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<a href="https://2016.igem.org/Team:Exeter/Integrated_Practices/lab" class="banner_link col-xs-6"><span class="oneline">Integrated: Kill Switch</span></a>

<a href="https://2016.igem.org/Team:Exeter/Integrated_Practices/ED" class="banner_link col-xs-6"><span class="oneline">Integrated: Equality and Diversity</span></a>

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Lab intergration

<h6>Lab Integration:</h6>

                 <p id="pp">Due to time restraints with our project we decided to focus on providing significant analysis on the kill switches individually, however advice from Markus Geshater of Synthase Limited indicating that multiple kill switches in one system would be unfeasible and the different systems would need to be truly orthogonal to be effective. He explained that if in an industrial setting your synthetic system is producing a protein, then having one or multiple kill switches that are reliant on protein production would reduce the efficiency of production of your desired protein. Furthermore these kill switches could potentially be circumvented by the overexpression of a useful enzyme that is being commercially produced. Consequently, we felt assured in dropping the idea for a multiple kill switch system because our kill switches relied heavily on protein production and thus would reduce the efficiency of the product in an industrial setting. Instead of looking at multiple kill switches in the same system we looked to design three distinct kill switches to test and compare the efficiency of enzymatic, metabolic and DNA degrading mechanisms</p>

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Student opinions

 

 

<h5>Background</h5>

The fundamental reason we have for targeting equality and diversity within science, is that synthetic biology has the chance to be hierarchically and systematically equal from the beginning. If those working in the field can encourage the importance of diversity to younger generations, then when synthetic biology becomes better recognised publicly as a field of science, it has the possibility of being known for its progressive nature towards gender, racial and socio-economical equality.  

We started our work on Equality and Diversity after we spoke to Dr Robert Smith of Kings College London, at the UK iGEM meetup in Westminster. He spoke to us about our progress with Human Practices and some of the successes we had already had. He emphasised that our idea for a study into diversity and equality in science had not really been performed, to his knowledge, at iGEM before, much like our work on the importance of understanding what a kill switch is. We therefore thought that we have the possibility of making a significant impact in this field by highlighting and addressing some of the issues surrounding a lack of gender equality and diversity in science overall.  

The original plan was to create a short video highlighting the some of the issues surrounding a lack of gender equality in science and demonstrating what could be done in synthetic biology to address these issues. Dr Smith encouraged us to look more broadly at diversity in science as well, emphasising that the problem doesn’t just stem from gender inequality, but also from a lack of diversity in terms of ethnicity, religion, disability and background.  

Using the University of Exeter as a case study for universities in the UK, we want to highlight if there is a problem with diversity and inequality by exposing the issue to a wider audience.  

 

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On 24/08/16 we met with Dr Andrew Griffiths to talk about his role as the current Equality, Diversity and Inclusivity lead for Biosciences at the University and what he thinks could be done to improve these areas within the department. By talking to the point of contact to staff about these issues, we can understand what sort of recurring issues are brought up, and what the university is doing to address these issues.  

<q style="margin:auto;display:block;"><i>Perhaps we should try to promote paternity leave allowing flexibility for men to look after the children so the burden doesn’t fall on women all the time.</i></q>

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We were again led to question whether shared parental leave would relieve some of this pressure put on women? In fact, the ‘Swedish model’ of parental leave and balancing career with family commitments shows some very desirable qualities that employers would look for: ability to multitask (especially under pressure), commitment to career, etc. However, Dr Santos warned us about attributing the fact that fewer women are taking up jobs in higher up roles within Bioscience to maternity leave - <q style="padding-left:0px;padding-right:0px;">Maternity is an easy excuse</q>.

The need for supervisors to act as role models to young, aspiring post-docs is very apparent, especially as role models are so important for undergraduates and postgraduates, so why should this stop at levels beyond this?

