Speaking of… Gender Equality

“Overall, it’s about helping people understand that bringing people together from diverse groups actually benefits everyone and creates a space to uncover novel scientific ideas. There are so many solvable diseases that are specific to a single population and not addressed until that group or population are engaged in the research question.” – Michelle Reid, A Network for Progress

“Diverse teams deliver better results – and because it’s our ethical obligation to encourage inclusivity in science. Unfortunately, many people’s personal experiences, and much of the available data, suggest that science still suffers from bias and discrimination against underrepresented groups.” – Emma Wilson, Kickstarting Publishing Parity

“How can we expect to significantly improve representation of women and minorities in academia when the major role models are white men who regularly work at nights and during weekends?” – Isabelle Kohler, Mind the (Gender) Gap

“For some of the younger women in the field, it can be hard – you can’t just go to your male boss with questions like: how do you deal with having kids at the same time you’re going through a tenure review? As a woman, how do you balance a professional job in which you’re expected to travel, with a young family at home? You’re going to get more ‘real life’ answers from a woman.” – Mary Kate Donais, Leaning In 

“Sexism isn’t necessarily about bad people; it’s about bad judgments that are based on a cultural lack of understanding. Once you get that, the need for improved processes for decision making, such as gender-blind review of applications, start to make sense.” – Nicola Gaston, An Ongoing Effort 

“I’ve gone into meetings where a young woman comes up with an idea that no one is interested in, but then, all of a sudden, some guy says the same thing and now it’s his idea. The fact that discrimination is society-wide makes it very hard to tackle in a specific industry.” – Ellen Miseo, Towards Meritocracy 

“About the time I was trying to decide whether or not to do a PhD, a supervisor flatly told me, ‘You have to decide whether you want to do a PhD or get married and have kids.’ Either/or.” – Ingeborg Petterson, Beyond the ‘Old Boys Club’

“I believe that the majority of young chemists do not see the gender gap. We have come through our undergraduate degree as a mix of men and women, all treated equally, and it has resulted in us expecting to be treated equally in future positions.” – Lisa Miller, On Balance