Results

On this site we present you with the results of the “Gap-Europe - Participation and Sustained Development” project. These results would not have been produced without intensive cooperation between the partner organisations involved from Italy, Austria and Germany. Not to mention the committed work of the trans-national teams, who were responsible for communication and exchange of experience, the research, discussions, and results, but who also made sure that the work was fun. The committed cooperation of the female and male researchers and experts involved was particularly important. Without them we would not have been able to compile this extensive analysis of the participation conditions for girls in Italy, Austria and Germany in important social fields or to develop competent suggestions for a Girls Action Plan (gap).

Thirteen experts in Italy, Austria and Germany have pursued the issue of girls’ participation in the sciences, environmental protection and politics. In all three countries that were involved, there were studies compiled in each of the aforementioned fields. They did a form of stock-taking of the current situation and the prospects for how the girls’ participation can be improved in the future. It is also particularly interesting to see both the comparative links between the three European countries and those between the three thematic fields researched. The gap-europe studies give a fascinating insight into the status of the implementation of gender mainstreaming in important social areas and sometimes highlight alarming “gaps”.

There are also the “Good Practice Projects” which constitute projects and offers which support girls and young women in their participation in the sciences, technology, environmental protection and politics. These are projects which promote existing interests and awaken new ones, which develop methods and access pathways which encourage girls. Gap-europe looked for such projects in Italy, Austria and Germany and was indeed successful in finding them: girls’ projects or also those which looked at girls in a coeducational context. Projects with outstanding approaches were sought out: interesting ideas which manage to combine zest and learning and which begin with girls’ interests and take them seriously.

We hope that our results will increase your awareness of the importance of taking gender aspects into consideration in young people’s participation in politics and society and incite you to make your own contribution to equal opportunities for girls and boys.