COVENTRY University is set to help hundreds of Indian women scientists boost leadership credentials.
The women in science leadership programme (WiSLP) is set to provide training and workshops for up to 250 early career researchers looking to move up in their fields.
It follows from similar successful programmes, including training 400 women working in STEM.
Coventry University will work alongside the Indian department of science and technology, the British council and UK-Indian education and research initiative – and launched the programme with a national co-creation workshop in Delhi.
Elena Gaura, associate pro-vice chancellor (Research) at Coventry University, said: “Coventry University is honoured to collaborate with the British Council and India’s Department of Science and Technology on this transformative leadership development initiative for women in STEM and space sciences.
“By fostering interdisciplinary collaboration and emphasising an intersectional approach, this project will empower future female leaders, both in the UK and India, to navigate and overcome institutional challenges.
“Together, we are committed to advancing gender equality, enhancing scientific innovation and building strong, inclusive academic frameworks that will impact generations to come.”
Sariya Cheruvallil-Contractor, professor of the sociology of Islam at Coventry University, added: “This transformatory project is an opportunity to make a difference at the very heart of scholarship in space and allied sciences, in India and globally.
“We will enable women to recognise their agency and scholarship.
“Simultaneously we will encourage structural and policy change so that women’s leadership is rewarded and amplified.
“Adapting from the traditional phrase around women’s education empowering their villages, I will say that by recognising women’s scientific excellence this project will enable more inclusive scholarship for a more equal world.”
