News

Gender+ Smart Award for contributing to safe and respectful WUR culture

article_published_on_label
April 14, 2022

Four chair groups, among which FNP is one, have received the WUR Gender+ SMART Award 2022 for an incubator project 'Towards diversity and inclusivity in sustainability governance'.

This innovative research project is recognised for its contribution to a safe and respectful WUR culture as part of the Gender+ SMART Equality Benefits All project. The researchers believe that this recognition highlights the need to continue discussions and research on diversity and inclusion.

The final report of this project Towards Diversity and Inclusivity in Sustainability Governance 2021 is now available.

'Incubator projects' is an initiative of the Wageningen Centre of Sustainability Governance to give shape to the ambition to provide guidance and inspiration regarding theoretical, thematic, and collaborative developments on sustainability governance and to jump start collaborations among chair groups.

The project was conducted by a group of eleven researchers from four of the WCSG chair groups; these groups are ENP, FNP, LAW and PAP. It is an exploratory pilot study on the issues and opportunities regarding discrimination and racism in the WCSG. It included a curriculum mapping exercise, a survey and guided group discussions. The report describes results regarding research and education, and explains some of the struggles encountered during the process. For many of these researchers, it was both a pleasure and a challenge to engage with ‘diversity work’, as it required them to discuss uncomfortable topics like privilege, experiences of exclusion and discrimination, and personal responsibilities to counter such practices. More information.

The findings on education suggest that students who were not raised or educated in western countries could be at a disadvantage in the Dutch educational system. In addition, the face direct and indirect forms of discrimination and stereotyping. In terms of research, the research team identified issues regarding extractive research practices and citational justice. The report gives several recommendations that could aid individual and collective reflection as well as actions to foster inclusive teaching and research spheres. Recommendations were formulated for Graduate Schools, the WCSG management, chair holders, course coordinators, researchers, lecturers and supervisors of PhD and thesis students, which could provide inspiration to further the many existing initiatives taken by individuals and groups in the collective process to counter racism, discrimination and other structural exclusions.