While in Izmir I had an opportunity to visit Dozuk Eylul University and learn more about their plans for a Biomedicine & Genome Institute and Health Technology Development & Accelerator Center. Dozuk Eylul is the largest university in Western Turkey and has 51 research and development centers. We are developing a similar health technology incubator in Illinois and I was excited to learn more about the work being done in Turkey.
What struck me most as I toured the University’s facilities were the women. They made up the majority of workers I saw in the labs. When I asked about this, I was told that 50% of scientists and researchers in Turkey are women. A high percentage of the hospital executives I met with in Turkey were women as well. I find this fascinating, given that in the US only about 25% of workers in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) fields are women. We pride of ourselves on being progressive, so why are we so far behind when it comes to participation of women in academia, science and research?
Clearly there are historical and social constructs that have resulted in these fields being more acceptable and attractive to women in Turkey. There may be lessons here for how we can break down the barriers to women’s participation in STEM careers in the US. For example, there is much more we can do to eliminate the stereotypes that women are less capable or less qualified for science and research related fields than men.
Although I am impressed with the leadership of women in science, research, and health care in Turkey, I can’t ignore the fact that Turkey has what many consider to be a seriously deteriorating gender equality issue. Turkey’s social atmosphere is growing more conservative and activists have called on authorities to confront this reality. Unfortunately, it is the authorities within the Justice and Development Party, the party currently in power, supporting much of this culture shift. There is concern about the use of the government bureaucracy, educational system and civic organizations to propagate traditional Islamic religious values that promote secondary roles for women. A female doctor I spoke with made an observation that many women within the Ministry of Justice had been fired and replaced with men.
As a woman I had some reservations about traveling alone in Turkey. I have to say that as a tourist I felt very comfortable there. Still, several people, male and female, expressed concerns to me that the environment is becoming more hostile to women. The changes have been small so far but they are afraid that things could change quickly. I was told that women executives and others with means are making contingency plans to remove their daughters from Turkey if necessary.
I don’t want to give the wrong impression. People here are not quick to criticize their country. There is a strong sense of national pride and I believe the Turkish people have a lot to be proud of. But I was privileged to have some very open conversations with individuals willing to give me a more detailed picture of the current political and social situation. I’m not going to pretend to understand Turkish politics, which I’m sure are every bit as complicated as US politics. But what I do understand is that people are concerned. They feel that the government is moving away from the will of the people; that corruption and extremism are taking away their voice. So the concerns I heard about the changing attitudes about women are a subset of these broader concerns about the direction Turkey seems to be headed.
During these discussions several people suggested that I should try to do more for women. I’m not sure what I can do to help, but, as I’ve said before, I’ve learned that you don’t always have to know at the beginning of the journey. The important thing is to keep moving forward step by step. What I am sure of is that there is more all of us can do to be stronger advocates for women. It’s right for us to be challenged to think about how we can help women here at home and throughout the world.
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