Germany’s Hochschule Bremen Wins 2024 Minerva Informatics Equality Award
For the 9th consecutive year, Informatics Europe (IE) presents the Minerva Informatics Equality Award, recognizing successful initiatives that support women in Informatics research and education at all stages.
This year, the Award goes to the International Women´s Degree Programme in Computer Science at Hochschule Bremen – City University of Applied Sciences, Germany. In collaboration with COST Action EUGAIN – European Network For Gender balance in Informatics and sponsored by Google, the Award was presented at a ceremony during the 20th European Informatics Leaders Summit (ECSS 2024) in Sliema, Malta.
Prof. Dr. Gerlinde Schreiber accepted the Award on behalf of the winning programme. She has been involved in the programme since its establishment in 2000 and has served as its head since 2010. She said, “This prestigious award is a great recognition of our many years of successful work. The International Women's Degree Programme in Computer Science (IFI), established in 2000, is a single-gender programme designed to attract and retain more young women in IT. Between 2005 and 2015, more than 200 young women successfully completed their studies at IFI and have since gained years of valuable professional experience. While gender-segregated education often sparks controversy, our retention study of graduates from 2005 to 2015 shows a positive and sustainable impact of single-gender education on female careers through the IFI programme.” Prof. Dr. Schreiber has recently passed her position to her successor and is now retiring. We appreciate her commitment to gender equality, and her contributions to Informatics research and education. We wish her joy and relaxation in this new chapter.
Prof. Antinisca Di Marco (University of L’Aquila, Italy), Chair of this year’s Award Committee and member of IE’s Diversity and Inclusion Working Group, congratulated the Award winner. She said, “This year’s winner offers a bachelor’s programme in computer science specifically for women, with the first three semesters exclusively reserved for women and the remainder open to all genders. It incorporates curriculum design, teaching methods, international exchanges and industry partnerships, demonstrating sustainability and commitment for over two decades. Despite appearing outdated, single-gender studies are still vital for encouraging more women to pursue computer science, especially those who might not otherwise engage with these technical subjects.”
Given this year’s strong nominations, the Award Committee also recognised two runners-up:
- the Women in Information and Computing Sciences (WICS) network and the ICS diversity committee at Utrecht University, the Netherlands, have established and maintain a network between junior and senior department members to enhance career opportunities for women, and to raise awareness of their challenges and to improve the situation of women, addressing the intersectionality of diverse experiences in a collaborative effort;
- the Steering Committee of “Alice & Eve: a celebration of women in computing” initiative, a joint effort among several Dutch universities since 2020, has been organising various events highlighting the achievements of very diverse women in computer science.
The "Alice & Eve" Steering Committee, a runner-up this year, shared gratitude for the Award recognition. They highlighted their exhibition featuring portraits and stories of 30 women computer scientists from diverse backgrounds, celebrating the essential contributions of women in the field. “By portraying historical figures from Ada Lovelace and Grace Hopper to contemporary scientists like Qiheng Hu, the “Alice & Eve” initiative sends a powerful message that women have always been and continue to be essential to the progress of Informatics.”
Prof. Di Marco concluded, “This year’s Award Committee includes seven diversity and inclusion experts in academia from across Europe. We are impressed by the excellence and impact of the 12 Award nominations, whose long-standing efforts have made a substantial difference in the lives of many women and young girls across Europe.”
The Minerva Award, sponsored by Google, carries a prize of 5,000 EUR for the winner to further promote gender equality. To learn more about the Award, visit the Award webpage and the dedicated Best Practices in Supporting Women webpage.
About the Minerva Informatics Equality Award
The Minerva Informatics Equality Award, organised by IE and sponsored by Google, recognises outstanding European initiatives and best practices that encourage and support the careers of women in Informatics research and education. First introduced in 2016, the award now focuses on any stage of the career pipeline for women in Informatics. The Award Committee includes members of IE’s Diversity and Inclusion Working Group, past Award winners and members of EUGAIN, a COST Action with IE as the Grant Holder Manager. This year, each Award nomination underwent thorough evaluation, with at least three reviews conducted before a unanimous decision was made on the Award results.
About Informatics Europe
Informatics Europe represents the academic and research community in Informatics (or computer science) in Europe. Bringing together university departments, research laboratories and industry, Informatics Europe has nearly 200 member institutions in more than 30 countries, connecting over 50,000 Informatics researchers in Europe and beyond. IE creates a strong voice to promote concerted positions and acts on shared priorities in education, research, knowledge transfer and social impact of Informatics. Explore our website to learn more about our projects and services.