On 11 February 2020 the global mathematics community marks the fourth annual “International Day of Women and Girls in Science”. A description of the day’s origins and aims, published by its organisers, follows below:
“This day was recognized by the United Nations in light of the global need ‘to achieve full and equal access to and participation in science for women and girls, and further achieve gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls.’
Science and gender equality are both vital for the achievement of the internationally agreed development goals, including the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Over the past 15 years, the global community has made a lot of effort in inspiring and engaging women and girls in science. Yet women and girls continue to be excluded from participating fully in science. On International Day of Women and Girls in Science, let’s change this narrative.
Join us in celebrating women and girls who are leading innovation and call for actions to remove all barriers that hold them back.”
The Isaac Newton Institute fully supports the goals and ambitions of this vitally important project. The historic gender imbalance within the mathematical sciences is a long-standing issue which has only begun to show signs of changing within recent years. Yet it is essential that such change is effected, both for the good of the science and all those that wish to engage in it. Here at the Institute we aim to create an inclusive environment which welcomes all people, regardless of gender or any other characteristic. It is with this in mind that we have pursued multiple projects/strategies including the following:
We will soon be publishing an in-depth article describing how these initiatives tie together to give a cohesive view of our own attempts to help redress the mathematical gender imbalance.
We wish you all an inspiring “International Day of Women and Girls in Science”