The European Executive Research Agency (REA) has prepared an information package and series of Q&As below for how to apply or comply with Horizon Europe funding principles. This may help you to successfully navigate and implement your Horizon Europe project if your proposal is selected for EU funding.
Gender equality
Gender equality refers to the equal rights, responsibilities and opportunities of women and men, girls and boys. Equality does not mean that women and men will become the same but that women’s and men’s rights, responsibilities and opportunities will not depend on whether they are born male or female.
Gender equality implies that the interests, needs and priorities of both women and men are taken into consideration, recognising the diversity of different groups of women and men.
Gender equality is not a women’s issue but should concern and fully engage all individuals. Gender equality is seen both as a human rights issue and as a precondition for, and indicator of, sustainable people-centred development.
Understanding how gender plays a vital role in research and innovation (R&I) allows us to address the diverse needs of EU citizens. It enhances the societal relevance of the knowledge, technologies and innovations produced, and contributes to the production of greater goods and services.
Gender balance and gender identity
GENDER BALANCE
Horizon Europe projects must aim, to the extent possible, for a gender balance at all levels of personnel assigned to the action, including at supervisory and managerial level.
Balance between the number of women researchers and of men researchers involved in proposals is a ranking criterion (third one in the order of priority) for proposals with the same evaluation score.
Particular attention is also being paid to ensuring gender balance in Horizon Europe related advisory bodies such as boards and expert groups, as well as in evaluation panels, with a target of 50% women.
GENDER IDENTITY
Researchers participating to Horizon Europe proposals and projects can self-declare their gender identity along three categories:
- woman,
- man,
- non-binary.
However, as the ‘non-binary’ category currently represents less than 1% of the self-declared gender identities, it is not taken into account in the calculation of the ranking criterion for ex aequo proposals.
Gender equality provisions in Horizon Europe cover both of the afore-mentioned aspects, as well as in the Horizon Europe Programme Guide in the section dedicated to gender equality and inclusiveness.
Gender dimension in research projects
The gender dimension implies analysing and taking into account the possible differences between men and women (biological characteristics as well as the social and cultural features), boys and girls, or males and females, in the research and innovation content of the project.
Integrating this gender dimension is now a mandatory requirement in all research and innovation projects across Horizon Europe, unless a topic explicitly specifies otherwise.
'Gender dimension' in research and innovation content is an umbrella term covering the integration of sex and/or gender analysis in the design and delivery of research and innovation, in order to foster excellence and ensure R&I outputs benefit everyone in society and are adapted to people’s needs and behaviours.
Integrating the gender dimension in R&I content is mandatory by default for Research and Innovation Actions (RIA) or Innovation Actions (IA) in Horizon Europe, and evaluated under the ‘excellence’ award criterion (methodology).
SEX: Refers to biological characteristics (including genetic, hormonal, physiological, anatomical) that distinguish between male, female, and intersex (in humans) or hermaphrodite (in non-human animals).
GENDER: Refers to socio-cultural norms, identities and relations that, together, shape and sanction what are considered “feminine” and “masculine” behaviours, and structure societies and organisations.
INTERSECTIONALITY: Factors such as racial or ethnic origin, age, socioeconomic status, sexual orientation, or disability, combine with sex and gender to shape a person’s or a group’s experience and social opportunities, thereby influencing the form of discrimination and inequality encountered.
In the R&I lifecycle, addressing sex and gender can appear challenging. However, examples in many fields show otherwise. For example, in pharmaceutical drug prescribing it can start with simple yet powerful steps, from including female and male cells, tissues and organisms throughout the testing process to reporting all data disaggregated by sex. These approaches can provide the knowledge needed to develop sex-specific dose adaptations of existing drugs, such as desmopressin or zolpidem, and may lead to gender-specific treatments in the future.
Researchers, physicians, pharmacists and patients should also consider gender differences in how symptoms are experienced and expressed. What is reported and how it is reported affect which diagnostic steps occur, and which medications are prescribed.
This example and many others can be found in the EU’s ‘Gendered innovations 2’ report.
Gender Equality Plans
A Gender Equality Plan is a set of commitments and actions that aim to promote gender equality in an organisation through a process of structural change.
With Horizon Europe, the Commission strengthened its commitment to gender equality by making the possession of a Gender Equality Plan (GEP) an eligibility criterion for all higher education establishments, research organisations, as well as public bodies from Member States and Associated Countries applying for the programme.
To comply with the Horizon Europe GEP eligibility criterion, a GEP must meet four mandatory process-related requirements:
- Public document: The GEP must be a formal document published on the institution’s website, signed by the top management, and actively communicated within the institution.
- Dedicated resources: a GEP must have dedicated resources and expertise in gender equality to implement the plan.
- Data collection and monitoring: organisations must collect sex/ gender disaggregated data on personnel (and students, for the establishments concerned) with annual reporting based on indicators.
- Training: The GEP must also include awareness-raising and training actions on gender equality.
In addition to these four mandatory requirements, there are five recommended content-related (thematic) areas that organisations may wish to consider in their GEP:
- Work-life balance and organisational culture
- Gender balance in leadership and decision-making
- Gender equality in recruitment and career progression
- Integration of the gender dimension into research and teaching content
- Measures against gender-based violence, including sexual harassment
REA has an extensive portfolio of projects funded under the Horizon 2020 programme, supporting a critical mass of European universities, research centres and national authorities. These participating institutions became catalysts at ERA level for promoting the design and implementation of Gender Equality Plans, which now have become an eligibility criterion in Horizon Europe.