key: cord-0948207-qxfg8ccd
authors: Caltagirone, Claudia; Draper, Emily R.; Hardie, Michaele J.; Haynes, Cally J. E.; Hiscock, Jennifer R.; Jolliffe, Katrina A.; Kieffer, Marion; McConnell, Anna J.; Leigh, Jennifer S.
title: An Area‐Specific, International Community‐Led Approach to Understanding and Addressing Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion Issues within Supramolecular Chemistry
date: 2021-03-08
journal: Angew Chem Int Ed Engl
DOI: 10.1002/anie.202015297
sha: b74b7aed0efee9e6266bc6c32bff7a33bb75d76d
doc_id: 948207
cord_uid: qxfg8ccd

Diversity, equality, and inclusion (DEI/EDI) are pressing issues in chemistry and the natural sciences. In this Essay we share how an area‐specific approach is “calling in” the community so that it can act to address EDI issues, and support those who are marginalised. Women In Supramolecular Chemistry (WISC) is an international network that aims to support equality, diversity, and inclusion within supramolecular chemistry. WISC has taken a field‐specific approach using qualitative research methods with scientists to identify the support that is needed and the problems the supramolecular community needs to address. Herein, we present survey data from the community which highlight the barriers that are faced by those who take career breaks for any reason, a common example is maternity leave, and the importance of mentoring to aid progression post‐PhD. In conclusion, we set out an interdisciplinary and creative approach to addressing EDI issues within supramolecular chemistry.

demic culture,r esearch environments,a nd caring responsibilities,and indeed abody of work exists on academic identity and womensl ived experiences as they negotiate and resist structural inequalities. [4a-c] TheC OVID-19 pandemic and lockdown has exacerbated these gender differences. [5a,b] Within chemistry,t he gender gap is among the widest of the STEM disciplines.F or example,b etween 2011 and 2019 there was only a1 %i ncrease in the proportion of female invited speakers to ag roup of chemistry conferences. [6a,b] Over the same time period, the proportion of female speakers increased from 7% to 38 %i nA rtificial Intelligence and Machine Learning. [6a,b] Thelack of retention and progression for women and all those with protected EDI characteristics is pronounced. [7a,b] Fore xample,t he proportion of women choosing to study chemistry as undergraduates in the UK was 45 %i n2 014/2015 compared to 20 %c hoosing physics, and yet, in both, the proportion of women at professorial levels was just 9%. [7b] Given these statistics,this may lead to some women who are full professors gaining more exposure, due to invited speaker presentations,than their male counterparts.H owever,m ore women are employed on fixed-term precarious contracts. [7b] Women author fewer papers,are cited less,and face bias at every stage of the publication process. [8] Proportionately fewer women sit on editorial boards,a re nominated for awards,a nd far fewer file patent applications. [7a,b, 8] Sexual harassment abounds on campuses, [9] with 58 % of women in academia having faced some kind of sexual harassment: [10] "most female scientists have personal stories of things that have happened to them". [11] Gender is of course not the only factor that those in STEM face.Whenthis is looked at intersectionally and we consider the impact of culture and other factors such as disability,e thnicity,a nd race,t hese barriers compound, contributing to am uch larger overall effect. [12] Women of colour are more likely to experience higher levels of harassment than white women. [10] These harassments contribute to aculture in chemistry where those from minority groups are more likely to leave the field, leading to alack of diversity "science in this era [is] essentially dominated by white men… even to this day Frances Arnold is only the 5th woman to receive the Chemistry Nobel Prize, and there have been no black chemistry laureates". [2a] There is some evidence of recent change:i nO ctober 2020, Emmanuelle Charpentier and Jennifer Doudna became the 6th and 7th women to be awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for their development of am ethod for genome editing. [13] Three out of the last 10 chemistry laureates have been women. However,s ince 1901, there have been 112 Nobel Prizes awarded in Chemistry,t o185 individuals, [14] so less than 4% have been awarded to women, and none to ablack scholar. In 2019 the Royal Society of Chemistry said that at the current rate of change,t he chemical sciences in the UK will never reach gender parity. [7b] Therefore,i nc hemistry there is no argument-women are am arginalised group.