To conclude this meeting, we asked Dr Santos what she thinks needs to be done to improve gender equality in science and her response was as follows:

                 <p id="pp"><a href="#Academiclist" >Back to list</a></p>

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<q style="margin:auto;display:block;"><i>She would never make it in science unless she learns to give a talk without sounding like a silly little schoolgirl</i></q>

                 <p id="pp">It is shocking to think that a female role model would feel this is an appropriate comment for a nervous, but aspiring, young scientist. Dr Lewis argued that you could <q style="padding-left:0px;padding-right:0px;">never imagine a man being told he gave a bad talk because of a mannerism</q> and this kind of advice and influence has the potential to destroy all confidence in an individual.</p>

                 <p id="pp">Considering the problems that we have heard from different academics at the university about establishing yourself in science as a woman, it is understandable why this in-built confidence in your own ability is very hard to attain. Interestingly Dr Lewis highlighted that there is a <q style="padding-left:0px;padding-right:0px;">ingrained difference</q> and that many academic situations are <q style="padding-left:0px;padding-right:0px;">built around the male world</q>. For example, presentations. She had observed many male tutees stand up and be naturally confident in their ability to talk in front of a crowd, however, she noted that it is more intimidating for the female tutees. Consequently, we have to consider if universities are doing enough to promote confidence in all students.</p>

 

                 <p id="pp"><a href="#Academiclist" >Back to list</a></p>

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                 <p id="pp">This confirms some of our fears about the fight to change equality and diversity in science. When we began working on equality and diversity, we had the view to look at diversity in science as a whole, however, the more people we spoke to the more we looked into gender inequality and the more we saw how much of a problem it was. Therefore we can understand why the university would be focusing so much on improving gender equality, however if gender has become the only issue then we cannot condone that. Dr Dixon went on to talk about the new Equality, Diversity and Inclusivity group was set up to combat other issues like disability, sexuality and ethnicity.</p>

                 <p id="pp">Dr Dixon echoed many of the views raised by Dr Lewis, of the importance of role models and mentors to the development of both students and academic staff. Dr Dixon did stress however that mentors and role models do not need to be gender specific, and this may be a way of changing the more unconscious biases in gender. If we encourage people that a mentor can be someone who has experience of certain areas that you require help with, no matter the gender, then you might be able to reduce the pressure on certain individuals. </p>

                 <p id="pp">From the initial interview with Dr Griffiths, to the interview with Dr Lewis, all academics have spoken about giving women more confidence in putting themselves up for promotion, however Dr Dixon had a different perspective. She recognised that more needs to be done to give support to women and give them confidence to apply for more senior roles, however, she indicated that university culture was actually affecting the health of men, due to the pressure of promotion:</p>

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                 <p id="pp">Dr Wilson left us with some really key points:

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                     <li><q style="padding-left:0px;padding-right:0px;">Having the opportunity for shared parental leave, equalising the time available for maternity and maternity support is really important to make sure that people don’t really get left behind.</q> Which clearly echoes the points of all of the academics we have spoken to about maternity and paternity leave.</li>

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Meeting with Professor Michelle Ryan - Professor of Social and Organisational Psychology, Dean of Postgraduate Research and Director of University of Exeter Doctoral College

 

                <p id="pp">On 27/09/16 we concluded our research of highlighting the work of academics at the University of Exeter in equality and diversity. We interviewed Professor Michelle Ryan a Professor of Social and Organisational Psychology, Dean of Postgraduate Research and Director of University of Exeter Doctoral College about her research, what she believes the problem is of equality in science and how we can improve equality and diversity overall.

Professor Ryan is an incredibly inspirational woman and true role model for all, who we spoke to for over an hour. Her research into the ‘Glass Cliff’ is groundbreaking, highlighting the fact that those women who break through the glass ceiling are put in leadership roles in times of crisis or risk meaning they are expected to fail. Professor Ryan’s insight will help conclude our research as she can provide both statistics and reasoned arguments, due to her extensive research into this topic.</p>

 

<q style="margin:auto;display:block;"><i>We need to almost embed an Athena swan ethos in everything we do</i></q>

 

                <p id="pp">Professor Michelle Ryan had previously been heavily involved in the Athena Swan group and highlighted its importance in improving gender equality and diversity at the university and nationwide. Dr Dixon had commented that her department was trying to implement equality and diversity ethos directly into their work so they can drive forward changing attitudes in the College of Life and Environmental Sciences, however Professor Ryan suggested that Athena Swan activities and attitudes should implemented in not just the core sciences but also our own attitudes to work. She believed the reason why gender was being targeted so prominently at this university was because the <q style="padding-left:0px;padding-right:0px;">has become a lot more visible</q> and people have been more empowered to comment on the problem and act against it. </p>

 

 

