Initiatives to tackle the gender gap in astronomy

Abstract

Abstract In today professional world and especially in STEM related fields, gender balance (or the lack thereof) remains a hotly debated topic. Gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls is the fifth goal set by the United Nations in 2015 (out of 17 Sustainable Development Goals in total) that is intended to be achieved by the year 2030. It is in fact fully understood that we cannot simply afford missing out on half (actually more) of the human capital and potential and one of the key factors to achieve this is education for all. Together with broader themes like diversity and inclusion, gender equality has also made it to the top of many institutions/organizations agendas, because diverse teams are more creative, more productive and improve the working experience and environment for everybody. To this end, a significant push has also come from regular reports published by international or consultancy agencies like the World Economic Forum (WEF) or Mc Kinsey that have often made the news headlines with highly visible and provocative titles. The most recent WEF Global Gender Gap Report 2020 clearly states that “It will take us another 99.5 years to reach gender parity” and that “It will be the year 2277 when the gender pay gap will close”. In this review, the focus will be on a specific STEM field that has always fascinated generations of people, just by looking up at the peaceful beauty of a night sky: astronomy.