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GENDER EQUITY AND DIVERSITY IN THE SCIENCE and TECHNOLOGY WORKPLACE:
A NEW ZEALAND PERSPECTIVE
Dr Di McCarthyChief Executive
Royal Society of New Zealand
“Science lies at the heart of the economic development strategy of this National led Government”
The Rt Hon John KeyPrime Minister
“New Zealand faces a very clear challenge. We need to substantially improve our economic, social and environmental performance to provide a secure future for upcoming generations”
Hon Dr Wayne MappMinister, Research, Science & Technology
“Science and innovation are the main drivers of the modern economy. We need to nurture and retain our best and brightest. We must demonstrate that New Zealand can harness our deep culture of innovation to grow our own capabilities and attract fresh talent from across the world”
STATUS OF WOMEN IN NEW ZEALAND
•In recent years, some have occupied key leadership positions in NZ
•Prime Minister•Governor General•Speaker of the House of Representatives•Chief Justice
However, the profile of these individual women at the top does not reflect the status generally of women in professional life.
May mask the true picture of female participation in senior roles in other areas of New Zealand’s public life.
HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION:
NEW ZEALAND CENSUS OF WOMEN’S PARTICIPATION 2010
GOOD NEWS
Since the 2008 Report, flurry of initiatives to advance women in corporate governance
Several groups involved in promoting and mentoring female directors
The Good News
% women on NZ state sector boards
Source: Ministry of Women’s Affairs
AND SOME NOT SO GOOD SIGNS
Women on boards are being closely monitored internationally as an indicator of women’s progress and gender equality
Source: Ministry of Women’s Affairs
Australia is moving fast2010 Dec 2011
AGENDA FOR CHANGE 2010
“A key finding of this report is that New Zealand has started to slide backwards in a number of areas of female participation in governance, professional and public life.
Gains made incrementally over the years are now being reversed”.
What is the situation with respect to women in Science?
Proportion of Core S&T workforce by gender
Re-drawn from An Advanced Skills Action Plan for Research, Science & Technology, MoRST, p. 13. Source: Census data.
HRC’s Census 2010:
•Women are making slow gains at the top but are yet to crack 10% of elite positions as Royal Society Fellows
•Women are under-represented in higher-grade positions (22.5% of senior academic positions in NZ universities) and over-represented in lower grade positions
•Women were less likely to be employed as scientists, especially senior scientists
•Largest proportion of those leaving science are women
FRSNZ: Percent of Fellows who are women across Electoral Colleges
FRSNZ: For grouped Electoral Colleges, percent of Fellows who are women
Crown Research Institutes (CRI)
• National science institutions owned by the Crown
• 8 CRIs each with a specific defined core purpose
• Together the revenues of the 8 are $690 million (2009-10) and employ some 4200 FTEs
CRIs
CRIs: Proportion of women on Executive and Science Management Teams
* * * *
* 0%
STATUS OF WOMEN IN UNIVERSITIES
University of Otago Science Faculty
Male Female %FP 40 11 28
AP 36 11 31
SL 51 32 63
L 24 13 54
151 67 44
University of Auckland Science Faculty
Gross Domestic Expenditure on Research & Development
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National R&D Expenditure as a Share of GDP
Researcher FTE per 100 Employed
R&D as Percentage of GDP and Researchers as Percentage Total Employment, 2008
Source: Main Science and Technology Indicators, Volume 2010 Issue 2.
WHO FUNDS THE RESEARCH?
• Ministry for Science & Innovation : Oversees RS&T investment, supports infrastructure, fosters commercialisationDirects knowledge and technology transfer for the RS&T sector to businesses and other research users
• Health Research Council : biomedical, public health, health services
• RSNZ : basic, untargeted, capability building
The Royal Society of New Zealand
A Place for Excellence and Knowledge
Science Technology HumanitiesROLE AS A GOVERNMENT FUNDING AGENT
RSNZ: Contracts managed for Government
• Marsden Fund• James Cook Research Fellowships • Rutherford Discovery Fellowships• Prime Minister’s Science Prizes• Publishing New Zealand Journals• New Zealand Science & Mathematics Teacher Fellowships• Science Media Centre• International Research Fund• Membership of International Associations
Marsden Fund - Overview
• Fund dedicated to the support of excellence in research
• Open to proposals from all researchers in any field
• No pre-established priorities
• Choices made through peer review based on merit (excellence of the research and potential of the research team)
• $60 million for 2011
• Highly competitive (8 - 10% of proposals funded)
Marsden Panels
• Biomedical Sciences • Cellular, Molecular and Physiological Biology• Earth Sciences and Astronomy • Ecology, Evolution and Behaviour• Economics and Human and Behavioural Sciences• Engineering and Interdisciplinary Sciences• Humanities• Mathematical and Information Sciences• Physics, Chemistry and Biochemistry• Social Sciences
Marsden Fund: Proportion of applying PIs who are women, by panel, 2006–2010
Marsden Fund: Proportion of contracted PIs who are women, by panel, 2006–2010
Marsden Fund: Proportion of applying PIs who are women, science panels only
*Excluding Social Science
Marsden Fund: Proportion of contracted PIs who are women, science panels only
*Excluding Social Science
Marsden Fund: Percentage of women on panels
INITIATIVES TO PROMOTE AND SUPPORT WOMEN IN THE SCIENCES
NZ Women in Leadership programme for women in the tertiary education sector.
Association for Women in Science: Network for women working in the sciences
AWIS: Developing Women – Advancing Science 28-29 July
Mentoring
Role models
“What is clear is that if we do not find ways to improve the participation of women in research we are failing to achieve ‘productive diversity’ –
Failing to capitalise on the intellectual capital and potential of significant numbers of successful female undergraduates, honours students and research higher degree students, and our institutions and our sector are, and will continue to be, the poorer for our failure”
(Bell and Bentley, 2005)
Women helping themselves
Be visibleNetwork with a purposeGet onto the appointment boardsManage reputation
NZ Women in Leadership
Marie Curie
RSNZ Marie Curie Lecture Series 2011
Marie Curie Lectures
Exploring Nature’s Medicine Chest: Professor Margaret Brimble FRSNZ
Harnessing Nature’s Colours:Professor Penny Brothers
“Marie Curie epitomised the ability to be beautifully creative. Her pioneering spirit gave her the drive to become one of the first women to gain an education, and qualification, in the sciences.
At least as admirable was her choice to both marry and continue her work and study. Finally, she combined the ultimate creativity of motherhood, and mostly as a solo parent, with the work which gained her her second Nobel Prize, and other awards, and which continued for the rest of her life.”
Odlin and Fleming 2011
