Gender gaps in the cultural and creative sectors.
Date: 2022-04-13
Institutions: Directorate-General for Education, Youth, Sport and Culture
Subjects: action programme, artistic creation, artistic profession, cultural heritage, cultural policy, data processing, decision-making, female work, gender equality, labour market, position of women, report, sexual harassment

Gender gaps in the Cultural 
and Creative Sectors 

 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
EUROPEAN COMMISSION 

Directorate-General for Education, youth, Sport and Culture 

Directorate D — Culture, Creativity and Sport 

Unit D1— Cultural Policy 

E-mail:  EAC-UNITE-D1@ec.europa.eu  

European Commission 

B-1049 Brussels 

2 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Gender gaps in the Cultural 
and Creative Sectors 

edited by  

European Expert Network on Culture and Audiovisual 
(EENCA) 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
   
  
 
 
 
 
This project has been financed by the European Commission, Directorate-General 
for Education, Youth, Sport and Culture, Directorate for Culture, Creativity and 
Sport, Unit cultural Policy. Under contract number: EAC-2015-0184. 

The information and views set out in this report are those of the author(s) and do 
not necessarily reflect the official opinion of the European Union. 

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© European Union, 2022  
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PDF 

ISBN 978-92-76-41918-1 

doi:10.2766/322133 

NC-01-21-282-EN-N 

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1 
1.1 
1.2 
1.3 
1.4 
1.5 

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2.1 
2.2 

3 
3.1 
3.2 
3.3 
3.4 
3.5 
3.6 

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Table of contents 

Abstract 

Introduction 
Background EENCA 
Study aim 
Study approach 
About the authors 
Structure of the report 

Policy background 
EU Level policy developments and instruments 
International level recommendations and instruments 

Gender gaps within the cultural and creative sectors  26 
26 
Introduction 
27 
Gender Stereotypes 
29 
Decision making and leadership positions 
30 
Access to resources and equal pay issues 
32 
Access to the Labour and Art Market 
34 
Sexual harassment 

The situation of women in the cultural and creative 
sectors 
Introduction 
Music sector 
Audiovisual sector 
Performing arts 
Visual Arts 
Cultural Heritage and related professions 
Literature and publishing 
Architecture and design 
Artistic crafts 

4.1 
4.2 
4.3 
4.4 
4.5 
4.6 
4.7 
4.8 
4.9 
4.10  Cultural education 
4.11  Radio sector 

5 
5.1 
5.2 
5.3 

5.4 
5.5 

5.6 

5.7 
5.8 

Tackling gender gaps through initiatives and practices 90 
90 
Initiatives in the CCS to address gender gaps 
92 
Music sector: Keychange 
Music sector: The Arts Council and the Music Agency promote more 
equal orchestral repertoire 
Performing Arts, Theatre: #WakingTheFeminists 
Peforming Arts, Opera: Supporting Women and Parents in Opera 
(SWAP’ra) 
Architecture and design: the International Gender Design Network 
(iGDN) 
Architecture and design: MoMoWo Project 
Cultural heritage and related professions: French Observatory on 
Gender Equality 

98 
100 

93 
94 

96 

101 

 
 
 
 
 
 
6 
6.1 
6.2 

Conclusion and recommendations 
Concluding remarks 
Recommendations 

105 
105 
107 

6 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Abstract 

The Work Plan for Culture 2019-2022 selects gender equality as one of the five sectoral 

priorities for EU action. The purpose of this study is to provide background information 

and  context  on  the  specific  challenges  faced  by  women  in  the  cultural  and  creative 

sectors  for  the  OMC  Working  Group.  The  aim  of  this  study  is  therefore  to  conduct  a 

literature  review  and  prepare  a  study  identifying  the  situation  of  women  artists  and 

professionals  in  the  cultural  and  creative  sectors  (CCSs),  and  to  map  the  existing 

international recommendations aiming to achieve gender equality in these sectors. 

As  such,  this  report  summarises  the  main  policy  developments  and  recommendations 

made regarding cultural and creative sectors (CCSs), and gender by bodies such as the 

EU,  the  Council  of  Europe,  UNESCO,  and  the  ILO.  The  main  focus  of  the  report  is  on 

understanding  the  current  state  of  affairs  concerning  women  in  the  CCSs,  the  gender 

gaps at work, and the  underlying drivers  of those gender  gaps. Available  quantitative 

data  has  been  mapped  for  the  different  sub-sectors  within  the  CCSs,  and  has  been 

combined with information from qualitative literature and expert interviews to establish 

the state of affairs regarding women in these sectors, along with the drivers leading to 

this state of affairs. The report provides an overall analysis of gender gaps in the CCSs 

as  a  whole  and  presents  examples  of  the  types  of  initiatives  which  have  been 

implemented  to  address  these  gender  gaps.  The  report  culminates  in  a  series  of 

conclusions and recommendations for the reflection of the OMC Working Group. 

 
 
 
 
 
 
1  Introduction 

1.1 

Background EENCA 

The  European  Expert  Network  on  Culture  and  Audiovisual  (EENCA)  was  established  in 

December 2015 by a consortium of Panteia and iMinds-SMIT (VUB) on behalf of DG EAC 

of the European Commission.   

With  a  view  to  improving  cultural  and  audio-visual  policy  development  in  Europe,  the 

main objectives of EENCA are:  

-  To contribute to the continuous development of cultural and audio-visual policies 

by  providing high-quality analysis and advice to the  European Commission, and 

enhancing the in-depth understanding of the European Commission’s services of 

culture  and  the  threats  and  opportunities  faced  by  the  cultural,  creative  and 

audio-visual sectors. 

-  To  promote  decision-making  based  on  solid,  evidence-based  and  data-driven 
research,  being  of  a  descriptive,  analytical,  evaluative,  and  prescriptive  nature 

regarding relevant topics in the field of cultural and audio-visual; and being of a 

comparative nature, including expertise covering different sectors, different policy 

areas, and different territories. 

For these purposes a multi-disciplinary network of leading European experts on culture 

and  of  the  audio-visual  industry  was  set-up.  The  Core  Expert  Team  exists  of  14  high 

level  experts  who  have  been  carefully  selected  to  cover  the  thematic,  sectoral  and 

geographical  requirements  presented  by  DG  EAC.  The  Core  Expert  Team 

is 

complemented  by  a  solid  team  of  32  associated  experts,  and  forms  part  of  a 

comprehensive international network. 

