IF STEM IS A PATHWAY, WHERE ARE THE TRAIL CREWS? EVIDENCE-BASED APPROACHES TO IMPROVING DIVERSITY IN THE GEOSCIENCES

Despite recent gains, women remain underrepresented in the geosciences. There's a cycle that often accompanies this realization: a new study identifies the problem (50% of high school graduates are women, 40% of geosciences BA/BS graduates are women, and yet by the time you get to Full Professor, only 6% are women). Then comes the question: why? More research, followed by interviews, task forces, think-pieces and popular articles: hand-wringing over the problem is followed by promises by institutions to improve. A few years pass, another report comes out and the cycle repeats itself. In other words, we know what causes the gender imbalance in geoscience; the problem persists, though, when we fail to take action. This talk synthesizes the recent literature, focusing on evidence-based practices that individuals, departments, scientific societies, and academic institutions can take to address the gender gap in the geosciences. An annotated bibliography of the references in the talk will also be provided, along with a curated set of resources on everything from writing codes of conduct for fieldwork to avoiding stereotype threat in teaching. This talk will focus on specific actions to enhance the recruitment, retention, promotion, and sustainability of women in the geosciences.