PRESS RELEASE
TERAMO, 23 JANUARY 2018
A researcher in Political Science participates in the research project
funded by the European Union on gender equality in the governance of sports organizations
The University of Teramo collaborates with four other European universities to promote greater female participation in the governing bodies of sports federations and associations.
A researcher from the Faculty of Political Science of the University of Teramo will address the issue of gender equality in the governance of sports organizations as part of an Erasmus + research project, funded by the European Commission, which involves five European countries.
The main objective of the project is to promote the presence of women in the governing bodies of sports federations and associations in line with the Erasmus + Sport program. The project aims to identify effective tools for promoting gender balance within these bodies.
Tiziana Di Cimbrini of the University of Teramo, in collaboration with the
Prof. Luisa Esteban, project coordinator, (University of Zaragoza, Spain), Charlotte Smith (Business School of the University of Leicester, United Kingdom), Emilia Fernandes (University of Minho, Portugal), and Gonca Güngör Göksu (University of Sakarya, Turkey) will participate in the project ‘Corporate governance in sport organizations: A gendered approach (GESPORT)’.
The project started on January 1st, foresees a duration of three years and will end on December 31st 2020. Last week the first transnational meeting was held at the University of Zaragoza.
The research aims to explore how much and how women are represented in the decision-making bodies of the sports organizations of the five partner countries of the project in order to promote the presence of women in the centers of power of sport. Tiziana Di Cimbrini observes that: “The Italian legislative system has shown a good sensitivity towards the issue of gender equality. Just think about how our Constitution is attentive in this sense, our Code of Equal Opportunities between Man and Woman and the introduction of gender quotas on the boards of companies listed on the stock exchange “.
“This sensitivity, however, is not adequately reflected in the world of Italian sport in which, as a recent journalistic investigation,” women win but do not count “. There are still very few studies on the presence of women in sports governing centers. This research project can help women aspiring to a career in sports organizations to undermine the male monopoly “.
Prof. Esteban, coordinator of the project, notes that: “Understanding how much and how women are represented in the governing bodies of European sports organizations can help identify which gender policies to undertake and which ones to improve, both the level of the European Union and in individual member countries, to increase female participation at the top of sports organizations “.
“Making women’s experiences visible, the roles held in governing bodies, the governance models adopted in their sports organizations, and, finally, the difficulties and obstacles they encounter in their professional lives, can help other women make their way into the centers of power”. In a first phase, the project will carry out a survey of the female presence in the governing bodies of the sports organizations in each of the five countries concerned through field research and the construction of a database.
Subsequently, interviews will be carried out to learn from the experiences of women who have managed to reach top positions in sports organizations or who can however contribute to the identification of best practices. The project involves the organization of an international competition for the creation of a logo, a summer school and an international conference. Further details will be published on the project website.
The total cost of the project is € 320.511.
The video of the press conference held at the University of Zaragoza can be viewed at the following link: https://ecodeteruel.tv/presentacion-del-proyecto-europeo-gesport-en-el-campus-de-la-universidad-en-teruel/