Invitees: Mette Elmose Andersen IP (MEA), Maria Hardeberg Bach IP (MHB), Jakob Grauslund IRS (JG), Helle Precht IRS (HP), Ulrike Muscha Steckelings IMM (UMA), Boye Jensen IMM (BJ), Gundhild Tidemann Okholm SIF (GTO), Frederik Schou-Juul SIF (FSJ), Marianne Nygaard IST (MN), Sofie Emma Rubin IST (SER), Jens Troelsen IOB (JT), Cathrine Damsbo Madsen IOB (CDM), Christina Møller Andreasen KI (CMA), Sigurd A. Kristoffersen FAKSEK (SK) og Anne Mette Kargaard FAKSEK (AMK).
Apologies from: Maria Hardeberg Bach IP (MHB), Jakob Grauslund IRS (JG), Helle Precht IRS (HP), Frederik Schou-Juul SIF (FSJ), Cathrine Damsbo Madsen IOB (CDM), Sigurd A. Kristoffersen FAKSEK (SK)
Minute taker: Karina Kringlum (KK)
Chair: Mette Elmose Andersen (MEA)
1. Welcome
Mette Elmose Andersen welcomed participants and initiated a round of introductions.
The planned presentation from TEK was cancelled due to illness.
A shortened meeting duration was announced due to agenda adjustments.
2. Presentation on Experiences and Recommendations for Equality Work from TEK – by Eva Arnspang Christensen
The presentation was cancelled due to illness.
3. Status of new chair
No new chair has been appointed. Potential candidates from local committees and external recruitment options were discussed.
Alternative solutions such as rotating chairship and shared responsibilities were considered and ensuring a clear link to faculty leadership was emphasised as important.
Recommendations from the committee will be shared with the Dean to approach the Head of Departments for candidate suggestions or advertise more broadly in news letters.
4. Follow up on the IGAB Masterclass
At the masterclass there was a clear focus on the importance of equality and diversity work. Recognition of equality work in evaluation systems was highlighted. However, it was mixed experience on how concrete the advice discussed was and that there was still a challenge in how to best move from ideas to concrete changes in our everyday lives. We agreed that it would be good to have more time for discussing our current situation to hopefully be more guided toward implementation in our context.
The committee will reach out to GET on information about Athena Swan and what their perspective is on the scheme.
SUND HR will give GET an overall feedback from the committee of the masterclass.
5. New application rules from DFF
Concerns were raised regarding potential unintended consequences for gender equality. Restrictions on active grants may impact recruitment behaviour and project planning. Potential impact on researchers with parental leave or extended absence was discussed.
The issue will be raised in the central equality committee.
6. Roundtable updates, including status from local Equality Committees, departmental goals, work groups and current issues
Departments reported ongoing initiatives within recruitment, equality data, and awareness.
Several departments are working with structured recruitment processes.
New webpage from GET was shared including updated guide on neurodiversity. A workshop on Microaggression is planned at IP and IOB and we will send information to the committee members when plans are finalized if any wants to join.
Increased diversity requires attention to onboarding and cultural awareness
7. News from SUND HR
A new parental leave fund has been established at faculty level. The aim is to minimize financial impact of parental leave in recruitment decisions.
A draft will be shared with the committee for input before publication
8. Content for the next newsletter
9. Items for the next meeting on 15 September
- Evaluation of Mentoring for Change and suggestions for adjustments
- Preparation for the critical friend meeting
- Faculty goals and activities – status
- Evaluation of the local gender equality committes and clarification of interfaces with SUND LiU
- Evaluation of gender equality data
- Discussion of recommendations from DKUNI (tentative)
- Presentation on Experiences and Recommendations for Equality Work from TEK – by Eva Arnspang Christensen