Women in Space Leadership Programme Initiative Launches by DST

The Department of Science and technology (DST) in India with the collaboration with the British Council launches the initiative of “A Women in Space Leadership” (WiSLP) as a part of the UK-India Education and Research Initiative (UKIERI).

Focus

Main agenda of this initiative is to focus on supporting institutions in strengthening gender-inclusive practices to foster women’s leadership space sciences through developing a strategic leadership framework.

The programme would involve building sustainable mentoring networks and enhancing scientific innovation by integrating a gender perspective into critical areas such as astrophysics and telecommunications.

Delivery Partner

This initiative is supported and delivered by Coventry University,England.

Remarks by Head

Dr. Vandana Singh, Head of the Women in Science and Engineering (WISE)-KIRAN division at DST.

• This programme is a significant step towards creating a gender-inclusive environment in space sciences. 
• By building a robust leadership framework, we can empower women to contribute meaningfully to scientific research and innovation.

Michael Houlgate, Deputy Director of the British Council India

• She emphasized the importance of collaboration in solving global challenges and called for increased representation of women in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) fields.

This programme is underpinned by three foundational pillars,

• Intersectionality or understanding of different aspects of women’s identities
• Collaborative culturally sensitive approaches that respond to opportunities and challenges in India
• Using leadership theory from both social science and STEM to support female scientists to become more confident about their leadership abilities

A workshop

• In Line with this initiative, a design workshop was also held in New Delhi.
• Main aim was to engage academics, academic leaders, and policymakers to ensure that the leadership framework effectively addresses the unique contexts, challenges, concerns and opportunities facing women in academic leadership within space sciences and allied fields in India.