EENCA  will  engage  in  the  analysis  of  the  cultural  and  creative  sectors  and  the  audio-

visual  markets,  and  the  analysis  of  cultural  and  creative  sectors’  policies  and  audio-

visual  policies.  The  main  underlying  and  guiding  questions  in  this  are:  what  has 

happened, what is happening and what will happen at local, national and European level, 

why  is  it  happening,  and  how  can  we  improve  cultural  and  audio-visual  policy 

development in Europe?  

The Work Plan for Culture 2019-2022 selects gender equality as one of the five sectoral 

priorities  for  the  EU  action.  The  Work  Plan  recognizes  that  intersectional  gender  gaps 

persist in almost all cultural and creative sectors and they need to be acknowledged and 

tackled by specific policies and measures.  In this context, Member States will exchange 

information on national circumstances and good practices within the OMC group which 

will also identify the main obstacles and suggest a set of concrete actions.  The OMC on 

Gender Equality will be convened  in  late  2019 and will meet four  to five times  over a 

period  of  12  months.  The  work  of  the  OMC  group  may  be  followed  by  Council 

conclusions.  

1.2 

Study aim 

The  purpose  of  this  study  is  to  provide  background  information  and  context  on  the 

specific  challenges  faced  by  women  in  the  cultural  and  creative  sectors  for  the  OMC 

Working Group. Specifically, EENCA was requested to: 

1.  Conduct a literature review and prepare a study identifying:  

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
a. 

the  situation  of  female  artists  and  professionals  in  the  cultural  and 

creative sectors (excluding digital and audio-visual) and;  

b.  the  existing  international  recommendations  aiming  to  achieve  gender 

equality.  

2.  Draft a briefing paper for the OMC group outlining the findings of the research 

above to stimulate the debate of the group;  

3.  Ask EENCA expert(s) to participate in a meeting of the OMC group in Brussels. 

In order to achieve this, the EENCA experts will address the following key questions: 

•  What  are  the  international  recommendations  relating  to  gender  equality  in 

culture (access to culture as artists, amateurs, public)? 

•  What are the main gender gaps hampering equal participation of women artists 

and professionals in the cultural and creative sectors in the EU MS?  

•  What  kind  of  initiatives  are  specific  cultural  sectors  undertaking  to  ensure 

gender equality? 

1.3 

Study approach 

S c op e  a n d  re s ea r ch  co ns i d era t io ns 

This study serves to provide input for the OMC Working Group on the state of affairs of 

women working in the cultural and creative sectors. The scope of this research therefore 

covers  sectors  that  are  considered  part  of  the  broader  cultural  and  creative  sectors 

within  an  EU  context.  In  practice,  this  means  that  the  following  sub-sectors  were 

examined:  music,  audiovisual,  performance  arts  (including  theatre,  dance,  the  opera, 

and circus sectors), visual arts, cultural heritage and related professions, literature and 

publishing,  architecture  and  design,  artistic  crafts,  cultural  education  and  the  radio 

sector.  

Data on cultural and creative sectors: As the reader will no doubt notice, some of 

these sub-sectors are in themselves relatively diverse and heterogeneous. For instance, 

literature  and  publishing,  though  related,  have  very  different  sectoral  realities  and 

contexts. The same can be said of the performing arts, and within that, there is even 

further  diversity  in  different  types  of  dance  or  theatre.  The  cultural  education  sector 

also  comprises  many  levels  of  education,  ranging  from  primary  school  levels  to 

advanced university degrees in culture and the creative arts.  

This  diversity  and  fragmentation  that  is  apparent  in  the  cultural  and  creative  sectors 

has been borne in mind while conducting this study. The quantitative data available as 

well as the qualitative research being conducted for each sub-sector varies substantially. 

A general observation drawn from this study is that there is a clear  lack of systematic 

data per sector across Europe, let alone on the position of women or the gender gaps 

they face. There is only intermittent and country- and sector specific knowledge about 

the reality of the working life in the sector, and about the positions of women therein. 

Availability  of  such  knowledge  is  crucial  for  both  creating  awareness  about  existing 

gender issues as well as developing appropriate policies and good practices.   

Gender  gaps  and  their  drivers:  Concerning  the  reporting  and  presentation  of 

information, the request for this study centres on highlighting the status quo for women 

in the cultural and creative sectors and the gender gaps they face, identifying the causes 

and  drivers  for  those  gaps,  and  exploring  what  sort  of  initiatives  have  been  taken  to 

remedy those gender gaps. In practice, cultural perceptions, expectations, norms and 

values in societies are dynamic concepts which evolve over time. This means that some 

of  the  aspects  of  the  gender  inequalities  and  gender  gaps  identified  in  this  study  can 

10 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
reinforce (or undermine) one another, making the delineation between gender gaps and 

drivers  difficult  at  times.  For  this  reason,  to  avoid  artificial  distinctions  between  gaps 

and drivers and to avoid oversimplifying the process through which gender gaps arise, 

the  gaps  and  the  causes  of  those  gender  gaps  are  discussed  and  presented  together. 

This approach to presenting and reporting is most reflective of the reality that is gender 

inequality and its causes in the cultural and creative sectors. 

Geographic scope of the research: The focus of this research is on the situation in 

EU Member States. However, significant data, statistics and sectoral initiatives that have 

been located in non-EU countries are included where relevant. Throughout the research, 

it has become apparent that regional imbalances do exist in the lack of available data, 

resources,  and  the  lack  of  initiatives  in  large  parts  of  the  EU.  The  research  team  has 

taken steps to try to mitigate this imbalance as much as possible, which mostly relates 

to  the  focus  on  sources  from  the  UK  and  Ireland,  and  have  provided  examples  from 

other EU Member States where possible.  

It should be noted that the prominence of data in relation to the UK can be explained 

by the fact that the UK government has been collecting information and attempting to 

define  the  CCS  since  the  mid-to-late  1990s,  with  the  creation  of  the  Department  for 

Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS). One of the new department’s first acts was to set up 

the  Creative  Industries  Task  Force,  which  was  responsible  for  the  landmark  Creative 
Industries  Mapping  Document  in  1998  and  a  follow-up  report  in  2001. 1  The  1998 
mapping document was the first systematic attempt to define and measure the creative 

industries.  It  was  designed  both  to  collect  data  on  the  industries  and  to  promote  a 

deeper  understanding  of  the  sector  by  telling  its  story  in  a  way  that  politicians, 

journalists, 

investors,  academics  and  government  officials  could 

immediately 

understand. Therefore, the UK has a strong track record of monitoring and developing 

policy in areas that may affect the cultural and creative sectors, which is not apparent 

in all EU Member States. 

