Women in Physics Ling-An Wu 吴令安 Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences Beijing , China Asia-Europe Summit Meeting, Tsukuba

Outline Why Women in Physics? IUPAP Working Group on Women in Physics WGWIP in Europe WGWIP in Asia Regional differences and similarities International cooperation

Women have made great contributions to physics! Why Women in Physics? CPS 2005 WYP Poster #21 Women need Physics Physics needs Women

IUPAP Working Group on Women in Physics In 1980s APS study revealed: – No of physics majors going down – Future faces serious lack of physicists – Should make better use of women resources 1999 IUPAP approved setting up WGWIP Charge: Survey the situation for WiP and report back Suggest ways to improve the situation for WiP 2000/6 WGWIP first meeting, Washington – 11 representatives (2 men) from 9 countries

First meeting of WGWIP, Washington DC 11 representatives from 9 countries (Brazil, China, Germany, Egypt, India, Italy, Japan, S Korea, USA) Photo taken by Hidetoshi Fukuyama 2 Men: Herwig Schopper

Activities of IUPAP WGWIP  International Conference on Women in Physics 2002/3 1 st (Paris, UNESCO) 65 countries and regions, >300 representatives (10% men) 2005/5 2 nd IUPAP (Rio de Janeiro) 42 countries and regions, >140 representatives (<10% men) 2008/10 3 rd IUPAP ICWIP (Seoul) 57 countries and regions, >286 representatives, 204 papers 2011/5 4 th IUPAP ICWIP (South Africa)

Discussion topics 1.Balancing Family and Career 2.Launching a Successful Physics Career 3.Attracting Girls into Physics 4.Getting Women into the Physics Power Structure Nationally and Internationally 4.Improving the Institutional Structure and Climate for Women in Physics 5.Learning from Regional Differences 6.Personal professional development 7.Site visits assessing and improving the climate for women 8.Successful proposals and project leadership ; Fund raising 9.Organising WIP Working Groups

Conference Resolutions 2002 Paris Conference Resolutions Directed at: Schools and their Government Sponsors Universities Research Institutes Industrial Laboratories Scientific Societies National Governments Granting Agencies IUPAP

Also in considering requests for conference grants, we do not award funds if women are not represented on the Organizing Committee, where their presence will hopefully lead to an increased number of women physicists as invited speakers. Dec 2005 IUPAP President’s letter

2008 Seoul Conference Resolutions 1.Promote through the IUPAP Liaison Committees and Physical Societies the formation of additional regional or national working groups for women in physics. 2.Publicize site visits as an effective tool for improving the “climate” of physics workplaces, and encourage their implementation to help the workplaces become more supportive of both women and men. 3.Actively encourage organizers of IUPAP-sponsored conferences to provide, associates with the conference program (a) professional development workshops for attendees and (b) out reach activities aims at the public and to engage both girls and boys from an early age in excitement of physics.

Resolutions (continued) 4.Charge the IUPAP Working Group on Women in Physics (a) to oversee the administration of a global survey of physicists in 2009, (b) to continue to assess the progress of women in physics, (c) to make useful resources available globally through the internet, (d) to organize the 4 th International Conference on Women in Physics in 2011, and (e) to report at the 27 th Assembly in Urge IUPAP Liaison Committees and physical societies to take the leadership in their countries to encourage broad participation of their members in the global survey of physicists.

Other Activities  12~20 IUPAP Travel Grants per year  For Developing Countries and East Europe  Statistics, surveys  APS Questionnaires  Various activities in each region  Regional and national WGWIPs set up  2006/4 AAPPS establishes WGWIP

WGWIP in Europe France, Italy – Many women in high positions North Europe, Germany – Very few WiP East Europe – Many difficulties due to economic changes

Barbara Sandow (IUPAP WGWIP Chairman) Germany:

UK Institute of Physics One full-time staff devoted to Women issues Universities: 21% undergraduates, 4% professors female Aim: 30% in 15 years New initiatives: Professional development workshops Include women on organising committees, as speakers at UK physics conferences Give credit for time spent on promoting diversity Include gender diversity as a factor in the Research Assessment Exercise

Project Juno 2007 Project Juno established by IoP Recognise and reward departments that can demonstrate they have taken action to address the under-representation of women in university physics and encourage better practice for both women and men Best practice identified from IoP's Women in University Physics Departments: A Site Visit Scheme