Women in Supramolecular Chemistry (WISC) is an areaspecific international community initiated in 2019 by the authors to support equality and diversity in the chemical sciences.A ssuch, it sets out to "call-in" [15] members of the community,s ot hat the community can act to address EDI issues,and support those who are marginalised by gender and other characteristics.W hereas "calling out" usually refers to publicly pointing out oppressive behaviour,"calling in" is the gentler act of alerting peers to their behaviour with compassion and guidance.Both acts aim to stop oppression. WISC is led by an international team of women from early to midcareer levels,w ith an advisory board comprising diverse and senior researchers in the field. As ac ohort, we represent researchers from four continents,d ifferent ethnic backgrounds,a nd include members with disabilities/chronic illnesses/neurodivergencies.A tageneral early career event in the community,the leap from post-doctoral researcher (postdoc/PDRA) to independent researcher was identified as ac areer transition in need of support. Thep ost-PhD period (typically when ar esearcher is in their 20s/30s) has been identified as at ime when large numbers of women leave science. [7b] Progression and promotion opportunities for postdocs are limited in all disciplines. [16] Although having ap ostdoctoral position is often seen as ar equired stage in the development of as uccessful academic career, [17] they do not always have aclear,adequately supported pathway to future career progression. [18] Thet ypically short-term contracts that post-docs have,c oupled with the requirement to undertake more than one position and changing institution/location can mean that researchers in their late 20s/early 30s are expected to uproot their personal lives for work commitments.T his is difficult for everyone;h owever it is particularly challenging for those who need as table network for childcare,o ther caring or family commitments,o rm ental health. [19] It can easily be forgotten that asupportive atmosphere is often the most important criterion in enhancing life satisfaction and maintaining positivity about ar esearch career for postdocs. [16] It has been recognised that research culture in chemistry [20] and across wider research is far from ideal. [21] Resilience is often talked about within academia; [22a-c] however there is little written about how we can culture resilience through appropriate disciplinary community support and culture changes.

This Essay presents findings from as urvey carried out, with the aim of sharing lived experiences that help to identify areas that the community felt were problematic and that WISC could support. Moving forward, WISC has chosen to adopt amethodology which prioritises aqualitative approach to aspects of embodied lived experiences such as sharing stories,r eflecting,a nd processing events,a nd using these as ab asis of research. Qualitative research uses non-numerical data to understand concepts,opinions,and experiences and to gain in-depth insight into an issue. [23] Although quantitative methods more traditionally used within science can tell us whether there is aproblem and the extent to which it affects people;q ualitative research can be used to "change the world… [Qualitative researchers] are challenged to confront the facts of injustice,t om ake the injustices of history visible, and hence open to change and transformation". [24] Put simply, quantitative research can tell us the scale of ap roblem and that there is aneed to change.Qualitative research and social science methods are able to humanise the reasons why this work is important and help to design the approaches to effect this change.Marginalisation is afeeling not easily captured by numbers.C ollaborating with experts in these research methods ensures that the work is carried out with rigour and validity.I fw en eed to ensure there is action in addition to words as we combat EDI issues in chemistry,t hen it makes sense to utilise the research experts who use tools designed to do this. Jennifer Leigh initially trained as ac hemist before completing her doctorate in education at the University of Birmingham (2012). She is currently aS enior Lecturer in Higher Education and Academic Practice at the University of Kent (UK). Her research interests include marginalisation in academia, academic practice, academic development, and ableism as well as phenomenological and creative research methods in higher education.

As the "community working to support the community" is ac entral WISC ethos,s urveying the supramolecular community to direct the networksa pproach to "supporting equality and diversity within science" was vital. Thesurvey was opened for responses in July 2019, and Figure 1s hows the numbers of responses by month, reaching 100 in June 2020, with spikes in response numbers correlating with conferences/ events.O ft hese 100 responses,8 1% were female,a nd the distribution of career stages was as shown in Table 1. Ther ange of ethnicities self-declared by these respondents in an open comment box included:A sian, Japanese, Chinese,P akistani, African, Mixed, Persian, French/Moroccan, Black, Indian, Middle Eastern, German, European, and Hispanic.H owever,t he majority identified as white and European. Thec ountry of origin, and the country the respondent was based in, was not recorded.

