[Wism-l] "She Is An Astronomer" Seeks to Break Down Misconceptions and Gender Issues

Wed Apr 22 10:56:58 EDT 2009

The full text of this press release is available on
http://www.iau.org/public_press/news/release/iau0909/

THE "SHE IS AN ASTRONOMER" PROJECT SEEKS TO BREAK DOWN MISCONCEPTIONS
AND GENDER ISSUES IN ASTRONOMY AND SCIENCE

Apr 21, 2009, Paris: The highly anticipated International Year of
Astronomy 2009 Cornerstone project, She Is An Astronomer, was launched
today. She Is An Astronomer aims to help achieve several of the United
Nations Millennium Development Goals, including promoting gender
equality and empowering women.

Gender equality is a priority concern for the whole scientific
community, regardless of its field, cultural background or geographic
location. This is also the case for astronomy, where only
approximately one quarter of all professionals are women. In some
countries there are no female astronomers, whilst in others more than
half the professional astronomers are female. These numbers drop
towards more senior levels, suggesting that scientific careers are
heavily affected by social and cultural factors and are not determined
solely by ability. The International Year of Astronomy 2009
Cornerstone project, She Is An Astronomer (SIAA), has been established
to address these issues and tackle the main problems.

The SIAA program of activities was announced today during the European
Week of Astronomy & Space Science at the University of Hertfordshire,
UK. Boasting a mixture of international, national and local events
ranging from conferences, meetings and workshops to address gender
issues, events targeted at teenagers, and the central SIAA website,
the variety is designed to appeal to a wide cross-section of the
professional and public communities.

The official SIAA website, www.sheisanastronomer.org, provides a
one-stop-shop for gender issues in astronomy and science. The site
boasts five sections: profiles of living and historic astronomers;
resources for female astronomers; events taking place during IYA2009;
an SIAA Ambassadors' Area; and a forum where issues, lessons and
challenges can be discussed, including the opportunity to question
experts. The website provides neutral, informative and accessible
information and will be used to advertise new events, keeping
interested parties at the forefront of developments. Examples of best
practices and relevant statistics will be pooled, making them
accessible to the wider community. Content will be regularly added
during 2009, resulting in a vast depository that will remain online
long into the future, acting as an ongoing legacy.

Several of the international and national meetings arranged for 2009
feature a SIAA presence. These include the IAU General Assembly in Rio
de Janeiro, Brazil, meetings in the US and Egypt, a book launch in
Australia, an exhibition in Germany and many local events. Spain is
conducting its first ever survey of women in astronomy and has also
produced a calendar featuring historic female astronomers.

IYA2009 encourages us to discuss magnificent and complex topics, from
black holes to the mysteries of our Sun, but without losing sight of
the core human aspects. SIAA will play its part in ensuring that the
Year's impact is definitely felt here on Earth.

Notes:

The IAU is the international astronomical organisation that brings
together almost 10 000 distinguished astronomers from all nations of
the world. Its mission is to promote and safeguard the science of
astronomy in all its aspects through international cooperation. The
IAU also serves as the internationally recognised authority for
assigning designations to celestial bodies and the surface features on
them. Founded in 1919, the IAU is the world's largest professional
body for astronomers.
Links

She Is An Astronomer website: http://www.sheisanastronomer.org
IYA2009 website: http://www.astronomy2009.org
European Week of Astronomy & Space Science: http://www.jenam2009.eu

For more information:

Helen Walker
She Is An Astronomer Project Chair
STFC Rutherford Appleton Laboratory
Didcot, Oxon, UK
Tel.: +44 (0) 1235 446 490
Cell : +44 (0) 7870 977 018
E-mail: helen.walker at stfc.ac.uk

Further contacts:

Yolanda Berenguer
UNESCO Focal Point for the International Year of Astronomy 2009
UNESCO HQ, Paris
Tel: +33 1 45684171
E-mail: y.berenguer at unesco.org

Dr. Karel A. van der Hucht
General Secretary, International Astronomical Union
IAU Secretariat, Paris, France
Tel: +33 1 43 25 83 58
E-mail: K.A.van.der.Hucht at sron.nl

Lars Lindberg Christensen
IAU Press Officer
ESO ePOD, Garching, Germany
Tel: +49 89 3200 6761
Cellular: +49 173 3872 621
E-mail: lars at eso.org
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