Target audience:
RMAs working pre-award at all levels of experience.
Workshop content:
The European Commission and many other research funders keep pushing gender and diversity in research, ensuring that research institutions develop into continuously more inclusive institutions and that research projects increasingly reflect the diversity of society and the lived experiences of minority groups.
Not only is this a new topic for many RMAs to consider, but the differences in what is considered diversity differ, and the cultural values around diversity differ, making this a complex task to navigate. When talking about diversity in Europe, we mainly mean gender, but when talking about diversity in the US, it would often be about race. In Canada and Australia, a key topic of diversity would be First Nations – a topic rarely considered in a European context.
As the topic becomes more important, being able to advise on it will become a key skill in research management, especially at a time when the EU Roadmap project and the CARDEA project focus on defining the profession. A global conference like INORMS provides a rare context for RMAs to truly understand the complexity of the issue and have discussions that will add new layers to the tools presented in the workshop.
The workshop has been tested in different contexts for researchers and research managers across Europe. Examples will be drawn from our own experiences as RMAs and openly gay men and from the many global examples from our podcast, “The Diversity in Research Podcast.” We have also previously run the gender and diversity module in the EARMA CRM.
The workshops will be based on our FLOW model. The tools, working questions, and approaches will not only support the RMAs' work pre-award but also smooth the transition into the project's post-award management and help clarify internal support systems. This will feed into institutional work to promote diversity fx through the implementation of the Gender Equality Plan.
Learning outcomes:
- Understand the complexity of diversity and the challenges and possibilities for research and research teams.
- Building a shared vocabulary for working with diversity and inclusion.
- Translate funder requirements to actionable elements in the research proposal that strengthen the research.
- Practical tools and frameworks for building more inclusive research and research teams through externally funded research.
- Understanding the possibilities and challenges of using AI when writing about diversity in research proposals.
- Working questions for advising researchers in a pragmatic and practical way on diversity.
- Cross-cultural competencies and tools to promote diversity in international research proposals with partners with differing values on diversity.
Format and interactive elements:
The Workshop balances training sessions for building vocabulary and tools with case studies, exercises, and dilemmas to be solved individually, in groups and in plenary discussions. This allows the participants to both discuss sensitive and difficult questions in smaller, safer environments and bring home new and different perspectives. Some exercises are also aimed at letting the participants reflect on the training and translate it into actions to implement in their work after the conference.
Workshops facilitators:
Jakob Feldtfos Christensen
Jakob Feldtfos Christensen is the director of DIVERSIunity, an international consultancy based in Denmark dedicated to making diversity and internationalisation work in research and research management. Jakob has previously worked in research management and internationalisation for almost ten years at Aarhus University. He has been active in both the DARMA and EARMA. Building on this and his foundation from studying comparative religion, he founded DIVERSIunity in 2020, where he has done consultancy and run workshops across Europe. With Lachlan Stephen-Smith, he co-hosts “The Diversity in Research Podcast”.
Lachlan Stephen-Smith
Lachlan Stephen-Smith is a director of UK based consultancy Cloud Chamber and an experienced researcher manager who has worked within the EDI space for several years. He has worked with several European institutions supporting the development of inclusive research cultures and helping Research Managers and researchers develop inclusive and diverse research proposals and teams. He is also a recognised diversity lead in the sport of cricket. With Jakob Feldtfos Christensen, he co-hosts “The Diversity in Research Podcast”.
