Numerous funding bodies, such as the German Research Foundation (DFGExternal link) and European funding lines such as Horizon EuropeExternal link place particular emphasis on taking gender aspects in research into account. This term encompasses both equal opportunities in research projects and the consistent consideration of gender throughout the research cycle.
In its Statutes for Safeguarding Good Research Practicepdf, 349 kb, the University of Jena has stipulated that researchers must consider "whether and to what extent gender and diversity dimensions may be significant for the research project" (Section 8, paragraph 3).
On its website, the DFG provides information on the relevance of sex/gender and diversity in researchExternal link, offers further subject-specific examples for guidance, and makes a checklistExternal link available to applicants.
The Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR) regularly organises informative workshops on the topic of "Gender Dimension in Research"External link.
From an international perspective, the "Gendered Innovations"External link initiative at Stanford University (USA) is particularly relevant. Here you will find not only guidance on fundamental concepts and methods, but also a wide range of examples and case studies from a variety of research areas.
Prof. Oliver Werz conducts research into inflammatory processes in the human body in the Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry at the University of Jena. As early as 2005, he was able to provide evidence to prove that there are key gender differences between men and women.
We speak to Oliver Werz about, amongst other things, why the development of medicines that would have been specifically effective in women was discontinued, what ‘men’s cold’ is really all about, and why vaccines work better in women. (in German)
Ivonne Löffler is a biologist who has completed her habilitation and works at the Nephrology Research Laboratory at Jena University Hospital (JUH). In her basic research into kidney diseases, she works with mice and discovered by chance that her experiments, when conducted separately on male and female test animals, yielded surprising results. (in German)
