The University Alliance Ruhr is committed to a research landscape that reflects diversity and gender equality as a representation of our diverse society and a contribution to the advancement of scientific knowledge and innovation. Our commitment extends from our individual university communities to the many collaborations between the three universities, and to the newly established Research Alliance Ruhr.

Our joint activities address:
I. the promotion of a diverse research landscape;
II. The promotion of gender and diversity innovations in research activities; and
III. Coordinating existing and all future measures to promote and support diversity.

© Tim Kramer/RUB

I.    Promotion of a diverse research landscape
The UA Ruhr diversity strategy focusses on improving the diverse composition of research groups, and the recruitment and retention of diverse early career researchers in the UA Ruhr science system. Promoting international recruitment is an important pathway for increasing the diversity and gender balance of the science system.
The advancement of research structures and cultures attractive for diverse international and early career researchers is strongly supported by efforts to ensure discrimination- and bias-free research environments.
Efforts to ensure the autonomy of early career researchers will also contribute to the attractiveness of the UA Ruhr for diverse and international early career scholars, and motivate them to remain in the UA Ruhr science system as they advance in their qualifications.
The promotion of the international mobility of all early career researchers connects the experience of more diverse science settings with the advancement of international scientific networks.

II. Gender and diversity innovations in research
The three UA Ruhr universities endeavor to cooperating more closely in their leading research on diversity and gender equality, and to promote diversity and gender research in disciplines where such perspectives have been absent. Current areas of collaboration include gender and diversity in medicine, engineering, computer science, and in natural sciences research with a direct human impact. The aim is to consider how gender and diversity research is relevant across the wide spectrum of disciplines and to promote gender and diversity research in line with the DFG Research-Oriented Equal Opportunities and Diversity Standards.

III. Collaboration in diversity support and development
All three UA Ruhr universities have committed resources to diversity support and anti-discrimination policy. Innovations in several areas are already present at one or the other of the three UA Ruhr universities. We propose to coordinate measures, and to learn from each other, to identify where one of the partners has more experience, and to establish joint and coordinated measures.