President's Welcome
Maynooth University’s 2018 Athena SWAN Bronze Award represented a key milestone and recognition of our University community’s commitment to advancing gender equality. Maynooth University was the first Irish institution to apply under the expanded version of the Charter that includes Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences disciplines and Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics and Medicine. It also incorporates intersectionality, considering the numerous factors that can overlap with gender inequality, including the intersections between gender, race and ethnicity.
Maynooth University was the first institution in Ireland to apply for and achieve a renewal of its Athena Swan Bronze Institution award under the new Athena Swan Ireland Charter processes, which were introduced in October 2021. To qualify for a renewal of an Athena Swan Award, Institutions are required to demonstrate progress achieved against previously identified priorities and actions to address gender inequality.
The cornerstone of Maynooth University’s 2023 Athena Swan Bronze application was its comprehensive Gender Equality Action Plan for 2023-2026, which is underpinned by the University’s Equality and Diversity Policy. The plan incorporates recommendations made at national level by the Higher Education Authority (HEA) and addresses the requirements for Horizon Europe, the European Commission’s research and innovation framework programme.
The Athena Swan Bronze application outlined the progress that has been made since the initial Bronze Award including: the appointment of our Vice-President for Equality, Diversity and Inclusion(EDI), Dr Gemma Irvine and the establishment of the EDI Office; the development of a Gender Identity and Expression Policy encompassing transgender and gender diverse staff and students; and the development of the National Gender Equality Dashboard for Higher Education Institutions by AIRO, which Maynooth University hosts and which is an important resource for the sector.
Through the Gender Equality Action Plan 2023-2026, the University will build on this progress and continue to advance gender equality at Maynooth University and other equality grounds enshrined in Irish employment legislation. The 54 actions in the plan include:
- Ensure that key decision-making bodies comprise at least 40% women and 40% men, and there is gender balance across chairs.
- Prepare for an Athena Swan Silver Institutional Award application in November 2026 round, in line with HEA timelines.
- Implement the recommendations and actions for HEIs in the HEA’s Ending Sexual Violence and Harassment in Higher Education Institutions Implementation Plan.
- Advance race equality at MU through the development of a MU Race Equality Plan.
Sixteen Maynooth University Departments/Schools have now achieved Athena Swan Bronze: in addition to the six departments and two schools in the Faculty of Arts, Celtic Studies & Philosophy, the departments of Biology, Business, Chemistry, Experimental Physics, Geography, Law, Maths & Statistics and Psychology each hold Bronze Department Awards and many more have started their critical reflective analysis and are progressing their applications.
In 2022, for the first time, Irish Higher Education Institutions were required to report on their gender pay gap as per the Gender Pay Gap Information Act 2021. It is important to note that the gender pay gap does not indicate pay discrimination (i.e. an absence of equal pay for the same work, which was outlawed in the Republic of Ireland by equal pay legislation in 1975), rather it is the gap between what is earned on average by all female employees in the organisation compared to all male employees in the organisation. While not constituting pay discrimination, a gap may indicate that there are differences in the roles that women are represented in compared to men. It is important to identify any barriers or biases that may lead to a gender pay gap, and through the work outlined above and our Maynooth University Gender Equality Action Plan, we are actively working to address this.
I look forward to working with all of you on this important agenda.
Professor Eeva Leinonen
President
Maynooth University
Fáilte an Uachtaráin
Cloch mhíle an-thábhachtach a bhí sa Ghradam Cré-Umha de chuid Athena SWAN a bronnadh ar Ollscoil Mhá Nuad sa bhliain 2018, chomh maith le haitheantas ar cé chomh tiomanta is atá pobal na hOllscoile do chur chun cinn an chomhionannais inscne. Ba í Ollscoil Mhá Nuad an chéad institiúid in Éirinn chun cur isteach air faoi leagan leathnaithe na Cairte lena n-áirítear na hEalaíona, na Daonnachtaí agus na hEolaíochtaí Sóisialta mar dhisciplíní chomh maith le hEolaíocht, Teicneolaíocht, Innealtóireacht, Matamaitic agus Leigheas. Ní hamháin sin ach cuirtear trasnachas san áireamh freisin, ag glacadh leis go bhfuil roinnt mhaith toscaí ann a fhorluíodh ag amantaí le comhionannas inscne, mar aon leis na trasnuithe idir inscne, cine agus eitneacht.
is í Ollscoil Mhá Nuad an chéad institiúid agus an t-aon institiúid in Éirinn go dtí seo a d’iarr agus a bhain amach athnuachan ar a gradam Institiúid Chré-umha Athena Swan faoi phróisis nua Chairt na hÉireann Athena Swan a tugadh isteach i mí Dheireadh Fómhair 2021. Chun cáiliú d’athnuachan ar Ghradam Athena Swan, ní mór d’Institiúidí dul chun cinn a léiriú ar chomhlíonadh tosaíochtaí agus gníomhaíochtaí a aithníodh roimhe seo chun aghaidh a thabhairt ar neamhionannas inscne.
