A supportive network for women in the FNWI

While female researchers within the faculty first and foremost consider themselves successful scientists, many of them realize that some issues related to their gender deserve special attention. They work relatively in isolation and usually experience a sense of recognition when they meet informally and discuss their scientific lives and careers. It is this general feeling of recognition that has led to a call for the formation of a supportive network for women in the FNWI (WiF), which was formally launched in 2007.

Objectives

The network has four main objectives:

• To serve as a platform for women in the faculty to regularly meet each other in an informal setting. Each year in spring, the network organizes an Annual Meeting, during which prominent members of the scientific community will present topics relevant for women. Also during this meeting the annual prize for the best publication by a female FNWI scientist will be awarded.
• To function as an oversight committee. Female scientists in the faculty can bring up issues that need attention, which could then be discussed with the Dean.
• To provide possibilities for mentoring and coaching.
• To increase the proportion of female academic staff over the next decade. A realistic aim is to strive for the EU25 average, in ten years time.

Organization of the network

The WiF network is meant for all female scientists in the FNWI, from PhD students to full professors. A group of 3 scientists (one full professor/UHD, one UD and one PhD/postdoc) will form the executive board. Members of this executive board are in principle appointed for two years by the Dean, a period that can be extended once more by an additional 2-year period. The executive board carries out organization and meets with the Dean of the FNWI to discuss any emerging gender-related issues. 

Currently the executive board members are Pernette Verschure (SILS), Paola Grosso (IvI), Anna Watts (API), Alessandra Palmigiano (ILLC) and Marika Taylor (ITF)