About the CBM

Equality committee

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Committee Chair

Alejandra Gámez Abascal

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Committee Vice-chair

Esther Serrano Saiz

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Contact information

igualdad(at)cbm.csic.es

The CBM Equality Committee was set up in 2021 and follows the Equality policies of the State General Administration,  the CSIC, and the CSIC Equality Plan. Its creation was approved and has the support of the CBM director.

The Equality Committee is not executive in its nature, but rather, will act by transmitting any concerns related to this matter to the Board of Directors of the CBM. Its performance must be in accordance with the Equality Plans of the CSIC and the Universidad Autonoma de Madrid.

Our aim is to ensure and foster the practice of the equal opportunities policy in all its activities, without distinction of gender, race, ideology, age, affective-sexual orientation or religion.

We will maintain close contact with the CSIC Equality and Women and Science Committees and with the UAM Gender Equality Unit. We are members of the CSIC-UAM Excellence Campus Network of Institutes’ Equality Committee (CBM, CIAL, CNB, ICMAT, ICMM, ICP, ICV, IFT, IIB and IMN), and we work in collaboration on topics of gender equality and promotion of female researchers.

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Committee members

Members:
* Alejandra Gámez Abascal (Chair, agamez@cbm.csic.es)
* Esther Serrano Saiz (Vice-chair, eserrano@cbm.csic.es)
* José Mª Carrascosa Baeza (jmcarrascosa@cbm.csic.es)
* Beatriz López-Corcuera (blopez@cbm.csic.es)
* Álvaro Sahún (alvaro.sahun@cbm.csic.es)
* Elisa Carrasco Cerro (elisa.carrasco@cbm.csic.es)
* María José Martín Pereira (comunicacion@cbm.uam.es)

Collaborators:
* Kostas Stamatakis (k.s@csic.es)
* Elena Campos Sánchez (Gondwatec@gmail.com)
* Leyre Campos Talaverón (lcampos@cbm.csic.es)
* Jaime Millán Martínez (jmillan@cbm.csic.es)
* Andres Soto (andres.soto@cbm.csic.es)
* Ernest Palomer (epalomer@cbm.csic.es)
* Ángela Vázquez Calvo (avazquez@cbm.csic.es)
* Cecilia Lara Segura
* Sara Cogliati (scogliati@cbm.csic.es)
* Eva Pajda Szeligowska (eva.pajda@cbm.csic.es)
* César Castellanos (cesar.castellanos@cbm.csic.es)

Aims and goals
  • To disseminate and promote the knowledge of the equality policies of the CSIC and the UAM, and more specifically, the equality plans of AGE, CSIC and UAM.
  • To publicize institutional activities and decisions on equality policies.
  • To serve as a channel for any proposals or suggestions that CBM staff may issue in this area.
  • To attend, in strict confidentiality, to any member of the CBM victim of harassment, discrimination or any other type of inappropriate behaviour.
  • To promote policies to reconcile work, personal and family life for all CBM employees.
  • To diagnose the situation in the CBM regarding equality, based on the data available in the center and promote specific measures that tackle any improvement area detected.
  • To promote the training for all CBM employees on gender equality and diversity issues, as well as specific training focused on treating sexual and gender-based harassment, preferably within the framework of the CSIC Training Plan.
  • To promote equality in the functional and organisational structures of the CBM in agreement with the direction of the CBM.
  • To encourage sex/gender inclusion in research and innovation and promote training in these matters, fostering the integration of sex/gender analysis in research projects.
  • To promote, through specific actions, the visibility of the role of women in the CBM, in all working areas, and the dissemination of the role of women in Science in general as a reference for current and future generations.
News and activities

Ciclo de seminarios de Igualdad

Red de Igualdad Intercentros del campus UAM-CSIC 

The CBM collaborates with the other 9 CSIC research centres of the UAM campus on activities related to EDI. In particular, the network created an Escape Road activity where participants can learn about female scientists awarded with the Nobel prize or Abel and Fields medals. The activity is available to the public during the European Researchers’ Night and is also available on loan to schools, prisons and other institutions.

11F, Día Internacional de la Mujer y la Niña en la Ciencia

8M, Día Internacional de la Mujer 

25N, Día Internacional de la Eliminación de la Violencia contra la Mujer 

LGTBI+ Pride Month

Our celebrations of pride month included a stand with movie, TV show and book suggestions, plus an interactive activity where our staff could indicate their sexual orientation.

We also had a series of posters on display, with information and bios of scientists of different sexual orientations, lent by our friends at the ICMM, which you can see here.

21 May, World Day for Cultural Diversity

To celebrate the multiculturalism of our centre, we organised an activity in which our staff were able to mark their country of origin on a map with a pin.

Breastfeeding room

The CBM has a unique breastfeeding room on the UAM campus. Our breastfeeding room is becoming more and more equipped and pleasant, and now has interesting readings about the benefits of breastfeeding, the possibility of donating milk, recommended bibliography and poetic and narrative texts.

“It is very comfortable and pleasant. The equipment works so fast that the process is speedy. I find it very comfortable to do it here at work, and it makes it bearable and very useful for me, as someone who spends many hours away from home.”

“I think the lactation room is amazing, and it’s taken a lot of stress away from me. I’ve made it to 6 months with exclusive breastfeeding, and I was worried about having to interrupt it to go back to work. A thousand thanks to all of you who have made it possible for there to be a room like this at the CBM. The truth is that it is priceless. And the posters and the phrases are beautiful, I really loved it.”

Users of the breastfeeding room.

Gender perspective in research

Including a gender perspective in research is a human rights challenge, aimed at achieving the desired equality between women and men. It requires that several actions be carried out aimed at increasing the participation of women in research, and towards their professional stabilization, as well as the incorporation of gender dimension in research. Many years of research have revealed that sexual and gender biases are harmful and costly to society.

Documents

Diversity

Diversity is a fundamental aspect of human societies, yet it is not equally represented in all fields, particularly in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics). The lack of diversity is evident in gender disparities, the predominance of white men in the workforce, and the underrepresentation of people with disabilities and LGBTQ+ individuals, many of whom face discrimination or feel compelled to hide their identities. This imbalance not only affects individuals but also limits the potential for innovation and progress in scientific research, as diverse teams are more creative, diligent, and effective in problem-solving.

Addressing this issue is not just about improving science—it is a matter of human rights and fairness. True inclusion means ensuring equal opportunities for everyone, regardless of gender, race, sexual orientation, or other personal characteristics. Fortunately, the scientific community is beginning to tackle this challenge, supported by social movements and organizations advocating for visibility and change. The CBM Equality Committee is committed to promoting diversity and inclusion, aligning with global efforts to create a fairer and more representative scientific field.

Prevention of harassment

The term “harassment” covers any offensive, humiliating, intimidating, violent or discriminatory conduct on grounds of racial or ethnic origin, religion or belief, opinion, sex, gender, sexual orientation, disability, age or any other personal or social condition or circumstance.

Both the CSIC and the UAM have protocols against sexual and gender-based harassment and harassment at work. Their general objective is to prevent harassment in any form and to effectively deal with it if it occurs.

UAM against harassment

CSIC Gender Equality in Science

Equality plans

Planes Igualdad AGE

Planes Igualdad CSIC

Plan Igualdad UAM