AcademiaNet is an international

database In computing, a database is an organized collection of data stored and accessed electronically. Small databases can be stored on a file system, while large databases are hosted on computer clusters or cloud storage. The design of databases sp ...

containing profiles of

women scientists The presence of women in science spans the earliest times of the history of science wherein they have made significant contributions. Historians with an interest in gender and science have researched the scientific endeavors and accomplishments ...

. It is a non-profit project with the goal to raise the share of women in leadership positions in academia. AcademiaNet was initiated in 2010 in Germany by the

Robert Bosch Stiftung The Robert Bosch Stiftung GmbH () is a German foundation that owns a majority shareholding in Robert Bosch GmbH, from which it derives its funding. The foundation was established in accordance with the wishes of Robert Bosch, who died in 1942, an ...

and the publishing house "

Spektrum der Wissenschaft ''Scientific American'', informally abbreviated ''SciAm'' or sometimes ''SA'', is an American popular science magazine. Many famous scientists, including Albert Einstein and Nikola Tesla, have contributed articles to it. In print since 1845, it i ...

". The

Swiss National Science Foundation The Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF, German: ''Schweizerischer Nationalfonds zur Förderung der wissenschaftlichen Forschung'', SNF; French: ''Fonds national suisse de la recherche scientifique'', FNS; Italian: ''Fondo nazionale svizzero ...

assumed responsibility of the platform in 2020.

Goals and functions

The share of women professors and executives at research institutions across Europe is low and rising only slowly. AcademiaNet is a resource aimed at facilitating the search for women researchers in view of academic appointments or as conference speakers, experts on scientific committees or peer reviewers. A search function allows users to find the registered scientists according to their field or discipline. As opposed to databases such as "Request a Woman in STEMM" by

500 Women Scientists 500 Women Scientists is a non-profit group dedicated to making science open, inclusive, and accessible. To achieve this mission, they work to increase scientific literacy through public engagement, advocate for science and equity, and provide self ...

or "WiLS database of women in science", women cannot create their own profile on AcademiaNet; they need to be nominated by a scientific partner based on clearly defined criteria.

History

The Robert Bosch Stiftung founded AcademiaNet in 2010. In her speech inaugurating the platform in November 2010, the German Chancellor and physicist

Angela Merkel Angela Dorothea Merkel (; ; born 17 July 1954) is a German former politician and scientist who served as Chancellor of Germany from 2005 to 2021. A member of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), she previously served as Leader of the Oppo ...

said that science would not achieve its full potential if it remained predominantly male and did not promote half of its talents. She also said that AcademiaNet offered more visibility to women scientists, who contribute with their expertise to scientific endeavours. Initially, the platform was in German and contained primarily researchers from Germany, who were nominated by institutions such as the Leibniz Association, the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) or the Fraunhofer Society. Since 2012, the platform has become more international. The language of the platform is now English. In 2020, the management of AcademiaNet passed from the Robert Bosch Stiftung to the Swiss National Science Foundation, which continues to work with the publishing house "Spektrum der Wissenschaft".

Renowned members

A number of renowned female scientists are member of AcademiaNet. Here a list of some of the most famous among them: *

May-Britt Moser May-Britt Moser (born 4 January 1963) is a Norwegian psychologist and neuroscientist, who is a Professor of Psychology and Neuroscience at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU). She and her then-husband, Edvard Moser, share ...

, psychologist and neuroscientists, winner of the

Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine is awarded yearly by the Nobel Assembly at the Karolinska Institute for outstanding discoveries in physiology or medicine. The Nobel Prize is not a single prize, but five separate prizes that, accord ...

Janet Rossant Janet Rossant, (born 13 July 1950) is a developmental biologist well known for her contributions to the understanding of the role of genes in embryo development. She is a world renowned leader in developmental biology. Her current research inte ...

, developmental biologist *

Françoise Combes Françoise Combes (; born 12 August 1952) is a French astrophysicist at the Paris Observatory and a professor at the Collège de France where she has been the chair of Galaxies and cosmology since 2014. On 15 September 2017 the 'City of Succes ...