A p p roa ch 

Due  to  this  particular  reality  concerning  information  and  data,  this  current  study  was 

requested to conduct a literature review to see what is available in terms of data and 

research, and to help identify gaps in the data. To this end, the research team conducted 

research  per  sub-sector,  presenting  summaries  of  what  national  and/or  international 

data  were  available  regarding  the  different  gender  gaps  and  across  the  various  sub-

sectors under study.  

The  methodological  approach  taken  to  conduct  this  study  consisted  of  desk  research 

and  a  series  of  in-depth  interviews  with  international,  European  and  national  experts 

working  in  the  cultural  and  creative  sectors.  Several  interviews  were  held  with 

individuals  from  different  EU  Member  States,  working  within  each  of  the  sub-sectors 

within the EU’s definition of cultural and  creative sectors. Many of the  interviews that 

took place were from representatives of specific initiatives that seek to address gender 

gaps within various sub sectors of the cultural and creative sectors.   

This report is very much of an exploratory nature. One of the goals is to establish the 

state of the arts and to identify what is available and known regarding gender gaps in 

the  CCSs,  wherein  the  use  of  semi-structured  in-depth  interviews  play  an  important 

role.  Interview  guidelines  were  set-up  to  guide  the  interviews  while  also  allowing 

1https://creativeconomy.britishcouncil.org/media/uploads/files/English_mapping_the_creative_industries_a_tool
kit_2-2.pdf  

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
freedom to gather information on the full scale of the gender issues and causes at hand 

in the sectors. 

1.4 

About the authors  

Marilena Vecco 

Dr.  Marilena  Vecco  is  Associate  professor  in  Entrepreneurship  at 

Burgundy  Business  School,  Dijon.  She  holds  a  PhD  in  Economic 

Sciences  at  University  Paris  1,  Panthéon  Sorbonne,  and  a  PhD  in 

Economics  of  Institutions  and  Creativity  at  University  of  Turin. 

Between  1999  and  2010  she  was  head  of  research  of  the 

International  Center  for  Arts  Economics  (ICARE)  and  Research 

Fellow  and  Adjunct  Professor  of  Cultural  Economics  and  Art 

markets at the University Ca’ Foscari of Venice. From 2011 to 2016 she was assistant 

professor in Cultural Entrepreneurship at ESHCC at Erasmus University Rotterdam. Her 

research focuses on cultural entrepreneurship and management with a special focus on 

cultural heritage (tangible and intangible) and art markets. Marilena has over 17 years 

of academic and professional experience as a researcher, lecturer, and consultant. She 

has  researched  and  consulted  for  several  public  and  private  organisations,  including 

OECD, Centre for Entrepreneurship, SMEs and Local Development, World Bank, and The 

European  Commission.  She  is  the  author  of  several  books  (recently  published:  The 

power of partnerships: Necessity or luxury in the cultural and creative sectors? With E. 

Konrad, Creative industries and entrepreneurship: paradigms in transition from a global 

perspective  with  L.  Lazzeretti),  book  chapters  and  articles  published  on  different 

journals. 

Paul Vroonhof 

Paul  Vroonhof  works  at  Panteia,  where  he  is  responsible  for 

international  social  studies.  He  has  about  15  years  of  experience 

managing EU wide projects involving large teams of experts. During 

the past few years, Paul built up substantial experience with studies 

on  the  cultural  sector,  mostly  through  the  management  of  the 

European  Expert  Network  on  Culture  and  Audiovisual  media, 

commissioned by DG EAC. He also contributed to specific requests 

about  the  music  sector  or  that  included  the  music  sector,  such  as 

an inventory of music support schemes, the evaluation of EUYO, the development of the 

Preliminary  Action  for  the  music  sector,  and  the  impact  assessment  for  the  next  MFF 

culture  strand  of  Creative  Europe.  Paul  is  currently  the  overall  manager  of  the  MME 

studies  on  the  feasibility  of  a  European  Music  Observatory  and  on  Market  trends  and 

gaps in funding needs for the music sector. 

Martin Clarke 

Martin  Clarke  holds  a  degree  in  International  and  European  Law, 

where he specialised in European Union law. At Panteia, Martin has 

carried  out several studies in  relation to European culture, and  is 

an assistant coordinator of the EENCA network. He has contributed 

to  the Study to  inform  the Preparatory Action  on Music  in Europe 

2018-2020  and  has  contributed  to  an  impact  assessment  on  the 

implementation of a ‘sub-programme for culture’ within a successor 

programme to the Creative Europe programme 2014-2020. Martin 

is  currently  involved  in  the  MME  studies  on  the  feasibility  of  a  European  Music 

Observatory and on Market trends and gaps in funding needs for the music sector. 

12 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Amber van der Graaf 

Amber van der Graaf, has been working at Panteia since early 2012 

where she works almost exclusively on international level studies. 

She has an  interdisciplinary academic  background, combining the 

areas  of  politics,  media,  international  relations  and  culture. 

Projects have included studies on social policy relating to working 

life and work life balance, education, sports and culture, as well as 

studies on (inclusive) entrepreneurship, media and communication.  

She  has  worked  on  a  European  evaluation  of  provisions  of  the  Audiovisual  Media 

Services  Directive,  and  also  conducted  the  study  for  the  European  Parliament  on 

Communicating Europe to its Citizens, which had a strong communication and cultural 

component to explore the current and future for the concept of “Europe”. Amber works 

on  areas  relevant  to  DG  EAC’s  activities,  including  two  studies  for  the  European 

Parliament, on early school leaving and on the Erasmus+ programme. 

Laura de Haan 

At Panteia Laura participated in a variety of studies, notably on the 

themes culture, diversity, education and labour market. Laura has 

been  involved  in  the  coordination  of  the  European  Network  on 

Culture  and  Audiovisual  (EENCA)  since  the  end  of  2015.  With 

regards to cultural diversity, Laura has carried out several projects 

on the  national  level,  e.g.  the evaluation  of  the ‘Action Plan Self-

Determination’,  commissioned  by  the  Dutch  Ministry  of  Social 

Affairs  and  Employment.  This  action  plan  is  mainly  meant  to  aid 

the emancipation of vulnerable minorities. Laura was also a team member in a study on 

LGBT-policies  within  municipalities,  a  project  commissioned  by  the  Ministry  of 

Education,  Culture  and  Science.  Laura  de  Haan  holds  a  bachelor  degree  in 

Interdisciplinary  Social  Sciences  and  master  degrees 

in  International  Public 

Administration  and  International  Development  Studies.  Before  joining  Panteia,  Laura 

worked in public administration as a policy advisor within the departments of renewable 

energy and transport at the Province of North-Holland.  

