Trends in Parasitology
Volume 39, Issue 2, February 2023, Pages 73-79
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Science & Society
Herminthology: promoting gender equity in science and parasitology

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pt.2022.11.013Get rights and content

Abstract

Gender inequity in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Medicine (STEM) fields, including parasitology, continues to limit the participation of women in scientific leadership and development. Here we highlight the aims and activities of Herminthology, an initiative promoting the work of women in parasitology, alongside the current status quo of men and women scientists in the discipline.

Section snippets

The pursuit of gender equity in STEM fields

Women scientists have a vital role to play in scientific and technological leadership, innovation, and in contributing to sustainable development and transformation, but they remain substantially under-represented in academia and science careers [1]. Although there have been recent efforts to recruit and retain more women in science, a stark gender disparity persists, particularly at senior levels. To accelerate progress towards Sustainable Development Goal 5 of the United Nations’ 2030 Agenda

Barriers to women in the academic workforce

Recent data show that more women are entering academia than ever before, especially in the biological sciencesvi [3]. Despite advances in recruiting women to STEM disciplines, the ‘leaky pipeline’ has left them holding only a small proportion of senior academic positions [4]. This phenomenon, in which women progressively leave the workforce as they climb the career ladder, occurs most frequently during the transition from early career into independent, mid-career researcher. Such transition is

COVID-19: a backwards step

Several recent gains towards gender equity in academia were rapidly eroded by the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemicvii,viii [5]. Women, particularly women of colour or those from other minority backgrounds, are more likely to be employed on temporary or short-term contracts, many of which were lost as funding priorities changed and job uncertainty increasedix [10]. Women also tend to be the primary caregivers of children and other family members, and thus were disproportionately burdened by

Women’s contribution to research is undervalued

While the impact of work conditions on women scientists during the COVID-19 pandemic is obvious in retrospect, pre-existing systemic and cultural biases that undermine the value of their scientific contributions can be more subtle. Recent data show that women are less likely to be named as authors on scientific articles despite contributing to the work equally with men and are less likely to be cited than their male counterparts when their work is of similar merit [1,11,12]. This bias, both

How does parasitology compare?

We generated a snapshot of the current status quo of men and women scientists in the discipline of parasitology by examining the gender of a selection of award winners, society executives, and journal editorial/advisory boards. Data were obtained and translated from publicly available sources, such as society and journal websites, and gender was ascribed according to the names of the listed scientist or, in the case of gender-neutral names, by sourcing photos of them online. In these cases,

Breaking biases: how do we move forward?

The above data clearly suggest that parasitology remains a field dominated by men. Slowly, progress towards the equitable inclusion of women is occurring, although significant systemic and cultural biases continue to contribute to the loss of women in parasitology. To gauge a first-hand perspective of the perceived barriers to women in parasitology, we asked attendees of our symposium to list challenges faced by women via an electronic real-time survey. The most common challenges were managing

Acknowledgments

The authors thank Chris Adolf, Sitara Ajjampur, Markus Engstler, Tim Geary, Joanne Hamilton, Pikka Jokelainen, Britta Lundstroem, Kerry Malherbe, David Piedrafita, Jan Šlapeta, and Christina Strube for their assistance verifying some of the names and genders of the individuals included in the analysis. N.E.D.C. would like to thank the women who have provided Herminthology profiles to date, alongside those who have otherwise supported the initiative, including the ICOPA scientific committee and

Declaration of interests

The authors declare no competing interests.

Glossary

Ethnicity
a term used to categorise groups of people based on their cultural, geographic, religious, or linguistic backgrounds.
Explicit bias
known or acknowledged biases towards a group or individual.
Gender equality
the provision of equal rights, opportunities, and responsibilities irrespective of gender.
Gender equity
the fair treatment of all genders that accounts for historical, social, and systemic disadvantages.
Gender pay gap
the combined impacts of a range of factors, including pay

References (15)

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