Of these respondents,1 0% self-identified in an open comment box as having an EDI-protected characteristic, and these included disability,L GTBQIA + ,a ge,a nd religion. In addition, some respondents stated that being am other, working part-time,a nd being an immigrant were EDI characteristics.

WISC'ss urvey data show that within the community of supramolecular chemists there is adesire for support to make the transition from post-doc to independent researcher,t hat mentoring is seen as valuable and desirable,and that there is an eed for as pace to talk about and share concerns around career breaks,parenting,and the demands of balancing work with other aspects of life.

These women respondents spoke about the difficulties transitioning to independence in chemistry: ·" Iw ould like to see the progression of women scientists establishing independent Labs in the field of supramolecular chemistry." ·" Transition from pdra [postdoc] to lecturer is ak ey challenge.F ocus on supporting/encouraging women in applying for positions." ·" Having resources and mentors are exceptionally important. Ifind myself seeking advice from those who have been in my shoes.Ithink PhD and postdoc students could use this mentoring from early career independent researchers,a nd early career researchers would benefit from those more experienced."

Women respondents continued to speak about the importance of mentoring for progression and retention of women: ·" From personal experience Ih ave found that regular mentoring and support makes aw orld of difference in terms of career development. As af emale in science,t here are often other factors to consider,such as family constraints and having support from other women who are in asimilar circumstance may be advantageous." ·" Advice,k nowing their route into supramolecular chemistry,mentoring sounds really useful too :-)"

As ar esult of these data, WISC set up an area-specific mentoring scheme,where small groups of peers support each other and are linked to as enior researcher.T his scheme has learnt from other initiatives such as the Chemistry Women Mentorship Network. [25] Mentors are at least one career-stage further ahead of as mall group of mentees (e.g.p ost-docs mentor PhD students,e arly career independent researchers mentor post-docs etc.). Mentors are not necessarily women, as WISC looks to the community to support others,although there is ab alance of different institutions and geographical spread in each cluster.F urther details on WISC'sm entoring opportunities can be found on the WISC website. [28] Theareaspecific nature of the WISC scheme means that mentees interact with researchers senior to them, who are able to advise directly on the opportunities and challenges particular to supramolecular chemistry.

In answer to aspecific question, 30 %said they had taken ac areer break. Respondents who had not taken ac areer break were worried about the potential impact. These women said: ·" Id on ot anticipate ab reak (but things do happen!).I would worry about re-entering academia after abreak, and finding it difficult to catchb acku p/missing out on things (conferences,workshops,funding cycles,etc)." ·" Ia mq uite scared about having kids before getting permanent/more stable." 

Essays ·" From past hearsay and departments I've worked in, its almost as though women who have taken career breaks in chemistry seem to just fall off the radar,w ith no support from the department, and that those that really push forwards with their career are seen to be really "pushy" or "over-reaching" which is awful!Needs to change."

Women respondents who had taken acareer break shared their experiences: ·" Support is patchy,e xpectations are wildly different, and I lost afirst authorship which may have affected howpeople perceive my career.S ome in the community are incredibly supportive.Some less so." ·" Is tarted as ap rofessor immediately after finishing mat

[sic] leave,s oIdidnth ave work to catchu p. Overall, my transition was smooth. However,r eviewers DON'TS EEM TO PAYATTENTION to the "Leave of Absence" entry in the CV.onmygrant review,only 1/3 reviewers acknowledge the leave." ·" On returning If ound Iw as behind on my researcha nd unsupported."

Although comments were mixed overall, parental leave is unequal. [26] In contrast to the women, respondents identifying as white men largely had positive experiences: ·" 2 3m onths for eacho fm yc hildren. No problems returning as yet, but Id id get comments in grants about "gaps" in publication records!" ·" Half ay ear parental leave.N ot roubles returning,a tl east that Inoticed." ·" My return was smooth, as this was managed within my contract as afaculty member." ·" Once Ir eturned, all of my former colleagues and peers were amazingly supportive."

