in Higher Education and Research in widening countries: The case of agriculture & life sciences” which will be spread after EC approval. (D1.5)