Marlen Komorowski 

Marlen Komorowski finished her PhD at Vrije Universiteit Brussels 

(VUB)  in  2019.  She  works  at  imec-SMIT  (Studies  on  Media, 

Innovation &  Technology) as researcher and Cardiff University as 

impact  analyst.  She  holds  two  Bachelor  degrees  (Bachelor  of 

Honours  in  International  Management,  Bachelor  of  Science  in 

Economics  and  Law)  and  completed  her  Master’s  degree  in 

International  Communication  Studies  at  VUB  in  2013.  As  a 

researcher,  her  work  focuses  on  media  and  creative  industries-

related  projects,  impact  analysis,  ecosystem  and  the  impact  of  the  digitisation  and 

innovation on industries and firms. She specializes in audiovisual sector topics. 

Dilara Asardag 

Dilara  has  completed  her  Bachelor’s  studies  in  London,  at 

Goldsmiths  College,  University  of  London  on  Media  and 

Communication studies. Afterwards, she received a Master of Social 

Sciences  degree  in  Media  and  Global  Communication  at  the 

University of Helsinki in Finland. Her thesis was awarded the best 

Master’s thesis in 2016 in Media and Communication studies and it 

dealt with the construction of female subjectivity in the media. She 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
worked as an intern at the European Programme Support Office connected to European 

Commission in Nicosia, Cyprus. Currently, she is pursuing her doctoral degree at Vrije 

Universiteit Brussel while she is involved in teaching assistance tasks as well. She has 

diverse research interests, especially gender equality, gender issues and digital media, 

conflict and identities, media and democracy, cultural industries, migration and human 

rights.  

Marko Milosavljević 

Marko Milosavljević is a professor, Ph.D., from the Department of 

Journalism,  Faculty  of  Social  Sciences,  University  of  Ljubljana, 

Slovenia. He was Chairman of the Department of Journalism from 

2007  to  2011.  For  this  assignment  on  the  music  sector,  his  main 

expertise lies in media and broadcasting. He was a Chairman of the 

Expert  Commission  for  Pluralisation  of  Media  at  the  Slovenian 

Ministry  of  Culture  from  2009-2010.  He  also  officially  consulted  Slovenian  Ministry  of 

Culture  in  2017-2018  on  draft  Mass  Media  Act  that  was  to  be  changed,  including 

measures regarding music (such as music on public radio, music on commercial radio, 

domestic music production etc.). 

He  is  also  a  vice-chair  of  the  European  Communication  Research  and  Education 

Association (ECREA) for Communication Law and Policy section. He was also a member 

of  the  Experts’  group  for  the  new  Mass  Media  Act  (2009)  and  Public  Broadcasting  Act 

(2009)  at  the  Slovenian  Ministry  of  Culture.  The  acts  included  measures  for  music 

production,  music  quotas,  and  radio.  He  was  actively  involved  in  procedures  and 

discussions  with  the  Slovenian  Ministry  of  Culture  in  the  last  5  years  regarding  the 

amendments  of  the  Mass  Media  Act  including  changes/increase  of  Slovenian  music 

quotas, music quotas on public radio, music in the Slovenian language, new Slovenian 

music in general, and music from new Slovenian artists. 

In  addition,  Marko  Milosavljević  worked  from  1992  until  2006  as  a  music  and  media 

journalist and commentator, writing regularly about the music industry for daily Delo, 

Vienna  daily  Der  Standard,  New  York  magazine  Paper,  weekly  Mladina  and  others, 

conducting interviews with music managers and executives, as well as more than 100 

interviews  with  musicians,  video  directors,  music  photographers  and  producers.  He 

continues to contribute a weekly musical column/review for the largest Slovenian daily 

newspaper. 

1.5 

Structure of the report 

This report is set-up as follows: 

Chapter 2 presents an outline of the main recommendations from relevant documents 

produced by the EU, UN agencies, and the Council of Europe regarding women’s equal 

participation in the cultural and creative sectors including access to culture as artists, 

amateurs, and public; 

Chapter 3 collects an overview of the gender gaps that are having an impact of women’s 

participation in the cultural and creative sectors; 

Chapter  4  provides  a  preliminary  review  of  the  situation  of  female  artists  and 

professionals  working  in  various  sub-sectors  within  the  cultural  and  creative  sectors, 

which have been divided into music, architecture and design, performance arts, visual 

arts, cultural heritage and related professions, literature, crafts and cultural education; 

Chapter 5 provides some examples of particular sectoral initiatives put in place to close 

the gender gaps; 

Chapter 6 outlines some concluding remarks and recommendations. 

14 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
2  Policy background 

The following section sketches the policy background surrounding gender in the cultural 

and  creative  industries. Policy developments  initiated and  implemented  by the EU are 

first summarised to establish what has been done to date in the area of gender equality 

within the cultural and creative sectors. Following this, the chapter takes a more global 

perspective  and  summarises  those  relevant  policy  developments  taken  at  the  global 

level by institutions such as the UN. 

Gender  equality  and  cultural  and  creative  sector  policy  have  both  received  attention 

from  EU, European, and  international  organisations. Specifically, The EU and UNESCO 

have developed policy and recommendations regarding the cultural and creative sectors, 

as  well as gender equality. The Council of Europe  in turn has  made  various  important 

strides  in  gender  equality.  The  EU  has  established  a  specific  agency,  the  European 
Institute  for  Gender  Equality  (EIGE) 2,  which  promotes  gender  equality,  and  its  work 
transcends  sectors and different  levels  of society. Actions which  combined both areas 

of  cultural  heritage  and  gender  equality  are  much  less  prevalent,  though  some  key 

policy documents do exist which combine the two areas. The global policy making arena 

on  the  other  hand,  ties  both  areas  together  much  more  closely.  The  UN  has  various 

policy  strategies and  programmes  designed  to  foster  gender  equality within  the areas 

of culture and, to a lesser degree, in the creative sectors. 