, astrophysicist *

Riitta Hari Riitta Kyllikki Hari (born 16 January 1948) is a Finnish neuroscientist, physician and professor at Aalto University. She has led the Brain Research Unit at the Low Temperature Laboratory since 1982. Hari was appointed as Academician of Science o ...

, neuroscientist and physician *

Caroline Dean Dame Caroline Dean (born 2 April 1957) is a British plant scientist working at the John Innes Centre. She is focused on understanding the molecular controls used by plants to seasonally judge when to flower. She is specifically interested in v ...

, plant scientist *

Ottoline Leyser Dame Henrietta Miriam Ottoline Leyser (born 7 March 1965) is a British plant biologist and Regius Professor of Botany at the University of Cambridge, Chief Executive Officer of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) and the Sainsbury Laboratory, ...

, plant biologist

Partner organisations

AcademiaNet is a non-profit project. It is funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation, the Robert Bosch Stiftung and 21 European research funding organisations, including the Max Planck Society for the Advancement of Science, the Royal Society, the Spanish National Research Council, the Swedish Research Council and the European Molecular Biology Organization. AcademiaNet is also included in the search map of The Brussels Binder, a database for more women in European debates. More than 40 European science organisations nominate women scientists who meet the selection criteria of AcademiaNet. These organisations include: *

Academy of Finland The Academy of Finland ( fi, Suomen Akatemia, sv, Finlands Akademi) is a governmental funding body for scientific research in Finland. It is based in Helsinki. Yearly, the Academy administers over 260 million euros to Finnish research activities. O ...

, Finland *

French National Centre for Scientific Research The French National Centre for Scientific Research (french: link=no, Centre national de la recherche scientifique, CNRS) is the French state research organisation and is the largest fundamental science agency in Europe. In 2016, it employed 31,637 ...

, France *

Foundation for Polish Science The Foundation For Polish Science ( pl, Fundacja na rzecz Nauki Polskiej, FNP) is an independent, non-profit making organisation which aim at improving the opportunities for doing research in Poland. Established in 1990, registered in 1991, the ...

, Poland *

National Fund for Scientific Research The National Fund for Scientific Research (NFSR) (Dutch: ''Nationaal Fonds voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek'' (NFWO), French: ''Fonds National de la Recherche Scientifique'' (FNRS)) was once a government institution in Belgium for supporting scient ...

, Belgium *

Austrian Science Fund The Austrian Science Fund (german: Fonds zur Förderung der wissenschaftlichen Forschung, FWF) is the most important Austrian funding organization for basic research. The FWF supports research in science, engineering, and the humanities through a ...

, Austria *

Fraunhofer Society The Fraunhofer Society (german: Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft zur Förderung der angewandten Forschung e.V., lit=Fraunhofer Society for the Advancement of Applied Research) is a German research organization with 76institutes spread throughout Germany ...

, Germany *

Royal Society of Edinburgh The Royal Society of Edinburgh is Scotland's national academy of science and letters. It is a registered charity that operates on a wholly independent and non-partisan basis and provides public benefit throughout Scotland. It was established i ...

, Scotland *

Danish Council for Independent Research The Independent Research Fund Denmark, until 2017 known as the Danish Council for Independent Research (Danish: ''Danmarks Frie Forskningsfond'', formerly ''Det Frie Forskningsråd''; ''DFF'') of Denmark funds basic research and gives advice to gove ...

, Denmark *

Wellcome Trust The Wellcome Trust is a charitable foundation focused on health research based in London, in the United Kingdom. It was established in 1936 with legacies from the pharmaceutical magnate Henry Wellcome (founder of one of the predecessors of Glaxo ...

, United Kingdom * Estonian Research Council, Estonia{{Cite web, title=Eighty top Estonian female researchers being added to AcademiaNet, url=https://estonianworld.com/knowledge/eighty-top-estonian-female-researchers-added-to-academianet/, access-date=2021-04-27, website=Estonian World, language=en

Notes and references

External links

Official Website
Scientific databases Bibliographic databases and indexes Women in science and technology