SEB Bulletin March 2008 - In this issue
Fair Representation
Someone was telling me the other day that they had recently witnessed an embarrassing situation when a group of visitors to their university had been introduced by the lead host by their full name and title (in the case of the male visitors) and by their first name only (the female visitors). When questioned about this later the individual had been slightly perplexed and explained he had done it sub-consciously, possibly with the intention of making the women feel more relaxed. So fundamentally, he was actually trying to be nice to the women and put them at their ease, but felt no obligation to do so for the men. It's an interesting dilemma as I'm sure in these days of political awareness and equality most people are completely innocent of overt discrimination towards women. However, how much does passive, sub-conscious inequality pervade our society and places of work? In two very powerful articles, members of our Education & Public Affairs Section have drawn together evidence from recent surveys conducted to measure the representation of women in science on committees, at senior levels and in awards for recognition of their achievements (pages 17-20). The first article focuses on the SEB and other learned societies as we account for the career development of many of our members by offering places on committees, awards for excellence and involvement in conference session organisation. You will see we are not alone in our under-representation of women in these areas. The second, more lengthy, article reports on the extensive work of the Athena Project which was set up specifically to address the issues associated with the progression and retention of women in science. The project has been brought to a close recently but has left a valuable legacy in the shape of the Athena Forum. In addition, the Athena SWAN Charter for good practice will continue to award gold, silver or bronze status to departments according to the extent to which they meet their criteria for equality. If any members feel moved to comment on these articles we very much welcome further discussion on this subject.
As the year progresses the Annual General Meeting of the SEB approaches and, as we are holding our Main Meeting outside the UK again this year, the meeting will be held in the SEB offices in Southampton (page 10). Members are invited to attend, but with the obvious difficult logistics associated with travel for most people, we hope that the reports in the Reportage Section will provide the relevant information which is what will be reported on at the AGM. These include the report from Council, the treasurer's and publication officer's reports followed by the four sections (pages 11-16).
We are pleased to include a report from the European Plant Science Organisation (EPSO) in this issue (page 7). EPSO has succeeded in becoming the Voice for plant science in Europe over a relatively short period, during which time it has built up a committed membership of renowned European plant institutes to influence key policy and decision-makers. EPSO is working towards extending its membership further and developing partnerships with other organisations and societies such as the SEB and FESPB (Federation of European Societies of Plant Biology).
Talking of FESPB, their biennial meeting takes place this year in Finland (page 9) where the EPA Section will run some sessions including a Bioenergy debate, a repeat (but with a different panel) of the one we will run at the SEB Meeting to complement the Bioenergy session (page 8). The organisation of the SEB's Plant Symposium is well under way now and will take place in Nottingham later this year (pages 24-25).
Finally, back on the subject of fair representation, we welcome the first edition of Bioscience Horizons (page 32) which is launched this year. It will feature articles from research work conducted by undergraduates for the very first time! Their hard work and sometimes highly innovative findings will receive recognition and hopefully assist those planning on a future career in science.
Sarah Blackford
Editor
