Getting women into central Europe's science labs
A much higher percentage of women than men finish their science degrees in central and Eastern Europe - but only a fraction of those women go on to hold positions as researchers or professors in the scientific world. That's according to a report from the European Commission. Their expert group known as ENWISE wants to why women in Central and Eastern Europe are not more represented in Science.
"In Slovakia, this is somehow taken for normal that women take care of family and men of their professional status."
What is, on the other hand, the situation in the EU member countries? Professor Velichova.
"The situation is comparable in certain sense. There are smaller numbers of women in research and education. Anyhow, they are concentrated in the less paid sectors, which is higher education and governmental sector, not business and enterprise sector. They are, of course, not as much as in our countries but again less presented in these top positions and decision bodies in any top levels of the academic grades."
Gender mainstreaming is now the top policy of the EU. One of its aims is to take all women researchers into the European research area. In 2001, the Czech government helped to establish the national contact centre Women in Science. Thanks to this initiative, the Czech Republic has the only national steering committee for female scientists in Europe. Marcela Linkova, a coordinator of the Centre.
"We have more and more examples of women contacting us with their particular problems be it looking for an au-pair when they go on a foreign fellowship, pay discrimination, feeling that the attestation process ahs not gone transparently in their institution and they feel they're not getting into the proper rank. We see that women have accepted this centre as a place where they can turn to and it's not that we will solve their problems, we can point ways to the solution."
Disadvantages in their academic career as well as a wider range of research opportunities drives many female scientists along with their male colleagues outside of Europe. What can the EU do to prevent the possible threat of losing the intellectual potential? Nicole Dewandre, the head of the unit of scientific advance and governance in the science society directorate.
"The aim at the EU level is to make the most of the research money invested by member states by creating the European research area and the mobility of the researchers so that they can find more attractive to have mobility in Europe than to go outside."
European Research structures continue with their efforts to bring research higher on the political agenda. Their objective is 3% of European GDP allocated for science similarly to 2.9% in the US. Today, Europe is spending only 1.9% of its GDP for these purposes. In the case of Slovakia, the percentage is even lower making it less than 1 % of its GDP. Many talented Slovaks thus take the opportunity and travel abroad to study. Professor Daniela Velichova, however, thinks that young people have to travel abroad to gain some knowledge.
"Anyhow, we must have here conditions to attract them to come back home."
To prevent a brain drain, the aim of the European Union has been to open fellowships to help young scientists including women to come back to their own countries. One of its plans aimed at improving conditions for the professional career of women scientists in the Central European region will be the establishment of the regional centre for women and youth in science. It should be opened in April in the Czech Republic.
