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Dear all - The following may be of interest to the list - one of the conference's themes is science communication. Louise -----Original Message----- From: Laura Henderson [mailto:[log in to unmask]] Sent: 22 June 2006 12:54 To: Simon ,Louise Subject: call for papers - Science Policies Meet Reality: Gender, Women and Youth in Science in CEE Dear colleagues, In light of the theme and activities of psci-com's work concerning communication of science, we would like to inform you of the call for papers for the conference "Science Policies Meet Reality: Gender, Women, Youth and Science in Central and Eastern Europe" to be held in Prague, 1-2 December 2006. Of particular interest might be session IV "Dumb or deaf? The missing voices and missing issues in science communication". Abstracts are welcomed from those working both within and outside the Central and Eastern European region. Should you wish to submit a paper, we will be glad to cover your expenses on acceptance of the abstract. I would be very grateful if you could forward this email to the your colleagues and networks. Call for papers Science policies meet reality: gender, women and youth in science in Central and Eastern Europe Deadline: 16 July 2006 Conference: 1-2 December 2006 Venue: Masarykova kolej, Thákurova 1, Prague 6, Czech Republic As the Central European Centre for Women and Youth in Science, the first regional support project for women and youth in science funded by the EC, is drawing to its close, this conference will provide an opportunity to assess the impact of the project and present findings and results. This will be done against the backdrop of recognising the growing significance of the gap between the goals of science policies and programmes and their actual implementation. This conference will discuss for the first time in East-Central Europe current obstacles to successful science policy implementation and discrepancies between the status quo and stated goals concerning gender equality and the position of early stage researchers. This will be done through discussing/disseminating existing research and policy implementation practices. The conference will bring together researchers, activists and policymakers. We are specifically interested in relevant research and policy implementation, experience of scientists and policymakers across Europe who may aid policy formulation and implementation and recognition of scientific excellence. Papers and posters are invited for the following sessions: session I Mobility: perils and possibilities Without fellowships early stage researchers today cannot dream of launching their scientific career, especially in the hard sciences; evidently, those who do not get guidance and information about mobility opportunities are at severe disadvantage. Moreover, mobility schemes often implicitly imply emotional and geographical flexibility. The actual uptake of mobility programmes can therefore mirror various types of conditions, stereotypes and biases based on gender, geo-political location or age. Once out, it may also become difficult to return. This session will explore the impact of gender, location and age on the ability to be mobile and the reflection of these factors in mobility policy. It will also look into how the demands on mobility get translated into scientific excellence criteria and who loses out. session II Is science inspirational? Is life inspirational?!? Opportunities for work-life balance Policies which allow women and men to balance their personal and professional lives in the sciences are rarely provided and if so, they remain on paper. The question is whether it is really possible to take up work-life balance policies without damaging the career in the eyes of those who measure excellence in terms of continuous, uninterrupted scientific output and visible presence at workplace. This session will examine the types of work-life balance support in research and development, the background assumptions in which work-life balance issues are framed and what is necessary to make work-life balance programmes a success. session III Making decisions and decision making: dealing with sticky floors and glass ceilings Women are present in decision-making positions and advisory boards in very low numbers. Reasons often cited include, on the one hand, the exclusion of women from the "old boys' club", lack of time to network and make informal contacts and less presence among the top echelons from where scientists are invited. On the other hand, it is claimed that women are not interested in leadership positions, lack the self-confidence, that they are not as ambitious and concentrate more on concrete work. This session will address the impact of policy recommendations to increase the number of women in decision-making in science and of actual measures taken while exploring the obstacles to actually achieving the goals set and resistance to such measures. session IV Dumb or deaf? The missing voices and missing issues in science communication There is great emphasis from the European Commission to communicate science to the public through the media. This need is framed in terms of democratisation of science and increasing the accountability of research and researchers to society. What are the limits of the "democratisation"? Who is conceived a legitimate communicator and who is meant to form an audience? Which scientists and what issues are considered interesting for the general public? Is the gender dimension taken into account, with women having been traditionally excluded from "expertise" which is often called upon by politicians and media to support arguments and interests? This session will take a look at political agendas in communicating science to society, including the aim to attract young people to the sciences, and the exclusions of voices and issues from the media channels. SUBMISSION DETAILS Please send a 500-word proposal for poster or presentation, indicating which one, and a brief curriculum vitae by 16 July 2006 via e-mail to Laura Henderson at [log in to unmask] as an attachment (PDF, Word, rtf). Please address your proposals to the relevant session. Applicants will be sent a notification of acceptance by 31 August 2006. Speakers will be obliged to supply a full-length version of their paper or PowerPoint presentation by 31 December 2006. Details about format requirements will be sent to speakers separately. CONFERENCE REGISTRATION To register for the conference online, visit http://www.cec-wys.org/html/index.php?s1=1&s2=15&s3=3&lng=13 CONFERENCE INFORMATION The conference website at http://www.cec-wys.org/html/index.php?s1=1&s2=15&s3=1&lng=13 will provide all relevant information about the venue, accommodation, programme, speakers etc. We would be grateful if you could forward this call to your colleagues and networks. We hope to see you in Prague. With warm regards, Laura Henderson Marcela Linkova National Contact Centre - Women and Science Institute of Sociology Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic *********************************************************************************** ********************************************************************** 1. To suspend yourself from the list, whilst on leave, for example, send an email to [log in to unmask] with the following message: set psci-com nomail 2. To resume email from the list, send the following message: set psci-com mail 3. To leave psci-com, send an email to [log in to unmask] with the message: leave psci-com 4. Further information about the psci-com discussion list, including list archive, can be found at the list web site: http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/lists/psci-com.html 5. The psci-com gateway to internet resources on science communication and science and society can be found at http://psci-com.org.uk **********************************************************************