Awards and Grants for Women Shell and IoP Award for Very Early Career Woman Physicist of the Year STFC Returners Fellowship: 'those seeking to resume a research career following a period of absence from active research (maternity, family or caring responsibilities, moving from a non academic employment sector). Daphne Jackson Fellowships for returners

Physics Departments in USA Universities

Women in Physics in Asia 2004/10 Hanoi APPC’9: Round Table discussion on WIP >60 participants, 50% men 2005/11 Pohang APCTP International Workshop on Asian Women in Physics 6 countries and regions, >40 attendees Decision to set up AAPPS WGWIP, approved by AAPPS in /6 Taipei 5th OCPA Diversity versus Excellence Forum 2006/11 AAPPS-APCTP Joint Forum on Women in Physics 2007/8 Pohang APPC’10 Women in Physics Forum

Activity Highlights Japan Girls Science Camp every year Childcare at JSAP meetings Korea Physics Camp for High School Girl Students 2002-

Activity Highlights China ： Taiwan Dec Offered the first scholarship for female graduate students in physics (Wu Chien Shiung Scholarship). June Made the first film on Female Physicists in Taiwan 《物理好风采》

Activity Highlights 2005 WYP Two posters on famous women physicists Special March issue of Physics magazine each year since 2004 with articles on women in physics Xie Xi-De Physics Prize for Women established in 2007 (biennual) Special girl’s prize in certain provincial Physics Olympiads 。。。

CPS 2005 WYP Poster #27 honoring WiP in China Mother and daughter look at the set of 51 WYP posters 2005 Fuzhou

Physics 38 Mar (2009): Articles on WiP Gu Jin-Hui (Ku Z W) 1926 BA Cornell Univ 1928 MA Yale Univ 1931 PhD Michigan Univ 1931 Professor, Nankai U., Shanghai Datong U,… Kaiser Wilhelm Institut fur Physik Ku Z W, Phys. Rev (1933), “The absorption spectrum of chlorine dioxide ” “Der Starkeffek und sein Beziehung zum thermodynamischen und magnetischen Verhalten in Chromalaun bei tiefen Temperaturen” ( Physik. Z.) 1st female Physics PhD in China

1st Xie Xi-De Prize (2006-7) awarded to Xie Chang-de (Shanxi Univ, Prof of quantum optics) and Ye Ling (Fudan Univ, Prof of condensed matter physics theory)

Press Release, Mexico, July 22: International Physics Olympiad highest score won by a girl for the first time SHI Handuo of China won – highest overall score – highest experimental score – best girl’s award 2/5 of China’s team were girls (SHI, LIN Qian), all won gold medals

1991–2004 Peking Univ Senior High School No. of Graduates Admitted as Physics Majors

Fudan University, Shanghai Physics Undergraduates

Fudan University, Shanghai PhD Students

Graduate Student enrollment in Institute of Physics, CAS ( )

% Female Research Staff in Institute of Physics, CAS

Number of Senior Research staff in CAS Institute of Physics

Ratio of Women Awarded Ordinary NNSFC Grants Ranked by Age (2001  2003 )

Ratio of Women Awarded Ordinary NNSFC Grants Ranked by Age (2004  2007 )

Female graduate students are increasing, but Why? Wrong reasons ?? Harder for women to find jobs Men score lower in exams Right reasons ?? Women realize they have better chances? Women score higher in exams?

Disturbing Factors Changing policies Job discrimination Age discrimination – Young Investigators’ grants same age – Earlier retirement age for women Child care facilities reduced

Regional differences and similarities Every country is unique – France, Germany, Italy different – Middle East: 50% physics major female, but very few above PhD level – Turkey: many female professors – China, Japan, Korea different – China Mainland, Hong-Kong, Taiwan different

International cooperation Through networking – Information exchange via internet International meetings But need – Travel money (IUPAP Travel Grant) – Childcare center Invite speakers to home country

Learn from one another Research Fellowships for Women Relaxation of age limits for grant applications from young mothers Professional skills workshops for women Gender Equity workshops for physics leaders Site visits

Future tasks Increase awareness of problem at all levels Increase popularization of physics, aiming at girls also Implement Equity, not just Equality, policies – Special grants for women – Age equity

AAPPS Workshop on Women in Physics in Shanghai, 2010 Nov 13 This will be the 2nd international meeting organized by AAPPS WGWIP Aim of the Workshop: To examine the severe under-representation of WiP in the Asia-Pacific region, discuss how to let women physicists give full play to their talent, as well as how to promote collaboration throughout the region. Venue: Shanghai Jiao-Tong University Attendees can then stay on for APPC11 (Nov 14-18)