More women are studying science at university than men. But they’re not staying in science. We’re losing them mid-career.
We, as a nation, are not successfully supporting their transition into independent researchers and science leaders. The loss of these highly trained smart women is economically and culturally damaging to Australia.
In April 2011, the Australian National Commission for UNESCO, UN Women Australia, and Science and Technology Australia ran a summit at Parliament House in Canberra on the issue of Women in Science and Engineering. Science in Public were the event managers.
More than 150 senior managers from corporations, government, research institutions, research funders, universities, and non-governmental organisations participated.
Click here for a link to the communique that stemmed from the discussion.
And here for a link to the various reports and resources that were tabled at the summit including a report written by the Federation of Australian Scientific and Technological societies, now known as Science and Technology Australia.
The Women in Science and Engineering Summit brought together scientists, engineers, business leaders, research funders, policy makers and the media to discuss tangible solutions to the female brain drain in science and engineering. This report from the Summit comprises the brief communiqué issued on the day, and a more detailed communiqué written after the event. It sets the scene for action. A Powerpoint presentation outlining the WiSE Summit’s goals and achievements can be downloaded at www.sta.org.au. [continue reading…]
CSIRO, Australia’s largest employer of researchers on Monday 11 April committed to remove barriers to the promotion of highly skilled women and to increase incentives to encourage women to return to the workforce after maternity leave.
These were two of many commitments made by research funders, leaders and employers who today came together for the first time at the Women in Science and Engineering (WiSE) Summit in Parliament House, Canberra.
The Summit, attended by the Hon Kate Ellis, Minister for Employment Participation and Childcare and for the Status of Women, discussed how to keep women in science and encourage more young women into engineering in order to boost productivity and equity.
Importantly, the nation’s leading research funders, the Australian Research Council and the National Health and Medical Council, agreed to changes in how they assess research publications in the grant application of those with interrupted careers. The ARC committed to extending the period taken into account. The NHMRC this year will consider any nominated five years of an applicant’s career rather than the previous five years, and it has also agreed to monitor gender issues in general.
Summit: Monday 11 April 10.30am to 4 pm Mural Hall, Parliament House Canberra, Media welcome
What are CSIRO, ANSTO, the ARC, the NHMRC, Cochlear, CSL…going to do about it?
We’re losing our top young scientists – but not to better pay overseas – they’re dropping out of science and engineering in their 30s. It’s a cultural and economic loss to the country affecting every field from medicine to climate research to astronomy. [continue reading…]
More women are studying science at university than men. But they’re not staying in science. We’re losing them mid-career.
We, as a nation, are not successfully supporting their transition into independent researchers and science leaders. The loss of these highly trained smart women is economically and culturally damaging to Australia.
We are a specialist science communication and public relations business. We help you communicate complex ideas simply to the public, media, government, and industry; on any platform from social media, to media, pitches, publications, events and conferences.
Our team are all working from home and can consult/train/mentor/write via phone, Zoom, Teams, Skype etc
Upcoming training sessions
Media and communication masterclass:
Practice interviews. Key messages. Tricky questions. How to ensure your research is reported accurately.
Sarah's structure of the course, specific insight and understanding of science, her contacts and common mistakes made in communication were great and furthered my skills in this area.
Anonymous - Sydney Jan 2020
Science In Public
2020-01-28T15:04:28+11:00
Anonymous - Sydney Jan 2020
Sarah's structure of the course, specific insight and understanding of science, her contacts and common mistakes made in communication were great and furthered my skills in this area.
This is one of the best science communication courses I have ever encountered. It teaches all research to think out of box and really simplify their research in lay man's language. I will highly recommend this to anyone looking to learn more about science communication.
Shwathy Ramesh
Science In Public
2020-02-24T09:29:55+11:00
Shwathy Ramesh
This is one of the best science communication courses I have ever encountered. It teaches all research to think out of box and really simplify their research in lay man's language. I will highly recommend this to anyone looking to learn more about science communication.