On February 10th, the university marked the UN International Day of Women and Girls in Science with an interdisciplinary panel discussion at Fortress Science. Moderated by Selma Porobić, Head of the Aurora Alliance, the event brought together international female scholars from across faculties and CATRIN to reflect on how women shape scientific knowledge, institutions, and future generations.
The panel featured scholars from five countries: Ukrainian Alla Fedorova (Faculty of Law), American Elizabeth Allyn Woock (Faculty of Arts), Spanish Nuria Diego Sanchez (CATRIN), Slovak Natalia Kaščáková (Faculty of Theology), and Chinese Huang Xiao Rui (Faculty of Health Sciences). Together, they represented a broad spectrum of research—from legal scholarship and the humanities to experimental science, trauma psychology, and clinical health sciences.
The discussion moved beyond representation to explore how women practice science across different epistemic traditions. Panellists reflected on how their disciplines define evidence and impact, how research engages with vulnerability and ethical responsibility, and how institutions can better support inclusive academic careers. The conversation also addressed structural dimensions of academic life, including career pathways, interdisciplinarity, invisible labour, international mobility, and mentoring. A recurring theme was that diversity in science is not only a matter of fairness but a driver of excellence and innovation. The event concluded with advice to young women considering careers in science and an engaging Q&A session, leaving participants with a shared reflection on mentorship, collaboration, and the future of inclusive research.
On the new website womeninscience.upol.cz, you can read the stories of nine female foreign scientists who show how rich our university community is. Each one is different, yet they share one thing in common – a love for science and also for our university town, which has gotten under their skin.
