Gender Equality, Disability and Social Inclusion (GEDSI) in KONEKSI

KONEKSI has a strong commitment to achieving equitable outcomes and equal opportunity for all people, regardless of gender identity, disability status, age or location.

By increasing the use of knowledge-based solutions, especially for complex issues like inequality that often have multiple drivers, the program aims to support better policies and technologies for all.

KONEKSI's approach to inclusion and equality has a focus on three diverse groups.

Women

Even though women in Indonesia are achieving higher levels of education than ever before, gender norms are still creating barriers for women in research, particularly mid-career women, who are less likely to reach leadership positions than men. Discrimination towards women with children, institutional preferences for 'hard sciences' rather than research focusing on lived experience or social issues, a wage gap and gender-based violence in the workplace are just some of the factors driving inequality for women researchers.

Regional Researchers

Researchers at institutions outside the main island of Java face a number of barriers to producing and sharing their research, and engaging with policymakers and industry. Some of these barriers include: less funding, limited access to important facilities or resources, like laboratories or international research journals, and stereotypes about Indigenous and local knowledge.

People with disability

A lack of accessible education, from primary school all the way through to university campuses, reduces opportunities for people with disability to pursue research careers. While a growing number of universities have dedicated research units on disability, the areas they focus on are limited. People with disability are often relegated to being the objects of research, rather than active participants.

The program is tackling inequalities through a twin-track approach.

1. Making sure KONESKSI collaborations consider and address issues of inequality in their ways of working, all the way through the project cycle.
2. At the same time, directly targeting specific barriers. For example, attitudes or practices that reduce the number of mid-career women and people with disabilities in research leadership, or the inequities experienced by regional universities.

Improving inclusion in the research sector is important. It will not only create equal opportunities for people working in universities and research institutions, but will lead to better quality research that reflects and represents diverse experiences. Decisionmakers can then draw upon this knowledge to create better policies and technologies for a more inclusive, prosperous and fair society.

Equality and inclusion in action

The PUSKAPA - ANU research project, Building Inclusive Climate Resilience: Enhancing the Adaptive Capacity of Indonesian Children and Youth in Overcoming and Mitigating the Climate Impact, highlights the experiences and perceptions of children and youth in the face of climate change, particularly in disaster-prone areas. By including their perspectives, the project aims to shape more equitable and effective climate policies. This inclusion not only addresses the injustices faced by younger generations, but also empowers them by ensuring that their voices contribute to forward-looking, sustainable solutions to the challenges posed by climate change.

UNIPA - There are many examples of women's knowledge and expertise being overlooked by scientists and others in climate change responses, even when women's work involves managing mangroves, sustaining diverse communities of life, and educating the next generation. So far in our project we have found that women in some areas of Papua can better identify or classify more mangrove types in their own local language name compared to men. We see our project as documenting knowledge that has historically been ignored, and affirming for Indigenous women and communities that women's work with mangroves is a critical form of expertise that should inform responses to the climate crisis.

GEDSI Strategy Summary

KONEKSI has a strong commitment to achieving equitable outcomes and equal opportunity for all people, regardless of gender identity, disability status, age or location. The program has two End of Investment Outcomes (EOIO): (1) Australian and Indonesian organisations have increased collaboration and mutual understanding through knowledge partnerships; and (2) innovative solutions for inclusive and sustainable policies and technologies are generated by knowledge partnerships. The KONEKSI GEDSI Strategy is designed to guide the program towards these outcomes. The Strategy offers background on the research context in Indonesia, Australia and globally, as well as the socio-economic factors that impact GEDSI in the research sector. The Strategy also defines a set of principles and approaches, analyses challenges and opportunities, identifies risks, outlines actions, and details GEDSI resourcing, monitoring, evaluation and reporting. This summary document provides a quick-read version of the key features of the GEDSI strategy.