Towards gender equity in physics in India: Initiatives, investigations, and questions

Shastri, P.; Kurup, Anitha; Resmi, L.; Ramaswamy, Rohit; Ubale, S.; Bagchi, Soumyabrato; Rao, Seema; Narasimhan, Shobhana

doi:10.1063/1.4937669

Cited by 2 publications

(3 citation statements)

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“…Nevertheless, major discrepancies still exist in many scientific fields and countries (Işık et al, 2015; Pereira, 2014; RSC, 2018; Thornbush, 2016; Vaughan et al, 2019). In soil science and many related fields (e.g., agronomy and crop science (McIntosh & Simmons, 2008), chemistry (RSC, 2018), geosciences (Pereira, 2014; Thornbush, 2016) and physics (Saitovitch, Barbosa, Funchal, de Pinho, & de Santana, 2015; Shastri et al, 2015)), women are still a distinct minority. Their representation at conferences as keynote speakers, on editorial boards, as reviewers and on grant funding panels has been viewed as too low (de Vries, 2020).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

International gender equity in soil science

Dawson

Brevik

Reyes‐Sánchez

2021

European J Soil Science

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Previous studies have indicated that diversity is a concern in soil science, including how this relates to gender equity. However, gender equity data for soil science are extremely limited, with only the USA having a current relatively extensive study published in the scientific literature. Therefore, this study was undertaken to gain a preliminary understanding of gender equity issues in a range of countries worldwide using the gender data of membership of national soil science societies, international conferences and journals. Data for 2020 membership was supplied by 44 soil science societies, providing a broad geographic representation. Thirty‐seven of the 44 societies had more male members than female. Only 32% of the soil science society members were women, although the highest percentage for an individual society was 69% female membership. Regionally, Asia had the lowest female membership at 22%, whereas Africa had the highest at 40%. Only 20% of the national soil science societies who are members of the International Union of Soil Sciences had female presidents, indicating that women are under‐represented in the top leadership roles in our professional societies. Women were under‐represented as keynote speakers at conferences and on many editorial boards. This initial scoping study demonstrates that there is an urgent global need to address gender equity within the soil science profession. However, gender equity extends beyond just the number of women in our profession: it also includes equal access to wages, leadership roles and decision making. We conclude that it is critical that individual countries undertake detailed studies of gender equity so we have a more complete picture of the national and international scale of this issue. Highlights There is still gender inequity in soil science Soil science is a male‐dominated field in most countries worldwide Gender equity is critical to advancing the discipline of soil science There is a need for comprehensive national studies of gender equity Equity includes many issues beyond just equality in numbers of men and women in the profession.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

International gender equity in soil science

Dawson

Brevik

Reyes‐Sánchez

2021

European J Soil Science

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“…Currently, there is considerable effort from women physicists to obtain a clear picture of the status of women in the profession [10,11,13]. More specific statistics to provide parametric evaluations can be obtained in collaboration with the government of India, or specifically the Department of Science and Technology (DST).…”

Section: Hopementioning

confidence: 99%

“…2. As I am removed from the milieu, women physicists employed in India would be the best to contribute to the discussion [10,11,13]. …”

Section: Hopementioning

confidence: 99%

Negotiating a career in physics: Early stages in India

Dasgupta

2017

Can. J. Phys.

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Abstract:In this work we discuss anecdotal evidence of social biases and prejudices that may form barriers in building a successful career for women in physics. We discuss the opportunities that exist, and how to use them for career advancement. This work is written for the Special Issue entitled Proceedings of The First Regional Conference for Women in Physics (RCWP-2016), 25-27 April, 2016, Islamabad, Pakistan. To connect with the theme, this paper is based on India, a nation geopolitically close, and where the author's early career in physics was shaped.Key words: women in physics, physics in India, education for girls, female role models in physics, physics outreach.Résumé : Nous discutons ici de témoignages anecdotiques de biais sociaux et de préjudices qui pourraient créer des barrières à la réussite d'une carrière pour une femmes en physique. Nous regardons les opportunités qui existent et comment les utiliser pour faire avancer une carrière. Cet article est écrit pour le compte rendu de la « Première Conférence pour les Femmes en Physique » au Pakistan. Afin d'introduire le sujet, l'article est basé sur l'Inde, une nation géopolitiquement proche, où la jeune carrière de l'auteur s'est développée. [Traduit par la Rédaction]Mots-clés : femmes en physique, la physique aux Indes, modèles exemplaires féminins en physique, la portée de la physique. IntroductionIf we follow the story of Marie Curie's (1867-1934) life, we find manifest examples of gender discrimination, which affected her career path in physics. However, these did not deter her from research work, and she was recognized by the community with two Nobel Prizes [1,2]. Examples of instances of manifest bias from her life are (i) she was not accepted into the University of Warsaw, and she had to leave her own country, Poland, for higher studies in France; and (ii) in 1911, Curie, a Nobel Laureate was denied admission into the French Academy of Sciences, and was told that "Women cannot be part of the Institute of France". About 100 years later, and a very vocal and alert feminist polity later, we still have biases and prejudices, most of which have societal origins. In most "official" academic institutions, equal opportunities have been implemented in paper policies. We are discussing how to improve the workplace environment for women, and acquire recognition for women's work. It seems opportunities exist; we have to find best practices of their implementation.Unlike physics, where quantification and precision of data, or mathematical structures provide the basis for analysis and conclusions, the sociology of a situation is difficult to describe using precise measurements. Statistical data are one way to assess a social parameter, but anecdotal evidence is also symptomatic of social patterns. Causation and remedies can emerge from individual experiences. In this brief article we discuss the ways prejudices and biases in a largely patriarchal way of living may discourage us from utilizing opportunities for careers in physics, gleaned from an individua...

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Towards gender equity in physics in India: Initiatives, investigations, and questions

Cited by 2 publications

References 1 publication

International gender equity in soil science

International gender equity in soil science

Negotiating a career in physics: Early stages in India

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