2.1 

EU Level policy developments and instruments 

E U C u l tu ra l a nd  c rea t ive   se ct or  d ev e lo p me nts   

The European Commission adopted the New European Agenda for Culture in May of 

2018  which  provides  the  framework  for  the  current  phase  of  cooperation  at  EU  level 
that  started  in  2019. 3  The  new  agenda  has  three  strategic  objectives  with  social, 
economic  and  external  dimensions.  Within  these  different  dimensions,  a  series  of 

different actions will be taken. For example, within the social dimension, which aims to 

harness the power of culture and cultural diversty to support social cohesion and well 

being,  social  inclusion  have  been  made  part  of  the  selection  criteria  of  large  EU 

programmes.  

The  Commission  has  pledged  to  develop  specific  actions  for  social  inclusion  through 

culture,  specifically  through  Creative  Europe  and  Erasmus+.  It  has  also  assured  to 

consider implementing selection criteria for Creative Europe to incentivise gender equal 

project  management  (2019).  To  understand  the  prevalence  and  dynamics  of  gender 

equality  within  projects  supported  by  these  programmes,  the  results  of  project 

applications could be examined in more detail. 

From an economic perspective, one of the concrete actions is to support Member States 

in ensuring fair remuneration for artists and creators through general and sector-specific 

dialogues, in line with the Digital Single Market Strategy (2019). However, these angles 

focus  more  on  inclusion,  mobility  and  equal  access  than  on  gender,  specifically.  The 

external dimension of the strategy focuses on countries outside the EU (third countries) 

and contains action areas which are related to strengthening civil society and promoting 

gender equality. 

2 Established on December 20, 2006. 
3 https://ec.europa.eu/culture/sites/culture/files/commission_communication_-
_a_new_european_agenda_for_culture_2018.pdf 

 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
To  put  the  New  European  Agenda  for  Culture  into  action,  the  Council  of  Ministers 
adopted  the Work  Plan  for  Culture  2019-2022  in  November  2018. 4  This  work  plan 
outlines five main priorities for European cooperation in cultural policy-making:  

•  Sustainability in cultural heritage; 
•  Cohesion and well-being; 
•  An  ecosystem  supporting  artists,  cultural  and  creative  professionals  and 

European content; 

•  Gender equality; 
• 

International cultural relations. 

These priorities are supplemented by 17 concrete actions with clearly defined working 
methods and target outputs, one of which concerns gender equality. 5 Under the Open 
Method of Coordination  (OMC), a number  of Member States'  expert groups will  be  set 

up in order to implement the new Work Plan. The OMC remains the main working method 

for Member States to collaborate in the field of culture. This is one of the main policy 

developments which ties cultural policy and gender equality together in the EU. 

In  the  2019-2022  Work  Plan  for  Culture,  the  Council  has  selected  gender  equality  as 

one of the five main priorities where there is a need for joint action. In order to raise 

awareness  at  political,  administrative  and  practical  levels  within  the  cultural  and 

creative sectors on the topic of gender equality, there is a need for comprehensive data 

and an exchange of good practices. In this spirit, an OMC experts’ group on gender 

equality  has  been  established  and will  meet  for  the  first  time  in  September of  2019. 

The  OMC  group  is  expected  to  engage  in  information  exchanges  regarding  national 

circumstances,  to  identify  the  drivers  of  gender  gaps,  examine  good  practices  in  this 

area, and suggest a series of concrete actions to address gender equality in the CCSs. 

In the area of cultural heritage the actions taken during the European Year of Cultural 

Heritage  2018  are  followed  up  by  the  introduction  of  a  European  Framework  for 
Action  on  Cultural  Heritage. 6  It  proposes  around  60  actions to  be  implemented  by 
the European Commission in 2019 and 2020. Many of these actions are in partnership 

with other major actors such as the Council of Europe and UNESCO.  

These  actions  have  the  overall  aim  of  celebrating  cultural  heritage  in  Europe.  The 

framework emphasises cultural heritage as a shared resource, as a source of common 

values  and  history,  which  can  promote  a  sense  of  common  European  belonging.  The 

framework  defines five  main  priority areas for action,  including promoting access and 

participation  in  cultural  heritage  for  all.  These  five  priority  areas  encompass  some  60 

different  specific  actions  to  implement  the  strategic  framework,  but  the  emphasis  in 

these actions is more on diversity than on gender. Indeed, gender is not mentioned in 
the staff working document on the Framework. 7  

Compared to the previous regulation, the European Commission regulation establishing 

the  Creative  Europe  Programme  in  the  context  of  the  Multiannual  Financial 

Framework 2021-2027 also makes gender a prominent matter in the implementation of 

the programme, where the promotion of gender equality and gender balance is foreseen 

at various levels. This shows the increasing attention given to this problematic across 

different  sectors,  and  the  raising  awareness  amongst  the  policy  makers  and  the 

4 http://data.consilium.europa.eu/doc/document/ST-13948-2018-
INIT/en/pdf#http://data.consilium.europa.eu/doc/document/ST-13948-2018-INIT/en/pdf 
5 https://ec.europa.eu/culture/policy/strategic-framework_en 
6 https://ec.europa.eu/culture/content/european-framework-action-cultural-heritage_en 
7 European Commission, (2018), Commission Staff Working Document - European Framework for Action on 
Cultural Heritage, SWD (2018) 491 final, Brussels. Available at: 
https://ec.europa.eu/culture/sites/culture/files/library/documents/staff-working-document-european-agenda-
culture-2018.pdf . 

16 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
legislators. The Programme will promote gender equality and contribute to achieving a 

more  balanced  gender  participation  in  the  cultural  and  creative  industries.  The 

programme in all its activities will support gender mainstreaming and the mainstreaming 

of  non-discrimination  objectives  and,  where  applicable,  should  define  appropriate 

gender balance criteria. 

E U G en d e r E qua l i ty  po l ic i es  a n d  d ev e lo pm en ts 

Promoting gender equality is vital for the EU. Gender equality is not only a fundamental 
EU value 8, but it is also a core EU objective 9 and a driver for economic growth 10. 

Over the years, a body of legislation and policy has been adopted on gender equality. 

Moreover, the European Commission has initiated a series of policy and sector specific 

communications  and  programmes  on  gender  equality.  The  EU’s  main  over-arching 

commitment to gender equality was enshrined in its Strategic Engagement for Gender 

Equality 2011 – 2015. This strategy had five main areas for action:  

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

equal economic independence for women and men;  

equal pay for work of equal value; 

equality in decision-making;  

dignity, integrity and ending gender-based violence;  

and promoting gender equality beyond the EU. 