                <p id="pp">This provided us with a good answer for why the university was focusing so much attention on gender inequality and seemingly putting the changing of other forms of diversity on the back burner, that we hadn’t considered. But Professor Ryan did inform us that the University are in fact working hard to improve diversity as a whole at the university with the rise of groups like Stonewall, who fight for equality in terms of sexuality, but also programmes that look to improve racial and religious equality too. The conclusive point we were left with from Dr Wilson, was that we should make the whole University an inclusive and accepting place for all, recognising that science and scientific degrees are not gender specific subjects. Professor Ryan further emphasised this point, commenting that by embedding the ethos of Athena Swan into all our actions, we can make ensure the University is distinctly inclusive.</p>

 

                <p id="pp">One of the main themes that has been recurring throughout this research highlighting equality and diversity at the university, has been the issue of the confidence of women. Professor Ryan had an alternative perspective to the majority of the academics we have met with. She highlighted that the issue with all the programme giving women <q style="padding-left:0px;padding-right:0px;">leadership training</q> and more confidence in their own abilities, is the fact that there is a fine line between improving and intervening.</p>

 

 

                <p id="pp">In the very first interview with Dr Griffiths, he suggested this same problem, that as a man he was uncomfortable with coming across in a patronising manner when trying to address issues of confidence in women. Dr Lewis argued that increasing the number of quality role models surrounding female staff and students is the key to improving confidence in areas like presentations and public speaking. However, here, Professor Ryan argued that you are in danger of coming across to women like <q style="padding-left:0px;padding-right:0px;">so you don't know how to lead so we'll teach you how to lead properly or you're not pushy enough so we'll teach you to be more pushy</q>. We hadn’t considered this perspective because of the personal accounts academics like Dr Lewis had shared about the importance of programmes for improving confidence in how it empowers women to respect themselves more. Furthermore, Professor Ryan applied this to the application process of jobs. It is recognised that men will apply for jobs if they meet some of the criteria whereas women tend to apply if they have met all, or almost all, of the criteria.</p>

 

<q style="margin:auto;display:block;"><i>Another way you could see that is there is a problem with men, men putting themselves forward when actually they're not qualified</i></q>

 

                <p id="pp">Professor Ryan argues that the problem shouldn’t necessarily be tackled by giving women more courses on leadership, confidence and empowerment, but perhaps we should be changing the attitudes of men. We talked with all the academics about what kind of social change is necessary for there to be a difference in equality and diversity in science, and Professor Ryan indicates that we should consider putting the same kind of focus on changing male attitudes to confidence as we are with women, except with the opposite circumstance.</p>

 

 

                <p id="pp">We would think that a way to make an immediate difference on this front would be to give the right kind of role models and mentors to people so to dissuade them from applying for a job if they are very under qualified, and likewise persuade people to apply for the job if they are qualified. Dr Sharon Dixon argued that these mentors don’t need to be of any one gender or any one background, just as long as they can relate to the person involved. Professor Ryan agreed with this perspective saying:</p>

 

 

                <p id="pp">This perspective is one we agree with, because it is unrealistic to believe that there is one individual for all, who can act as a multi-purpose role model. Another area where both Dr Dixon and Professor Ryan agreed was in the fact that the mentor could be at any level including direct peers <q style="padding-left:0px;padding-right:0px;">we need to make sure we’ve got a variety of visible role models</q>. Over the process of these interviews, the idea of a good role model has changed from being someone who just inspires an individual to do something, to a necessary part of every student and academics life. For improving equality and diversity, having a ‘diverse’ range of role models surrounding every individual already promotes diversity on the small scale, and could affect people’s preconceptions about gender equality up the levels in science. Professor Ryan highlighted:</p>

 

<q style="margin:auto;display:block;"><i>(You can’t) just (say) this woman has been successful in science isn't she great, you really want to say anyone can be successful</i></q>

 

                <p id="pp">As a society, we need to make sure that when it comes to role models, we are not just highlighting individuals who are successful in science, we want to people who are relatable, successful, interesting and engaging. Furthermore, this affects how we approach maternity and paternity leave in science. There is already a bias among men and women, that women take time off to have the child and men continue to be the breadwinner. Dr Dixon talked about the pressures men were under to provide for the family so soon after childbirth and the conflict this might cause in the family. This is especially shown if both partners were scientists as the male would pull ahead in terms of numbers of publications and academic impact and the female partner may be left feeling like an add-on to the career of the male partner. Professor Ryan stressed that <q style="padding-left:0px;padding-right:0px;">It's important not just to show women who have children as being good role models</q> we also need <q style="padding-left:0px;padding-right:0px;">male professors or males that are successful who talk about having their children</q>. Because of this, we may be able to inspire male partners to consider taking time off to be with the baby in a parental leave. Professor Ryan highlight the inherent bias with many male attitudes to parental leave saying:</p>

