Gender-based violence is widespread, affecting approximately 30 % of women in Europe, according to the EU Fundamental Rights Agency. It is particularly prevalent in research institutions, where hierarchical structures can foster abuses of power. The EU-funded UniSAFE project was launched to tackle this violence in academia, which affects individuals of all genders – women, men and non-binary people.
The EU-funded BrainTwin project has successfully cleared a path towards a world-class research centre dedicated to neuroengineering in Romania. Fostering extensive knowledge exchange and collaboration with Austria, Germany, and Spain, BrainTwin is bringing European researchers much closer to groundbreaking advancements in the field.
In Europe, women remain grossly under-represented in research and innovation. The EU-funded GEECCO project has been working with universities and research organisations to take a better approach to increasing their role in these fields. As a result, some participants have already significantly improved their gender balance, boosting research to the benefit of EU citizens – men and women alike.
A free parenting programme based on EU-funded research has won a 2019 Horizon Impact Award for its success in helping families to avoid child abuse in low-and middle-income countries. Now parents everywhere can access online tips to cope with COVID-19 lockdown life.
By failing to properly take gender interactions into account in research we are limiting today's science. EU-funded research is revealing how economic trends affect genders differently, as for example in the COVID-19 crisis. It is also looking at how the interaction between genders impacts macroeconomic trends.
Ocean research is a traditionally male-dominated field but the EU-funded project Baltic Gender has been inspiring change by helping scientists in five Baltic countries to better understand how a more gender-equal institute can benefit their work.
Although formal regulations are in place to ensure equal opportunities, female researchers remain significantly under-represented in many areas of scientific research. EU-funding is being used to support actions aimed at creating a more gender-balanced research culture in Europe.
Across the EU, women account for just 13 % of the information science technology and digital workforce. In a bid to improve the gender balance, EU project EQUAL-IST has developed tools to boost female inclusion in university research careers across the sector.
Preparing for a career in academia? The opportunity to acquire training in areas as varied as ethics, writing and team management can help to pave the way, say the coordinators of an EU-funded programme that supported 29 promising postdocs. A follow-on project is under way.
Poor communication can have dire consequences in vital areas like the environment and health. Innovative 'science shop' projects, which translate society's questions into a language that scientists understand, are making a difference in remote Bolivian communities learning about Chagas disease, among Hepatitis C patients in Tunisia, and in projects closer to Europe's shores, too.