Progress has  been  made across  these action  areas,  illustrated for  instance  in  the fact 

that female employment has risen to 64% in 2014 across the EU. While this is a positive 

development of course, there is still work to be done. Unequal pay for the same work 

and  access  to  decision-making  roles  for  instance  are  challenges  still  being  faced  by 

women in the EU. As such the five areas of action are still relevant and have been taken 

up  as  priority  areas  in  the  current  Strategic  Engagement  for  Gender  Equality  2016  – 
2019 11.  

More recently, in 2018, the Commission put significant efforts to advance and finalise 

open  files  on  equality  between  men  and  women  in  the  EU  and  its  Member  States.  It 

concluded the negotiations on work-life balance and it strived to overcome blockage on 

women  on  boards  and  to  conclude  the  ratification  of  the  Istanbul  Convention.  It 

launched an evaluation on  equal  pay, put  in  place measures to  strengthen  the  role  of 

equality bodies, reinforced the gender  dimension  in  its  international policy, as well as 

in  a  number  of  sectoral  initiatives.  It  also  adopted  a  Reflection  Paper  “Towards  a 

sustainable  Europe  by  2030”  in  the  follow-up  to  the  UN  2030  Agenda  for  Sustainable 

Development  (discussed  in  later  in  this  chapter),  and  as  part  of  the  future  of  Europe 

debate, emphasising the need to prioritise ambitious additional actions to deliver on the 
promise of gender equality in the EU.  12 

The EU Gender Equality Strategy  2020-25  was adopted  on  the  5 March 2020. The 

EU  Gender  Equality  Strategy  is  comprised  of  policy  objectives  and  actions  aiming  at 
achieving significant progress by 2025 and moving towards a gender-equal Union. 13 The 
primary goal of this strategy is to ensure that within the EU, women and men, girls and 

8 Art. 2 TEU 
9 Art 3 TEU 
10 OECD. Closing the gender gap. Act Now. 
11 European Commission, (2015), Strategic Engagement for Gender Equality 2016 – 2019, available at:   
https://ec.europa.eu/anti-
trafficking/sites/antitrafficking/files/strategic_engagement_for_gender_equality_en.pdf . 
12 For more details, see 2019 Report on equality between women and men in the EU. 
13 European Commission, “Gender equality strategy”, available at: https://ec.europa.eu/info/policies/justice-and-
fundamental-rights/gender-equality/gender-equality-strategy_en  

 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
boys, are free to pursue their own paths in life, have access to equal opportunities to 
thrive and can equally participate in and lead the European society. 14 

The EU Gender Strategy 2020-2025 lists several key objectives. Firstly, to prevent and 
combat  gender-based  violence,  and  to  challenge  gender  stereotypes. 15  Secondly,  it  is 
crucial to ensure that gender gaps in the labor market are closed and eliminated, and 
to achieve equal participation in different sectors of the economy 16. Moreover, as part 
of  this  second  key  objective,  it  is  important  to  address  the  gender  pay  and  pension 
gaps,  as  well  as  close  the  gender  care  gap. 17  The  third  key  objective  which  the  EU 
Gender Strategy 2020-2025 lays down is achieving gender balance in decision-making 
and in politics. 18 Furthermore, the main challenges affecting the EU nowadays all include 
a  gender  a  dimension. 19  Therefore,  the  EU  pursues  a  dual  approach  of  gender 
mainstreaming and intersectionality as a horizontal principle for the implementation of 

the EU Gender Strategy. What the approach of mainstreaming entails is the inclusion of 

a gender perspective in all EU policies – e.g. European Green Deal and EU Drugs Agenda. 

In  addition  to  the  previously  mentioned  objectives,  the  EU  Gender  Strategy  envisions 

numerous funding actions in order to ensure progress towards achieving gender equality 

in the  EU.  The Strategy also has an  international aspect  in  light  of addressing  gender 
equality and women’s empowerment across the world. 20 

Besides this gender strategy, as previously mentioned, the EU has a dedicated agency, 

the EIGE, whose formal objective is “to contribute to and strengthen the promotion of 

gender  equality,  including  gender  mainstreaming  in  all  Community  policies  resulting 

national  policies,  and  the  fight  against  discrimination  based  on  sex,  and  to  raise  EU 

citizens'  awareness  of  gender  equality  by  providing  technical  assistance  to  the 
Community institutions…”. 21 This agency provides technical insight and collects data on 
gender equality across the EU in aid of policy making and gender mainstreaming. This 
body also publishes reports on specific sectors, including culture. 22 

Besides the EIGE agency, the role of gender and its importance is enshrined in different 

legislative,  regulatory,  and  programme  documents  for  different  specific  policy  areas. 

Gender is included when formulating balanced labour market policies, as well as within 

digital  skills  policies,  justice  and  protection  policies,  cohesion  policy,  transport  and 

entrepreneurship policy. 

The  European  Parliament  and  the  Council  reached  a  provisional  agreement  on  the 

European Commission's proposal for a new Work Life Balance Directive. The Directive 

on work-life balance sets a number of new or higher standards for parental, paternity 
and carer's leave and the right to request flexible working arrangements. 23  

Gender perspective is also mainstreamed into other policy areas. EU Cohesion policy 

directly supports gender equality through business support to women entrepreneurs and 

at: 

final), 

available 

14 Ibid. 
15  Communication  from  the  Commission  to  the  European  Parliament,  the  Council,  the  European  Economic  and 
Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions, “A Union of Equality: Gender Equality Strategy 2020-2025” 
(COM(2020)152 
https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-
content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:52020DC0152&from=EN pp. 4-6 
16 Ibid, p.7-9 
17 Ibid, p. 10-11 
18 Ibid, p. 13 
19 Ibid, p. 15 
20 Ibid, p.17 
21 Office of the Journal of the European Union, (2006), REGULATION (EC) No 1922/2006 OF THE EUROPEAN 
PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 20 December 2006 on establishing a European Institute for Gender 
Equality, [L 403/9], available at: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-
content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:32006R1922&from=EN . 
22 EIGE, (2017), Gender in Culture, Vilnius. Available at: 
https://eige.europa.eu/sites/default/files/documents/ti_pubpdf_mh0216894enn_pdfweb_20170124111005.pdf . 
23 http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_STATEMENT-19-424_en.htm 

18 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
improving  the quality and  access to childcare. For  early childhood  education and care 

infrastructure,  €1.23  billion  has  been  programmed  in  the  2014-2020  period.  Through 

Horizon  2020,  the  European  Commission  supports  research  organisations  and 

universities  in  implementing  gender  equality  plans.  These  will  help  improve  the 

conditions  for  more  women  scientists  to  work  in  research  and  innovation.  The 

Commission published the  ‘She Figures'  report  in 2018; which  outlines the level of 

progress  made  towards  gender  equality  in  research  and  innovation  in  the  European 

Union. The report shows that the number of women with a career in research is slowly 
growing in Europe although they remain significantly underrepresented. 24 

In  very  recent  news,  the  new  EU  Commission  President  Ursula  von  Leyen  has  re-

emphasised the EU commitment to gender equality at all levels, saying that she wants 
each Member State to present a male and a female nominee for Commission positons 25. 
This suggests that the EU focus on gender equality is likely to keep growing during the 

next programming period. 

