The European Commission recognized the University Rovira i Virgili (URV) With the EU Gender Equality Champions Award, in the category that evaluates the results of European academic and research institutions achieved through the implementation of gender equality plans and which have been maintained over time.
The prize is worth €100,000, allowing the winning organizations to strengthen the implementation of the Equality PlanIt is an indispensable requirement for universities and research centers participating in competitive calls for Horizon Europe research funding.
The URV was awarded jointly by the National Center for Scientific Research in France, in the category “Champions of Sustainable Gender Equality”, in which ten research institutions presented themselves. Shannon University of Technology (Ireland) was also honored in the “Newcomer Gender Equality Champions” category.
The award was received by the President of URV University, Josep Pallares, from the European Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth, Ileana Ivanova, at a ceremony held at the European Commission headquarters in Brussels. This award “is the result of a team effort,” noted Balres, who was present at the event with the university’s Vice Chancellor for Academic Policy and Quality, Yolanda Tortajada.
Thus, URV received the award for its long history and continuous activity in promoting equality between women and men And for the high level of achieving equality through equality plans. The award recognizes in particular the implementation of the Second Equality Plan, between 2011 and 2019, and the results obtained, as well as the commitment to the Third Equality Plan (2020-2024).
In reality, The university was one of the leading institutions in the country by approving the first equality plan in 2007 After publishing the first report on inequality between men and women at the institution, and establishing the Equality Observatory to ensure the sustainability of equality policies and the transfer of knowledge to society, all under the supervision of teacher Inma Pasteur and the leadership of the team led by the University President, Francisque Xavier Grau.
In 2020, URV reaffirmed its commitment to equality between women and menWith the establishment of the Equality Unit, responsible for designing, implementing and evaluating the current Equality Plan as well as organizing training, promoting awareness campaigns, collecting data and supporting Equality Councils in all centres.
Celia Willem, Director of the Equality Unit at URV, appreciates this recognition positively and emphasizes, as the University President did at the awards ceremony, that “although there is work to be done, such as reducing the wage gap and having more women in administrative positions, the impact of the Union’s policies in the field of equality between… “Gender equality is guaranteed through a firm and long-term institutional commitment through the Equality Unit.” “Continued gender equality efforts have facilitated gender balance in the student body and faculty as well as the approval of protocols against sexual harassment,” Willem recalls.
“The Equality Unit – says Willem – is working to make the university a safe place free from sexual violence and is already preparing the fourth Equality Plan in cooperation with students, employees and the social part, to come into effect in 2025.” “It is the duty of a public university not only to be a reflection of society, but also to lead change,” he concludes.
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