[Paper Review] The Gender Balance of the Australian Space Research Community: A Snapshot from the 16th ASRC, 2016

Jonathan Horner, Nicholson, Belinda+3 more|arXiv (Cornell University)|Aug 13, 2017

Diversity and Career in Medicine5 references3 citations

TL;DR

This paper analyzes the gender balance at the 16th Australian Space Research Conference (ASRC) in 2016, documenting a modest increase in female representation across all conference components. Despite a 3:1 male-to-female attendee ratio overall, significant progress was observed in plenary talks (44.4% female), posters (31.8%), and student awards (33.3%), suggesting growing equity in high-visibility roles within the Australian space research community.

ABSTRACT

In recent years, there has been significant debate and discussion about the glaring gender disparity in the physical sciences. To better understand and address this within the Australian Space Research Community, in 2015 we began the process of keeping a record of the gender balance at the annual Australian Space Research Conference. In addition, we began holding an annual 'Women in Space Research' lunch at that meeting, to discuss the situation, and search for routes by which issues of equity can be addressed, and the situation improved. We present an update based on the 16th Australian Space Research Conference, held at RMIT, Melbourne, in September 2016. As in 2015, male attendees outnumbered female attendees approximately 3:1. However, there was a small shift (~2.3%) in the balance, with female delegates now making up 26.4% of the total, up from 24.1% in 2015. This shift was mirrored in the gender distribution of talks, with 28.9% of all oral presentations being given by women (up from 25.2%). More striking, however, were the changes in the distribution of plenary presentations (44.4% female, up from 22.2%), poster presentations (31.8% female, up from 7.7%), and student awards (33.3% female, up from 12.5%). These changes are encouraging, and will hopefully continue in years to come. The conference organising committee again mirrored the gender balance of the delegates as a whole (27.3 % female vs. 26.4% of delegates), though the program committee was markedly more male-dominated this year than last (82.4% male, against last year's 72.2%). At this year's 'Women in Space Research' lunchtime event, a number of suggestions were made that could help to make future conferences, and the wider community, a more equitable place... --- abstract abridged ---

Motivation & Objective

• To assess the gender distribution across key roles at the 16th Australian Space Research Conference (ASRC) in 2016.
• To evaluate the impact of the annual 'Women in Space Research' lunchtime event on promoting gender equity in the Australian space research community.
• To track changes in gender representation in presentations, awards, and conference committees compared to the previous year.
• To identify trends and potential strategies for improving gender equity in STEM and space research events.

Proposed method

• Data was collected from the 16th ASRC, held at RMIT University, Melbourne, in September 2016, focusing on attendee, speaker, and committee gender distributions.
• Gender representation was analyzed across multiple conference components: plenary talks, oral presentations, poster presentations, student awards, and conference committees.
• The study compared 2016 data to 2015 data to identify trends in gender balance over time.
• The 'Women in Space Research' lunchtime event was used as a forum to gather qualitative insights and suggestions for improving equity.
• The conference organizing committee's gender composition was compared to the overall delegate gender balance.
• Statistical comparisons were made between the proportion of female speakers in different presentation types and the overall female delegate percentage.

Experimental results

Research questions

• RQ1 What was the gender distribution among attendees at the 16th ASRC in 2016?
• RQ2 How did the representation of women in oral, plenary, and poster presentations compare to overall delegate demographics?
• RQ3 What changes in gender representation were observed in student awards and conference committees compared to 2015?
• RQ4 How effective was the 'Women in Space Research' lunchtime event in identifying actionable strategies for equity?
• RQ5 To what extent did the 2016 conference reflect progress toward gender equity compared to the previous year?

Key findings

• The overall proportion of female delegates at the 16th ASRC was 26.4%, up from 24.1% in 2015, indicating a 2.3 percentage point increase in representation.
• Female speakers accounted for 28.9% of all oral presentations in 2016, up from 25.2% in 2015.
• Plenary presentations showed a significant increase, with 44.4% of speakers being women—up from 22.2% in 2015.
• Poster presentations saw a rise in female representation from 7.7% in 2015 to 31.8% in 2016.
• Student awards were given to 33.3% women in 2016, up from 12.5% in 2015, indicating stronger recognition of early-career female researchers.
• The program committee remained male-dominated, with 82.4% male members, compared to 72.2% in 2015, highlighting a persistent gender gap in leadership roles.