Equity and positive change - improving EDI in funding and prizes
We're excited to be embarking on a project to ensure that our funding and prize processes reflect our commitment to diversity and equality, by identifying and addressing potential gaps and biases.
BISA has been awarded funding from the Academy of Social Sciences (AcSS) and ESRC EDI partnership to further our work on implementation of our Equality and Diversity Policy and strategy. Part of the funding is allocated to do work around the collection of EDI data for the eleven prizes and three funding awards we make annually. The data collection will help us better understand the demographics of applicants and recipients, and will be essential in guiding future improvements in our processes. Through this, we aim to:
- Ensure our awards are accessible to all, regardless of background.
- Recognize and celebrate diverse contributions to international studies.
- Continuously refine our policies to better support equality and inclusion.
In this article, BISA EDI Officer, Laura McLeod, reflects on the current challenges and how we aim to address them through the project.
Awards are key to the work that BISA does – we very much enjoy celebrating and recognising the wonderful work done by our members at the annual conference, and supporting members in doing research and creative work (you can find many examples on our article pages including 'The Visual Politics of the Women, Peace and Security Agenda: From the UN Security Council to Civil Society'). Such awards can increase professional standing, aiding secure employment, promotion and further awards. We want to be sure we are acknowledging the truly diverse work happening in International Studies, and celebrating the people doing that work. Importantly, we want to ensure we are awarding prizes and grants in an equitable and inclusive manner.
"We want to be sure we are acknowledging the truly diverse work happening in International Studies, and celebrating the people doing that work. Importantly, we want to ensure we are awarding prizes and grants in an equitable and inclusive manner."
As anyone who has been involved in judging prizes and grants will know, the process isn’t always inclusive. Who does the nominating and writes the supporting statements? Who is more likely to self-nominate for a prize? Famously, men are much more likely to be nominated and to self-nominate than women. Are we creating an environment where people feel comfortable to self-nominate even if they feel that they do not fit the mould to a typical award winner? Has that researcher had the same opportunities to interact with academic life as others? For instance, LGBTQI* academics may have been denied networking opportunities for fear of travelling to certain countries; a disability can create meta-work where capacity must somehow expand, encroaching on time to do other tasks; a black researcher will have needed to navigate entrenched social and institutional racism.
Are we also awarding prizes and grants to a diverse range of people? This goes beyond equality (ensuring everyone accesses the same opportunities) and relates to a belief in equity, where structures are put into place to enable those in marginalised or minoritised positions to succeed.
But, BISA does not yet collect EDI monitoring data on who is nominated, how they are nominated, who is applying for funding, and characteristics of who is subsequently awarded a prize or grant. GPDR regulations mean nominations and applications are purged every year. We can collect data, but it needs to be anonymised. There is currently no process for doing this, so we lack information on whether changes are needed or have worked in the way we want them to work (as we have committed to in our EDI policy). We are keen to go beyond memories and anecdotes to make changes.
The funding from the AcSS and ESRC EDI partnership will enable us to pilot a procedure for collecting EDI data, and to take a closer look at processes and practices around application, nomination and award of our prizes and funding.
As someone who is disabled, I frequently suspect equal opportunities data is collected purely for monitoring and reporting purposes to tick a box. The data is collected, and nothing is done with it – perhaps it is filed away, certainly it is seemingly forgotten about. So, I – along with other BISA Trustees – wanted this to be much more than a bureaucratic exercise. The ambition is to use the data to identify where change is needed (and not needed), especially as such awards can have a positive impact upon individual careers within our profession. Over the coming months we will have a data researcher intern working for us to create and implement a survey and gather the data around our prizes and awards process, and there will be more blogs as the process develops.
"As someone who is disabled, I frequently suspect equal opportunities data is collected purely for monitoring and reporting purposes to tick a box. The data is collected, and nothing is done with it – perhaps it is filed away, certainly it is seemingly forgotten about. So, I – along with other BISA Trustees – wanted this to be much more than a bureaucratic exercise."
Now, do consider nominating yourself or one of your colleagues for a prize, or applying for a grant! The Early-Career Small Grants and Learning and Teaching Small Grants are about to open (21 October) and prize nominations, alongside conference bursary applications open in January 2025.