Is é bunchloch iarratas Athena Swan Ollscoil Mhá Nuad ná a Plean Gníomhaíochta cuimsitheach um Chomhionannas Inscne do 2023-2026, a bhfuil Beartas Comhionannais agus Éagsúlachta na hOllscoile mar thaca aige. Ionchorpraítear sa phlean moltaí arna ndéanamh ar an leibhéal náisiúnta ag an Údarás um Ard-Oideachas agus tugann sé aghaidh ar na ceanglais le haghaidh Fís Eorpach, clár réime taighde agus nuálaíochta an Choimisiúin Eorpaigh.
Tá dul chun cinn suntasach tar éis bheith déanta ar phríomhghníomhaíochtaí lena n-áirítear: an ceapachán de Leasuachtarán don Chomhionannas, don Éagsúlacht agus don Idirchultúrachas, an Dr Gemma Irvine agus an bunú den Oifig CÉI; an fhorbairt ar Pholasaí maidir le Feiniúlacht agus Léiriú Inscne a chludaíonn baill foirne agus mic léinn atá trasinscneach agus éagsúil ó thaobh na hinscne de; agus an fhorbairt ar Chlár Eolais Náisiúnta ar Chomhionannas Inscne do na hInstitiúidí Ardoideachais ag AIRO, a bhfuil Ollscoil Mhá Nuad mar óstach aige agus a fheidhmíonn mar acmhainn thábhachtach don earnáil.
Tríd an bPlean Gníomhaíochta um Chomhionannas Inscne 2023-2026 geallann an Ollscoil tuilleadh beart a dhéanamh chun cur leis an dul chun cinn seo agus leanúint ar aghaidh le comhionannas inscne a chur chun cinn in Ollscoil Mhá Nuad agus ar fhorais chomhionannais eile atá cumhdaithe i reachtaíocht fostaíochta na hÉireann. Áirítear ar na 54 gníomh sa phlean:
- A chinntiú go gcuimsíonn príomhchomhlachtaí cinnteoireachta 40% ar a laghad de mhná agus 40% d’fhir, agus go bhfuil cothromaíocht inscne i measc na gcathaoirleach.
- Ullmhú d’iarratas ar Ghradam Institiúideach Airgid Athena Swan i mbabhta na Samhna 2026, ag teacht le hamlínte an ÚAO.
- Na moltaí agus na gníomhartha le haghaidh Institiúidí Ardoideachais a chur i bhfeidhm i bPlean Forfheidhmithe an ÚAO maidir le Deireadh a chur le Foréigean agus Ciapadh Gnéis in Institiúidí Ardoideachais.
- Comhionannas cine a chur chun cinn ar fud MU trí fhorbairt a dhéanamh ar Phlean Comhionannas Cine MU.
Tá Gradaim Roinne Cré-Umha Athena SWAN bainte amach ag sé Roinn/Scoil déag de chuid Ollscoil Mhá Nuad: anuas ar an sé roinn agus dhá scoil i nDámh na n-Ealaíon, an Léinn Cheiltigh agus Fealsúnachta, tá Gradaim Roinne Chré-Umha bainte amach ag na ranna Bitheolaíocht, Gnó, Ceimic, Fisic Thurgnamhach, Tíreolaíocht, Dlí, Mata & Staitisticí agus Síceolaíocht agus tá tús curtha ag roinnt mhaith eile acu leis an anailís chriticiúil athmhachnamhach agus le próiseáil na n-iarratas.
Sa bhliain 2022, den chéad uair, tá riachtanas ar Institiúidí Ardoideachais Éireannacha a mbearna pháidh inscne a thuairisciú ag teacht leis an Acht um Fhaisnéis ar Bhearna Pháidh Inscne 2021. Tá sé tábhachtach le lua nach ionann an bhearna pháidh inscne agus idirdhealú páidh (m.sh. easnamh ar chomhphá don obair chéanna, rud atá i gcoinne an dlí i bPoblacht na hÉireann mar gheall ar reachtaíocht ar chomhphá ó 1975), ach is í an bhearna idir an méid a thuilltear ag fostaithe baineanna go léir san eagraíocht i gcomparáid leis an méid a thuilltear ag na fostaithe fireanna go léir san eagraíocht. Cé nach ionann sin agus idirdhealú páidh, tugann bearna le fios go bhfuil difríochtaí idir na rólanna a bhfuil ionadaíocht iontu ó mhná i gcomparáid le fir. Ní mór na bacainní nó claontaí a chiallaíonn go mbíonn bearna pháidh inscne ann a aithint agus obair ghníomhach a dhéanamh, tríd an obair thuasphléite agus tríd an bPlean Gníomhaíochta um Chomhionannas Inscne in Ollscoil Mhá Nuad, chun aghaidh a thabhairt orthu.
Táim ag súil le bheith ag obair libh go léir ar an ngnó tábhachtach seo.
An tOllamh Eeva Leinonen
Uachtarán
Ollscoil Mhá Nuad