 

<q style="margin:auto;display:block;"><i>When you ask men in areas where there is parental leave available to them they said they won't take it as it will harm their career</i></q>

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                <p id="pp">Whether changing this attitude is possible by give men more of the right kind of role models, or if there is another answer, what is clear, is that this attitude needs to change. If men are uncomfortable with taking time away from their career, preventing their career progression, but are comfortable with allowing their female partner to take time off, or leave their career altogether, then we need to focus on changing this societal bias. Professor Ryan highlighted an interesting question:</p>

 

 

                <p id="pp">We also have to ask if men feel pressured by their partners or if the pressure is stronger from society, affecting whether they choose to stay at home or go back to work. We also have to consider how women’s attitudes might change when they have their baby, they may be set on going back to their career as soon as possible, but this may change. From this series of interviews, we have deduced that this may be the problem with imposing a strict parental leave concept, without first changing societal norms. In the Scandinavian countries, both parents taking time off for their children is accepted and encouraged because is shows they are committed to both work and family, they have the ability to multitask and they compassionate qualities that are desirable in the workplace and at home. The fact that women who <q style="padding-left:0px;padding-right:0px;">don't take leave to look after their children (are) often judged quite harshly”</q> and that if men do take leave, they are often considered weird or ‘unmanly’, shows that the current concept of our parental leave may not be feasible in the UK’s society.</p>

 

<q style="margin:auto;display:block;"><i>It is not just about making leave available it's also about how you judge people once they've taken leave</i></q>

 

                <p id="pp">Professor Ryan further commented on the way society judges people in both the application process for jobs and in general; highlighting how it is a significant sign of gender inequality. We asked her if taking the names off of CV’s would help prevent discrimination against any one gender or race. Professor Ryan argued that whilst <q style="padding-left:0px;padding-right:0px;">you could try to achieve gender equality by having a gender-blind system</q>, this might not be the kind of gender equality you are fighting for. It wouldn’t necessarily solve the problem of women who have taken time off to have children, and hence have a large gap in their CV’s compared to men. Dr Wilson stressed that you need to change the attitude of the employer so that they will consider the potential in a female candidate alongside the publications of a male one; noting that the female candidate may have taken time off due to pregnancy and hence would have fewer publications. Professor Ryan stated: <q style="padding-left:0px;padding-right:0px;">when I look at two CVs I don't just want to take them at face value as if they're equal because actually, I know society is not equal</q> and hence a female candidate may have a reason for having a gap in the CV. Overall, she argued that <q style="padding-left:0px;padding-right:0px;">unless we have a society that is not gendered</q> taking the names of CV’s isn’t the same as equality.</p>

 

                <p id="pp">Professor Ryan gave us some incredibly valuable information on what needs to be done to make a difference in equality and diversity in science and in general, which supported many of the conclusions drawn by the other academics. Overwhelmingly, all academics highlighted the need for a massive societal change in attitudes to gender equality and the unconscious biases associated. Furthermore, many academics said that we could make an immediate effect by giving students and academics role models and mentors to help guide their perspectives on society.</p>

 

<q style="margin:auto;display:block;"><i>Make sure they are obtainable so people can feel like they can be like them, that they are desirable or that they want to be like them and that they embody the same sorts of goals” (Prof. Ryan)</i></q>

 

                <p id="pp">Importantly all academics have stressed the need for a change in attitudes to maternal, paternal and parental leave. All academics highlighted that first, societal attitudes need to change for there to be a significant difference, with Professor Ryan emphasising the importance of role models to encourage male and female partners that it is ok to take time off their career, and with Dr Dixon encouraging more support to both male and females in taking leave. Most academics stressed that the ‘Scandinavian model’ should be followed as an example of how to implement parental leave properly into culture.  </p>

 

                <p id="pp">Overall, we have examined the work of academics at this university who attempt to improve equality and diversity, at their different levels, in science. They have greatly informed us on the problems with gender inequality as well as how the university is, and plans on tackling the problem. </p>

 

 

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<q style="margin:auto;display:block;"><i>Getting representation from people of all different backgrounds, whether that be racially, sexual orientation, gender, socio-economic background. It is just representing people who are different</i></q>

 

 

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Future

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