UP, Fakulteta za management - Dr. Maxime Forest's visit to UP and UP FM in the framework of the Horizons AGRIGEP project

Between November 15 and 17, 2023, dr. Maxime Forest from Yellow Window in Brussels was hosted at UP and UP FM in the framework of the Horizon project AGRIGEP - Assessment and implementation of Agriculture and Life Science Universities' first Gender Equality Plans in enlargement countries.

Dr. Maxime Forest is an expert specialising in gender mainstreaming in research and innovation. His research interests and expertise cover a wide range of areas, with a focus on the comparative analysis of gender equality policies in Europe and the integration of a gender perspective into research and policy design and content. He has conducted numerous training courses in this field.

On November 15, 2023, as part of a guest lecture at UP and UP FM, he participated in the Gender Equality for an Inclusive University and Society Consultation at UP FHŠ on Gender Equality: reflections and challenges, where he presented his paper From the Regulation of Women to the Regulation of Organisations: Gender Equality as a Transformative Agenda for Inclusive Research: the Gender Equality for an Inclusive University and Society Consultation (upr.si).

A special meeting and discussion and exchange of views were organised with dr. Klavdija Kutnar, Rector of UP and dr. Tatjana Horvat, Dean of UP FM, where the AGRIGEP Horizons project, the challenges of equal opportunities and gender balance, and increased visibility in the implementation of the AGRIGEP project and the Gender Equality Plan at UP were discussed.

During his visit to UP FM on November 16, 2023, dr. Forest met with the UP FM research team working on the Horizons AGRIGEP project and then conducted a training session for UP on AGRIGEP gender mainstreaming in research at the University of Primorska. Among others, he presented key definitions of gender and diversity mainstreaming in research; the status quo: gender-equal institutions and knowledge production; different gender structures of staff and students across activities and lines of research and study; gender and diversity mainstreaming in research and research projects and education; issues of horizontal and vertical gender segregation; different factors that might influence gender pay gaps; inequalities in access to research funding and gender-based research mobility. An overview of current trends and instruments for gender mainstreaming in research was elaborated through case studies (selected from projects carried out in areas of relevance to the participants).

A similar training focused on the integration of the gender dimension in sustainable construction research was carried out at InnoRenew in Izola on November 17, 2023, which also marked the end of its hosting at UP and UP FM in the framework of the Horizons AGRIGEP project.