Many women reported working whilst on leave,followed by challenges on return: ·" Maternity leave,a bout 6months,a ll spent writing papers/ reviews not to lose the pace,soreally not quite abreak. Iwas advised by my mentor that if Ir eally did have ab reak, I would be left behind." ·" 2 1y ear break, Iw as able to return without too much trouble.L uckily Iw on grants while on maternity leave.I t was ab it trickyt og et lab space and office space back. I haventbeen to many conferences in the last 6years.This is challenging when pregnant/with small kids." ·" 16 weeks,maternity leave.The return was easy in my case, since Id ealt with projects during my break."

Thee xpectation of having to work whilst on leave, combined with the physical processes and sometimes associated complications of birth and breastfeeding;a long with ingrained gender stereotypes that leave women shouldering much of the work around childcare and domestic chores may help to explain the differences in experiences between men and women taking career breaks or parental leave.T he impact of COVID-19 has exacerbated these gender differences. [5a,b, 27a,b] WISC'ss econd survey [28] (launched October 2020) is seeking to collect data on these experiences for those working in laboratories and in supramolecular chemistry.

When asked about future activities,t here was interest in everything that WISC suggested, with at least 51-62 % indicating interest in reading blog posts;a ttending network meetings;b eing matched with am entor;a ttending af orum and using reflective/creative approaches to explore experiences;a cting as am entor to someone at an earlier career stage;r eceiving updates on funding opportunities;a ttending skills-based workshops;and attending panel discussions with early to senior career researchers with questions from the audience.

Many respondents offered additional comments in support of WISC,and its aims: ·" This is aw onderful initiative and Iw ould be absolutely delighted to contribute to it at any capacity!" ·" There is as hortage of role models for women. Ih ave participated in conferences with 1% of women as speakers, it is clear that women are underrepresented. We need to support eacho ther through experience sharing and make each other visible,a tl east among ourselves,t ob ea ble to promote each other." ·" Continue with the great ideas!Itwould be good to discuss issues surrounding the effects of parental leave on careers and how to minimise this,particularly with respect to getting funding bodies on board with these adaptations."

Thef ield-specific nature of WISC has meant that the activities bourne out of the survey results have been supported at conferences for the community through panel sessions at these events and the like.Inresponse to the survey results,W ISC has set up af ield-specific mentoring scheme and aP arenting Cluster,w hich is ap rotected space for men, women, and non-binary folx [29] to talk about av ariety of topics,i ncluding the pressures of parenting,s tep-parenting, and fertility issues.

Women in STEM are subject to different pressures than those in other disciplines of academia. Although there is al arge body of work dedicated to the development of marginalised identity in academia, [3a, 4a,c, 30] the work dedicated to tackling diversity and underrepresentation in STEM is far smaller. [31a-c] There are many reasons for this,n ot least that the nature of learning and knowledge and the types of skills developed in STEM rarely includes reflective practices.T his in turn impacts on how women and marginalised groups construct their identity,a nd process and disseminate their experiences.I nc ontrast, when researching into lived experiences,itiscommon to use reflective and qualitative research methods and approaches such as interviews,ethnography and auto-ethnography. [3a, 32a,b] Even within disciplines that are accustomed to writing reflectively," there were very few women academics who talked openly about their personal lives […] Ib egan to see academia as the (stereotypically) masculine and isolated place it was designed to be-a place free from children, romantic relationships,p ersonal problems and lives". [33] If the stories and experiences of those who do not fit the stereotype are not visible,t hen it is harder for those outside the majority group to feel they belong.Individuals do not always share their stories of marginalisation publicly for amultitude of reasons,including the fear that it may adversely affect their career. Yetitisimportant for all within STEM to "understand that nearly every one of your colleagues who is amember of an underrepresented group (women, BIPOC) has been told at some point in their career that they only received ap osition, fellowship,a ward, or invitation because of their minority status". [2d] Moving forward, WISC has adopted atransdisciplinary [34] ethos.W ISC has the unique opportunity to trailblaze this approach, as their social scientist board member is herself astatistic of the failure of chemistry to support the retention of women. She wrote "My first degree is in Chemistry with Analytical Science.Icompleted 2 1 = 2 years of aP hD in Computational Chemistry before life took me in ad ifferent direction". [35] She is positioned as an insider [36] rather than asocial scientist performing research on scientists.Her social science research on areas such as marginalised academics, reflective practice,and embodied academic identity [37a-d] feed into the aims and intentions of the network. Additionally,she is an expert in creative approaches to qualitative research, [38] which are particularly suited where the issues of exploration are sensitive,a sin thec ase here,a stherea re human stories behind every statistic of non-retention. Scientists are not always knowledgeable of,o rw illing to participate in, social science or artistic research. [39] With the addition of atrustedinsider social scientist using arts-based methods it becomes possible to do more and use qualitative research approaches to cast light on and process hitherto-unseen lived experiences. Current projects include the use of rhythmanalysis, [40] creative workshops, [41] auto-ethnography, [32a] and visual ethnography [42] in addition to more conventional surveys and interviews.W eb elieve this approach of engaging chemists with innovative research techniques more commonly associated with Social Sciences and Arts is unique.Bycollaborating with an expert in social science,o ur work on marginalisation and EDI ensures we have appropriate ethical approval and gather the data needed to answer specific research questions.I n addition, when the answers we receive border on emotional experiences of infertility,step-parenting,imposter syndrome, and post-natal depression, the expertise in dealing with qualitative research into sensitive subjects such as identity development means that we are prepared and able to support both researchers and participants.