As part of the dual approach for the implementation of the EU Gender Strategy 2020-

2025,  DG  EAC  and  Commissioner  Mariya  Gabriel  launched  the  #EUwomen4future 

mainstreaming  campaign  which  will  showcase  women’s  work  and  will  value  their 

achievements  in  the  fields  of  culture,  science,  research  and  innovation,  education  & 
youth, and sport. 26 The campaign will also highlight the role of impressive and talented 
creative  women,  carrying  out  artistic  activity  in  the  cultural  and  creative  sectors.  In 

relation to the CCS, this campaign aims to provide visibility to women and their projects, 

which in turn, might be a source of inspiration for many others. 

One of the main aims of the campaign, as expressed by Commissioner Mariya Gabriel, 

is  to  encourage  women  and  girls  across  the  EU  to  seek  opportunities  and  fulfil  their 

professional  and  personal  aspirations. 

In 

line  with 

this 

statement, 

the 

#EUwomen4future campaign seeks to celebrate women, showcase the EU’s commitment 
to gender equality, highlight successful women, and help build networks. 27  

Additionally, 

since 

the 

8th  March 

2020,  DG  CONNECT 

launched 

the 

#womeninthespotlight  campaign  on  the  @creative.eu  instagram  account,  which  is 

the official European commission account focusing on the creative and cultural sectors 

in Europe. Every Wednesday there is a post which contains a new portrait of a talented 

woman  in  CCS.  The  goal  of  the  campaign  is  to  highlight  the  role  of  impressive  and 

talented creative women working in the cultural and creative sectors, and aims to give 

visibility to these women and their projects, as they might be a source of inspiration for 

many others. 

This  study  and  the  current  mapping  of  the  situation  of  women  artists  and  cultural 

professionals that is carried out in this report on behalf of the European Commission is 

outlined  in the  2019-2022  Work Plan for Culture as a  concrete action. In  parallel,  the 

OMC group will identify the main obstacles and suggest a set of concrete actions to be 

carried out under the Creative Europe Programme and its successor programmes. The 

mandate of this specific OMC group is currently being finalised. Conclusions drawn from 

these actions may also be adopted by the Council. The indicative timetable of the Work 

Plan for Culture 2019-2022 shows this is expected to be completed by the end of 2020. 

24 https://ec.europa.eu/info/news/gender-balance-research-improving-pace-too-slow-eu-she-figures-2019-mar-
08_en&pk_campaign=rtd_news 
25 Politico, (2019), Von der Leyen’s tough (gender) balancing act, available at: 
https://www.politico.eu/article/von-der-leyens-tough-gender-balancing-act/ . 
26 European Commission, “#EUwomen4future”, available at: https://ec.europa.eu/jrc/en/euwomen4future  
27 Ibid. 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
2.2 

International level recommendations and instruments 

At the international level, the main relevant organisations in this context are the Council 

of Europe, the UN, specifically UN Women and UNESCO, and to a lesser extent, the ILO.  

I nt er na t i ona l  cu l tu ra l a n d  c rea t iv e s e cto r  d ev el o p me nts 

Through UNESCO, the UN has had a specific policy focus on cultural heritage since the 

1950s.  UNESCO’s  well-known  cultural  conventions  protect  and  safeguard  the  world’s 

cultural  and  natural  heritage  including  ancient  archaeological  sites,  intangible  and 

underwater heritage, museum collections,  oral traditions and other forms of heritage. 

UNESCO  also  supports  creativity,  innovation  and  the  emergence  of  dynamic  cultural 
sectors. 28 

UNESCO  has  a  series  of  conventions  and  declarations  related  to  culture  and  cultural 

heritage protection from The Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property 

in  the  Event  of  Armed  Conflict  (1954),  to  the  Convention  on  the  Protection  and 

Promotion  of  the  Diversity  of  Cultural  Expressions  (2005).  One  of  the  most  recent 

developments in this sense was the Memorandum of Understanding between the EU 

and  UNESCO  regarding  education,  culture,  media  and  science.  The  EU  and  UNESCO 

issued  a  joint  statement  in  2013  referring  to  the  signing  of  a  Memorandum  of 

Understanding a year earlier indicating a desire to cooperate along these different policy 

areas. The EU and all its Member States are parties to the 2005 UNESCO Convention on 

the  Diversity  of  Cultural  Expressions,  which  serves  as  a  framework  for  EU  policy  on 
culture in its external relations, including trade and development cooperation.  

UNESCO  recently  published  a  report  on  the  2005  Convention  on  the  Protection  and 

Promotion  of  the  Diversity  of  Cultural  Expressions.  This  Convention,  which  celebrates 

the cultural as well economic value of the cultural and creative sectors, was a landmark 

agreement  for  the  international  community.  The  recent  2018  annual  report  on  the 

convention  also  examines  the  role  of  gender  in  the  cultural  and  creative  sectors.  It 

concludes  that  women  are  still  under-represented  in  certain  areas  of  the  cultural  and 

creative workforces, particularly in decision-making and lead creative roles. The lack of 

data  and  visibility  surrounding  this  inequality  must  be  highlighted  in  order  to  be 

addressed, and as  such the report  recommends  systematic data collection to  increase 

awareness of the gender gap, and to help incorporate the gender perspective in public 
policies. 29 

Current  work  by 

the  International  Labour  Organisation  (ILO) 

focuses, 

understandably,  more  on  working  conditions  and  the  labour  market  across  sectors, 

including in the media, culture and graphics sectors. ILO work in these sectors centres 

on  the  employment  effects  of  technological  and  market  developments  in  media  and 

entertainment  industries  and  their  impact  on  the  future  of  the  press,  public  service 

broadcasting,  the  music  and  film  industry  and  other  segments.  The  main  focus  is  on 

employment relationships and their impact on decent work in the sector. 

