I just bought a recipe book. At the end, there are some blank pages for writing down your own recipes. I decided to write my own so I can cook up the UNESCO report for you. Women Lead for Learning (Women Leading Through Learning) published May 20.
Take several data points from the report and place them in a bowl. First, the global average. Only 30% of the highest-ranking positions in higher education and research institutions worldwide are held by women. Then, you should include the harsher realities. In Latin America and the Caribbean, only 18% of rectorships are held by women, and in sub-Saharan Africa, the figure plummets to 8%. You must keep in mind that no matter how much you want to cherish the data in the bowl, the taste is bitter. It's as if an academic ladder had been built where women can climb almost to the top, but the last steps—where decisions are made—were sealed with hard, invisible glass.
Put the bowl aside and put the pot on the fire to undo what the UNESCO report points out: deep-rooted systemic and cultural barriers with opaque and biased selection and promotion processes, a lack of opportunities for specific professional development, and, above all, deep-seated unconscious biases that continue to be associated with leadership. As UNESCO's Assistant Director-General for Education, Stefania Giannini, points out, women often have to prove much more than their male counterparts to access the same positions. And when they do arrive, their leadership style is often undervalued or underestimated—often more collaborative, people-oriented, and, above all, caring.
While stirring the pot from time to time, start preparing what will be the main part of the plan, which consists of a mille-feuille of recommendations. The bottom layer, as the report describes, should contain transparency and regular gender audits to expose and correct biases. In addition, it should add a significant amount of solid mentoring programs, leadership training for women, and real work-life balance measures (so that the domestic care duties don't always fall on them).
The middle layer must be filled with profound cultural change. It should be noted in the mouth that this layer redefines the concept of leadership, moving away from exclusively hierarchical and egocentric models toward more inclusive, diverse, and cooperative models that value all contributions.
On top of this, they must lay the groundwork for governments to require and publish gender-disaggregated data and integrate equity indicators into national university quality assessment systems.
Finally, take the bowl of data from the beginning and pour it into the millefeuille of recommendations. This will remove the bitter taste of the data on gender inequality in academia. Don't forget to break the glass ceiling down to a crumb. You'll like the result.
