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500 Women Scientists

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500 Women Scientists
FormationNovember 2016
FounderKelly Ramirez and Jane Zelikova
TypeNonprofit organization
Legal status501(c)3
PurposeScience advocacy
Websitehttp://500womenscientists.org

500 Women Scientists is a non-profit group dedicated to making science open, inclusive, and accessible.[1][2] To achieve this mission, they work to increase scientific literacy through public engagement, advocate for science and equity, and provide self-identifying women with the tools and support they need to reach their full potential.[3][4] The organization began with an open letter in November 2016 and was officially recognized as a 501(c)3 in May 2018.[5]

History

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500 Women Scientists launched with an open letter signed by 500 women scientists after the United States 2016 presidential election.[6][7][8] The letter pledged to speak out not only against policies that go against scientific evidence, but also against inequality, sexism, xenophobia, and other forms of discrimination against marginalized communities. Within two months, the pledge received over fifteen thousand signatures from women and allies in 109 countries.[9]

In concert with the 2017 Women's March, women scientists and supporters who signed the pledge organized themselves into groups to march together.[10][11][12] The local marches became the basis for forming local chapters, or "Pods", where local women scientists meet regularly. Pods function both as a support system and as a vehicle to focus on and organize around issues that resonate in their own communities, in line with 500 Women Scientists core mission and values.[9][13][14]

In 2023, due to issues with funding, the organization was forced to scale back operations, including ending a fellowship and letting go of paid staff. Some organizers within the project blamed an unstable grant funding environment that led to the reduction of the organization.[15]

Programs and initiatives

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Request a Woman Scientist

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To increase representation of women on conference panels and in high-profile science journalism stories, 500 Women Scientists launched a Request a Woman Scientist database for self-identifying women with expertise in STEMM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and medicine) fields.[16][17][18] The database currently contains over 6,000 women in 104 countries.[19]

Sci Mom Journey

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500 Women Scientists launched the Sci Mom Journey campaign to share the journeys of parents in science, specifically mothers, who face institutional challenges when it comes to issues such as accessible lactation rooms and parental leave.[20]

Fellowship for the Future

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In 2019, 500 Women Scientists launched the Fellowship for the Future program to recognize and support women of color who are leading initiatives in the STEM community that work towards promoting equity, inclusiveness, and accessibility in STEM in line with the organization's mission.[21] In 2023, the organization was forced to end their fellowship due to budgetary constraints.[15]

Public engagement

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500 Women Scientists often uses science writing as a means of communicating their expertise and values to the public at large, with pieces featured in outlets like Science, Scientific American, and The Seattle Times. The global leadership team has authored a number of opinion pieces on topics as varied as calling for evidence-based policy-making at the Environmental Protection Agency, recommending policy reforms to combat sexual harassment in academia, and encouraging journal editors to think carefully about fostering equity and inclusion in their editorial pages.[22][23][24] Local Pods have also written about issues facing their own communities, ranging from the effect of President Trump's border wall on California wildlife to the need to stop burning coal in the Puget Sound.[25][26]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Science needs to be more inclusive and women are making it happen". Popular Science. Retrieved 2018-06-16.
  2. ^ "Women Are Leading the Pro-Science Resistance". Vice. 2017-02-23. Retrieved 2018-06-16.
  3. ^ "500 Women Scientists: Taking action towards a more inclusive society". Research Features. 2018-06-04. Retrieved 2018-06-18.
  4. ^ "Profile: 500 Women Scientists, the organisation that's building a more inclusive scientific society on a global scale -TechSPARK.co". techspark.co. 2018-03-08. Retrieved 2018-06-18.
  5. ^ "Details about". apps.irs.gov. Retrieved 2018-06-18.
  6. ^ Ramirez, Kelly. "An Open Letter from and to Female Scientists". Scientific American Blog Network. Retrieved 2018-06-16.
  7. ^ Gill, Victoria (2016-11-25). "Women in science pledge to combat hate". BBC News. Retrieved 2018-06-16.
  8. ^ Kaplan, Sarah (2016-11-30). "Scientists are really, really worried about Donald Trump". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2018-06-16.
  9. ^ a b Bagri, Neha Thirani. "Trump's anti-women and anti-science policies are pushing female scientists to action". Quartz. Retrieved 2018-06-18.
  10. ^ Meyer, Robinson (2017-01-24). "A Day With the Women Scientists Protesting Trump". The Atlantic. Retrieved 2018-06-16.
  11. ^ Reardon, Sara (2017-01-22). "Scientists join massive protest against Trump". Nature. doi:10.1038/nature.2017.21345. ISSN 1476-4687. S2CID 185791512.
  12. ^ Brueck, Hilary. "Why Were Dozens Of People In White Lab Coats At The Women's March In DC?". Forbes. Retrieved 2018-06-16.
  13. ^ Goldstone, Heather. "Local Women Scientists Getting Organized". Retrieved 2018-06-16.
  14. ^ "Women scientists: "We're not backing down, and we're not going away"". Grist. 2017-01-29. Retrieved 2018-06-16.
  15. ^ a b Offord, Catherine (2 March 2023). "Funding woes force 500 Women Scientists to scale back operations". Science.
  16. ^ Yong, Ed (2018-02-06). "I Spent Two Years Trying to Fix the Gender Imbalance in My Stories". The Atlantic. Retrieved 2018-06-16.
  17. ^ Nowak, Katarzyna. "How to Find a Woman Scientist". Scientific American Blog Network. Retrieved 2018-06-16.
  18. ^ Kahn, Brian. "There's No Excuse For Not Getting a Woman Scientist's Input Anymore". Earther. Retrieved 2018-06-16.
  19. ^ "Request a Scientist". 500 Women Scientists. Retrieved 2018-06-18.
  20. ^ "Share Your Story". 500 Women Scientists. Retrieved 2020-03-11.
  21. ^ "500 Women Scientists' Fellowship for the Future | www.ess.uci.edu". www.ess.uci.edu. Archived from the original on 2021-04-28. Retrieved 2020-03-11.
  22. ^ "Stories by 500 Women Scientists". Scientific American. Retrieved 2018-06-16.
  23. ^ Zaringhalam, Maryam; Vijayaraghavan, Rukmani; Simonis, Juniper; Ramirez, Kelly; Zelikova, Jane; Scientists, on behalf of 500 Women (2018-04-13). "Journal editors should not divide scientists". Science. 360 (6385): 163–164. Bibcode:2018Sci...360..163Z. doi:10.1126/science.aat6288. ISSN 0036-8075. PMID 29650666.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  24. ^ "As EPA head, Scott Pruitt must act on climate change". The Seattle Times. 2017-02-20. Retrieved 2018-06-18.
  25. ^ Trexler, Christa. "Trump's wall would harm unique and fragile wildlife on the California border". Massive. Retrieved 2018-06-18.
  26. ^ "Guest Editorial: Puget Sound Energy Needs to Stop Burning Coal in Montana". The Stranger. Retrieved 2018-06-18.
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