WISC has taken an ovel approach to addressing EDI issues within supramolecular chemistry.I ti sd istinctive for two reasons.Firstly,itisafield-specific initiative,with actions that have been designed to fit the stated needs of and are supported by the supramolecular community.S econdly,i t involves those with experience in social science and EDI research at every stage,a nd is intentionally interdisciplinary in its methods and approach. To tackle the lack of diversity in chemistry,itisimportant to draw on the existing work around EDI in academia as aw hole.H owever,t his work cannot be transplanted wholescale into chemistry,a sit is not always representative of the specific culture found within particular fields.Inaddition to the general issues faced by all academics with regard to structural inequalities,overwork, and work-life balance, [43a-d] it is important to acknowledge the specific demands and context in chemistry.T of it in those who have been marginalised or excluded, we need to change the structures that have been excluding them. [44] In supporting EDI in supramolecular chemistry,W ISC was cognisant of including within its committees individuals who have expertise researching into and including those who are marginalised in academia. As such, this area-specific approach demonstrates that the idea of "calling in" the community to support its own can work. Theo ngoing progress on the various WISC activities can be found on the WISC website. [28] Combining social science with scientists ensures that the work that is carried out humanises the reasons why this work is important, highlighting the parity and diversity of experience both men and women face whilst maintaining the rigour and validity of the research within the scientific community and beyond. This Essay highlights and shares the lived experiences of men and women from within the supramolecular community.WISC'saim is for the supramolecular community to support those marginalised within it, and to increase the retention and progression of these individuals post-PhD. WISC'sh ope is that our approach and work may act as af ramework to tackle EDI within other fields of chemistry, and wider STEM disciplines.

Permissions were obtained from the relevantl ocal authorities: ethical approval from the Centre for the Study of Higher Education, University of Kent, UK, ethical approval number 24062019. WISC opened a10-questionsurvey in July 2019. Informed consent was given by all participantso ft he survey.T he survey was open to all and advertised on Tw itter and at supramolecular chemistry conferences. Thesurvey was hosted on afree version of SurveyMonkey,which only allowed 100 responses.T he survey was closed in June 2020.

All responses were anonymised to protect the identity of the respondents.T he data do not show where the respondentsw ere based. Thedata were seen only by the research team. Thedata were thematically analysed, [45] and quotations are used to illustrate the main themes as identifiedbyt he researchers.

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Version of record online

To date,WISC'swork and research has been supported by the University of Kent, University College London, Università degli Studi di Cagliari, Christian-Albrechts-Universitätz u Kiel, Scot Chem, Biochemical Society (Diversity in Science