Horizon Europe Gender Equality Plan
Gender equality is a fundamental value of the European Union. Gender equality benefits research and innovation (R&I) by improving the quality and relevance of R&I, attracting and retaining more talent and ensuring that everyone can maximise their potential within a fair and equitable ecosystem.
Mandated within the Horizon Europe framework programme, participating stakeholders such as research organisations and higher education institutions, both private and public, from EU Member States and associated countries, must have a Gender Equality Plan (GEP) or equivalent strategy in place to be eligible to calls for proposals from 2022 and beyond. For compliance with the Horizon Europe Framework Programme for Research and Innovation 2021-2027, four mandatory process requirements must be met, Figure 1:
In tandem with these requirements, a number of cultural operational themes are recommended, as summarised in Figure 2.1
SFI Gender Equality Plan Compliance
Valuing equity within the workplace, SFI is committed to promoting a culture of fairness, openness and inclusivity within. Building on the assessment of our existing Equality Diversity and Inclusion (EDI)-related policies and procedures and the results of our organisational EDI survey, the agency have developed and published SFI’s EDI Internal Strategy 2023-2028.2
Furthermore, working towards the agency’s vision of attaining an inclusive research and innovation system and building on work previously undertaken as part SFI’s Gender Strategy3, SFI have published their External EDI Strategy 2023-2028.4
Both strategies encompass a goal to remove barriers to inclusion across the work place, science and society, including those not only rooted in gender but also other areas of inequity, to promote both a diverse and equitable workplace and wider research culture. Reflecting the Irish Government’s vision and commitment to EDI as detailed in national research and innovation strategy, Impact 20305 and in-line with SFI’s own principles for fair and equitable processes and the GEP requirements and thematic goals outlined under Horizon Europe, the strategies put forward a clear vision for EDI policy realisation including monitoring, education and implementation.
Table 1 summarises the mandatory requirements that SFI have met in accordance with new eligibility criteria to access Horizon Europe instruments.
Table 1: SFI Horizon Europe GEP Compliance
| Criterion | SFI Compliance |
|---|---|
|
Formal Public Document Published on the organisation’s website signed by top management and actively communicated within the institution |
Internal and External EDI Strategies, approved by Executive Committee and Management Board. Both are publicly available through the following: https://www.sfi.ie/about-us/governance/internal-edi-strategy/ |
|
Dedicated Resources A commitment to provide sufficient resources and expertise in gender equality for implementation |
Dedicated personnel and resources in place to support plan monitoring and the implementation of both EDI strategies diversity@sfi.ie; hr@sfi.ie |
|
Data Collection or Monitoring The strategy should be informed by collecting and analysing sex-disaggregated data on personnel and organisations should report progress annually based on specific indicators |
Data is monitored, collected and updated across the organisation and informs both internal and external EDI evaluation, processes and actions across all equitability grounds |
|
Training and Capacity Building The strategy must include awareness-raising and training activities on gender equality for the whole organisation and training on unconscious gender biases for staff and decision-makers |
EDI training programmes for all SFI staff throughout the organisation to increase awareness of EDI dimensions, including unconscious bias, microaggressions and inclusive language. More broadly, SFI is developing and implementing guidance and training (for SFI staff, applicants, and reviewers) to ensure capacity is developed to support the progression of sex- and gender-based analysis (SGA) and the introduction of other elements of diversity into its funded research. |