How culture, institutions, and individuals shape the evolving gender gap in science and mathematics: An equity provocation for the scientific community

Abstract

This essay contextualizes recently measured global gender gaps in science and mathematics within three different themes relevant for enhancing equity in science: journal peer review policies, academic service at US higher education institutions, and parental leave policies and usage. The article aims to problematize potential approaches for reducing such gender gaps, and thus build capacity to advance evidence-grounded transformative change. Framed as an equity provocation for the science community, this piece hopes to elicit productive thought and evidence-based action through informed perspective taking. The vision is not just to enhance gender equity in science and mathematics, but also to ensure the continued quality and relevance of our scientific endeavors for today's diverse and global world. © 2021 IUPAC & De Gruyter. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. For more information, please visit: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ 2021.