Institut National de la Recherche Scientifique, Canada

Everyday Sexism is Not a Trivial Matter!

The "Everyday Sexism is Not a Trivial Matter!" project is the result of an initiative by students in health sciences, environmental sciences and engineering at the Institut National de la Recherche Scientifique (INRS) who faced a common obstacle in their studies: everyday sexism. In response, they developed an awareness-raising campaign to change attitudes in favour of greater gender equality.

They organized workshops where students could share their experiences of everyday sexism. In collaboration with an illustrator, they created 5 comic strips inspired by the testimonies of community members and a guide to enable other members of the scientific community to lead discussions on sexism. They also organized conferences with renowned researchers recognized for their feminist engagement, Drs. Farah Alibay (NASA Aerospace Engineer, speaker and author) and Stéphanie Gaudet (Professor at the University of Ottawa and specialist in gender inequalities in academia).

Top 3 Learnings

1. We learned that providing opportunities to engage about sexism in academia empowers female students.
2. We learned that personal testimonials touch people and make them question themselves and take action.
3. We realized many men want to learn more about sexism to avoid reproducing hurtful behaviours.