1/30/25 · Institutional

11 February: the UOC champions the role of women in science

The Equality Unit is releasing a new episode of the Unicorners podcast, addressing gender stereotypes related to brilliance in education

The UOC presents its Science and Gender Awards to university students, research staff and schoolchildren, among other recipients

Ten experts from the university will participate in talks to encourage schoolchildren to go into science, and the UOC will take part in an edit-a-thon on Wikipedia
girl in class with her hand raised

According to a research, at the age of six, girls become less likely than boys to associate brilliance or genius with their gender (photo: Canva)

"The International Day of Women and Girls in Science, 11 February, is a day for raising awareness of the historical exclusion of women and girls from the creation of knowledge. Universities are among those responsible for this exclusion and we should work to reverse this situation of discrimination", said Maria Olivella, director of the Equality Unit at the Universitat Oberta de Catalunya (UOC). As in previous years, the UOC is supporting International Day of Women and Girls in Science to raise awareness of the essential role of women in science, with various initiatives to encourage reflection, reward achievements and highlight good practices.

To mark the event, approved in 2015 by the United Nations General Assembly to recognize the work of women in the scientific and technological community, the UOC's Equality Unit is releasing a new episode of the UniCorners podcast, with the support of UOC Labs. The broadcast —available on 11 February on Amazon musicAppleIvoox and Spotify— will explore the challenges that universities face from a feminist and intersectional perspective, recognizing the different forms of oppression, discrimination and privilege, through dialogues with experts, activists, students, graduates and academics.

“It's essential to introduce young people to more examples of women who are significant but also women who are close to them, who can serve as role models and a source of inspiration”

"In the podcast ecosystem, we seek to create a space for reflection on higher education, especially on topics that are often marginalized, such as equality, diversity and inclusion, giving a voice to all university groups so that they can share the challenges they find and the solutions they propose", Olivella explained.

 

The perception of brilliance

According to a study by American universities, at the age of six, girls become less likely than boys to associate brilliance or genius with their gender. Starting from this premise, the new edition of UniCorners, entitled Stereotypes of brilliance and their impact on education, will address prejudices about brilliance, why girls become less likely to associate it with their own sex, what factors cause this change and what impact it has on their future.

The new chapter will feature contributions from Lorena Fernández, computer engineer, director of digital identity at the University of Deusto and scientific communicator; Milagros Sáinz, lead researcher of the Gender and ICT group (GenTIC) at the UOC's Internet Interdisciplinary Institute (IN3); and Estela Ortiz, cultural analyst and communicator, expert in digital culture, audiovisuals and feminism, head of the Primavera Sound Club de serias programme. The podcast will be hosted by Irene Lapuente, co-founder and director of La Mandarina de Newton, a company that blends science and technology with other disciplines for training and dissemination.

"We need a radical change in the construction of gender and biased expectations. Women can't allow themselves to be mediocre until the world they work in stops requiring them to excel in everything they do. Until the system rewards mediocre women and mediocre men equally, women won't be able to start being mediocre without worrying", said Ortiz.

 

Science and Gender Awards

In addition to a new edition of the UniCorners podcast, on 14 February the UOC's Campus in Barcelona –from 3.30 p.m.– will host the presentation of its Science and Gender Awards. Three awards will be presented at the event in their respective categories.

The Equality Unit will present the awards for the best final projects with a gender perspective. "The aim is to encourage students to learn to do research from a gender perspective in their field of study", said Maria Olivella. The event will also host the Equit@t Awards, for videos on gender and technology, aimed at schoolchildren and amateur or professional creators, promoted by the Faculty of Computer Science, Multimedia and Telecommunications; and the Cecilia Castaño Awards, organized by the GenTIC research group to reward research on gender equality in ICT, and in science and technology in general. Milagros Sáinz explained that these latter awards are intended to "to raise the profile of research into gender inequalities in science and technology at different stages of life, from an intersectional perspective, as many gender inequalities are magnified or minimized when we take other factors leading to inequality into account".

Sáinz reflected that "there are few women in the top positions of scientific activity, because they continue to be penalized for having qualities considered to be 'masculine', as the centuries-old patriarchal model that has prevailed grants privileges to men, regardless of their qualities". The researcher confirmed that girls learn from a very early age that "many people around them don't consider them capable of developing an interest in science and technology, regardless of their abilities".

The lead researcher at GenTIC pointed out that "while it's already difficult to enter a field as male-dominated as scientific research, and to stay in an environment you don't feel part of and where you aren't taken into account, even when carrying out everyday activities, it's even harder having to compete with your peers, often on unequal terms, and being questioned continuously throughout your career".

 

Talks to inspire schoolgirls to become scientists, and the Wikipedia edit-a-thon

The UOC's 11 February celebrations will feature another 10 experts from the university, through the Científiques initiative, which offers talks and workshops for schoolchildren in Catalan municipalities, as part of an initiative by the Catalan Foundation for Research and Innovation. Schools in Catalonia will be visited by five doctoral students (Vanessa Judith Barreira, Patricia Jurado, Asli Konaç, Shannon O'Brien and Athima Utami); Lucía Campanella, from the Global Literary Studies Research Group (GlobaLS), attached to IN3 and the Faculty of Arts and Humanities; Gemma Chiva, co-principal researcher of the NUTRALiSS Research Group, and Carola Domènech, from the Barcelona Interdisciplinary Research Group on Planetary Health (BITAL), both from the Faculty of Health Sciences; Marta Gatnau, from the Wireless Networks Research Lab (WINE) group, affiliated to the IN3 and the Faculty of Computer Science, Multimedia and Telecommunications; and Zora Kovacic, from the Urban Transformation and Global Change Laboratory (TURBA Lab), attached to the IN3 and the Faculty of Economics and Business.

The UOC will also participate in a Wikipedia edit-a-thon on women and science, promoted by Barcelona Biomedical Research Park (PRBB), with the support of Viquidones from the Pompeu Fabra University and Amical Wikimedia, in a session that can be attended both in person at the PRBB and online on 11 February (from 5 p.m.). The aim is to campaign for and raise the profile of women scientists in Wikipedia, creating, translating and improving its pages containing female contributions to science.

In short, for International Day of Women and Girls in Science, it is important to "make an effort so that new generations are aware of the contributions of women to scientific advances. Anniversaries are a good resource for sharing the highlights of the life and work of women who've contributed their talent and creativity to advances in science," Milagros Sáinz commented. "It's essential to introduce young people to more examples of women who are significant but also women who are close to them, who can serve as role models and a source of inspiration. Women aren't only a source of inspiration for other women, but also for men," she concluded.

UOC R&I

The UOC's research and innovation (R&I) is helping overcome pressing challenges faced by global societies in the 21st century by studying interactions between technology and human & social sciences with a specific focus on the network society, e-learning and e-health.

Over 500 researchers and more than 50 research groups work in the UOC's seven faculties, its eLearning Research programme and its two research centres: the Internet Interdisciplinary Institute (IN3) and the eHealth Center (eHC).

The university also develops online learning innovations at its eLearning Innovation Center (eLinC), as well as UOC community entrepreneurship and knowledge transfer via the Hubbik platform.

Open knowledge and the goals of the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development serve as strategic pillars for the UOC's teaching, research and innovation. More information: research.uoc.edu.

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