Diversity Month 2022

This was the Diversity Initiative 2022 from May 12 - July 21, 2022

For the seventh time, the LMU, initiated by the Vice President for International Affairs and Diversity and the LMU Diversity Management, participated in the nationwide Diversity Day of the Diversity Charter with a variety of events.

Under the motto "Diversity4Research", various LMU faculties and research institutions organized interactive and creative events, activities and lectures that highlighted the relevance of gender and diversity aspects in research. The events were aimed at all university members and external interested parties. In addition to the digital offering, many events of the Diversity Initiative 2022 could take place live on the LMU campus.

The kick-off event on May 12, 2022

On May 12, 2022, the initiative started with a big kick-off event. Prof. Dr. Francesca Biagini, Vice President for International Affairs and Diversity, as the initiator of the event series, opened the event with a welcoming speech. "A multidisciplinary and diversity-sensitive approach to research topics promotes excellence and innovation. Thus, novel solutions to complex societal challenges can be developed by integrating diversity aspects," Biagini said.

Among others Prof. Dr. Tomas Brage contributed with a presentation on gender bias in science and Prof. Dr. Frauke Kreuter with a short video on fairness in AI research. Furthermore, LMU researchers from different disciplines highlighted the relevance of gender- and diversity-sensitive research as a driver for excellence and innovation in a panel discussion.

Keynote: The importance of diversity for meritocracy, academic freedom and excellence, Prof. Dr. Tomas Brage

In his lecture, Prof. Dr. Tomas Brage talked about the extent to which diversity and equal opportunity can support the acadamic values of meritocracy, academic freedom and excellence. The lecture dealt with the effect of stereotypes in academia. Prof. Dr. Tomas Brage provided insights into what biases are, what effect they can have, and how they become noticeable.

Prof. Dr. Tomas Brage holds a PhD in astrophysics and has already worked for NASA. For more than 20 years, Tomas Brage has been Professor of Physics at the University in Lund, Sweden as well as Dean of Education. For more than 15 years, he has been an advocate for equality in science and is active in several major European networks. For example, Tomas Brage is a member of the steering committee in the League of European Research Universities (LERU).

How gender and diversity aspects can influence AI research, Prof. Dr. Frauke Kreuter

Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Big Data in the form of digital data traces offer enormous potential to explore and solve complex societal challenges. Unfortunately, the application of AI often ignores the dependence on social and economic contexts, as well as the dependence on high-quality data. There is growing concern about the lack of fairness, an essential criterion for good design of AI use. Fairness in this context means the adequate consideration of different social groups in the data basis and in pattern recognition.

Fairness in Artificial Intelligence

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Three different focus areas

The events of the initiative were divided into three main topics and offered very different insights into the topic "Diversity4Research":

• Research Methodology: Several presentations and discussions highlighted the relevance of gender and diversity aspects in research from the perspective of different disciplines. The events showed how the consideration of diversity dimensions can influence planning, choice of methods and research practice. In a panel discussion at the initiative's kick-off event, top-class researchers discussed the topic from various angles and provided an introduction to the subject area.
• Research Content: Gender and diversity are research subjects of various disciplines.is can contribute to a reflected and informed engagement with diversity, which has been shown in numerous formats. For example, the Faculty for the Study of Culture organized contributions on Roma and Sinti as well as Afro-Greek and Jewish communities. Linguistics showed how diversity and language are related in a collaborative project. Musicology demonstrated how music lessons can be linked to inclusion approaches, and an expert from the Faculty of Econimics reported on discrimination in the labor market.

• Team-Diversity: The representation of different perspectives within research teams is another driver for innovative and complex solutions, because diverse research groups can promote creativity and multiperspectivity. In cooperation with LMU's research institutions and research consortia, networks, teams as well as role models were presented. For example, a comic exhibition "Inspiring Pathways to Science" adorned the LMU main building and the excellence cluster ORIGINS provided a video on the visibility of female scientists in the cluster.
  
  The conception of the events was also accompanied by the motto Diversity as Creative Advantage. Hence, many events were designed to be particularly creative and interactive and to encourage exchange and dialogue. For example, the university library designed an exhibition and film evenings and a guided tour of the city were organised.