Most  recently,  in  January  2019,  the  ILO  published  a  working  paper  on  ‘Challenges 
and opportunities for decent work in the culture and media sectors’. 30 This report 
maps the legal and political landscape in which culture and media workers operate and 

explores policy options for expanding and promoting decent work and the formalization 

28 https://en.unesco.org/themes/protecting-our-heritage-and-fostering-creativity. 
29 UNESCO, (2017), Monitoring the 2005 Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural 
Expressions – Annual report 2018, available at: http://uis.unesco.org/sites/default/files/documents/reshaping-
cultural-policies-2018-en.pdf. 
30 https://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/---ed_dialogue/---
sector/documents/publication/wcms_661953.pdf. 

20 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
of  labour  relations  in  these  sectors.  The  ILO  identified  18  countries  from  four  regions 

for  the  purpose  of  this  study  (importantly  not  including  the  USA  or  any  European 
countries). 31 

This  report  points  out  a  lack  of  comprehensive  data  on  the  status  of  workers  and  the 

nature  of  employment  relationships.  It  lists  four  main  subjects  of  data  collection  that 

would be useful in this regard: the number of workers; the distribution of these workers 

by  employment  relationship  and  access  to  social  benefits;  the  sector’s  awareness  of 

issues  such  as  gender  equality,  youth  employment  and  ethnic  diversity;  and  market 

dynamics,  in  order  to  compensate  for  data  fragmentation  between  industries  or 

enterprises. 

Moreover,  data  that  would  enable  trend  monitoring  of  wages,  fees  and  royalties  is 

pointed out. Lastly, new research methods to measure the impact of digitalization over 

the short, medium and long terms is deemed to be of importance. Data being in short 

supply  regarding  employment  in  the  area  of  cultural  and  creative  sectors,  especially 

when  considering  the  position  of  women,  is  one  of  the  reasons  for  the  OMC  Working 

Group launching this exploratory study on gender in the CCSs in Europe. 

I nt er na t i ona l  d ev e lo pme nt s on  G en de r  E q ua l ity 

One of the earliest international policy developments aiming to support women was the 

1979 UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women. 

Some  30  years  of  work  on  women  and  their  unequal  treatment  compared  to  men 

preceded  the  adoption  of  this  convention,  which  is  seen  as  a  founding,  first  step  to 
international recognition of women’s rights as a human rights issue 32. 

Council  of  Europe  (CoE)  has  been  making  important  strides  in  promoting  gender 

equality. The focus of this organisation on human rights and the rule of democracy, also 

covers  a  strong  focus  on  gender  mainstreaming.  As  such  the  CoE  has  been  active  in 

promoting gender equality in its member countries since the 1990s, after the subject of 

gender  equality  was  established  as  an  international  strategy  within  the  Beijing 

Platform for Action in 1995 at the Fourth UN World Conference on Women in Beijing. 

The Beijing Platform  for Action was another of the fundamental,  international starting 
points for acknowledging gender equality as a global human rights cause 33. 

One of the major steps taken by the CoE was to develop the Convention on preventing 

and  combating  violence  against  women  and  girls,  also  known  as  the  Istanbul 

Convention. This document, which came into force in 2014 was the first legally binding 

instrument to preventing violence towards women and girls at the  international  level. 
By 2019, 21 of EU Member States had ratified this document 34. Broadly speaking, the 
Istanbul  Convention  works  to  promote  the  monitoring  of  violence  against  women, 

31 The countries included in the report are: Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Côte d’Ivoire, Democratic 
Republic of the Congo, Egypt, Indonesia, Japan, Kenya, Lebanon, Malaysia, Morocco, New Zealand, Peru, 
Republic of Korea, Senegal, South Africa 

32 United Nations Human Rights Office of the High Commissioner, (2019), Convention on the Elimination of All 
Forms of Discrimination against Women New York, 18 December 1979, available at: 
https://www.ohchr.org/en/professionalinterest/pages/cedaw.aspx . 
33 UN Women, (no date), The Beijing Platform for Action: inspiration then and now, available at: 
http://beijing20.unwomen.org/en/about . 
34 European Parliament, (2019), EU ACCESSION TO THE COUNCIL OF EUROPE CONVENTION ON PREVENTING 
AND COMBATING VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN ('ISTANBUL CONVENTION') / 2016-03 / UP TO €228 BILLION A 
YEAR, available at: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/legislative-train/theme-area-of-justice-and-fundamental-
rights/file-eu-accession-to-the-istanbul-convention . 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
 
identify  legal  gaps  on  this  subject,  and  identifies  best  practices  on  remedying  this 
category of violence 35.  

The  CoE  has  taken  further  steps  and  measures  in  recent  years  regarding  gender 

equality, having implemented a Gender Equality Strategy 2014-2017, and building 

on  this  strategy’s  results  and  outcomes  with  the  Gender  Equality  Strategy  2018  – 
2023. 36 This first strategy had an overall aim of advancing the position of women and 
empowering  women  in  order  to  achieve  gender  equality  in  Council  of  Europe  member 

states by supporting the implementation of existing standards. This strategy has 5 main 

objectives,  including  the  prevention  of  violence  against  women,  addressing  negative 

impacts  on  gender  stereotypes  in  the  education  system  and  in  the  media,  to  improve 

women’s access  to  justice  and  legal aid  by  training both women  in  their  legal  options 

and  the  judiciary  itself,  to  ensure  balanced  representation  of  women  and  men  in 

decision-making  in  the  public  and  diplomatic  sectors,  and  to  promote  mainstreaming 
across all policy areas 37. These goals demonstrate implicitly what power education and 
the media have in shaping social expectations regarding the roles of women, as well as 

the  fact  that  introducing more  women  into  decision-making  roles  remains a  challenge 

to be addressed. 

The  current  strategy  for  2018  to  2023  builds  on  the  results  and  outcomes  of  its 

predecessor. Gender equality remains an important goal for CoE member states. Sexism 

is a big challenge for most women across institutional, private, and professional levels. 

As such, socio-economic empowerment are important priorities within the new strategy, 

and it focuses on the role of men and boys in promoting gender equality. These areas 

of focus are embedded in the new strategy along with the objectives from the previous 
strategy 38.  

Besides  such  strategies  the  Council  of  Europe  has  also  developed  tools  on  gender 

mainstreaming  and  developed  a  series  of  recommendations  regarding  gender 

equality.  Most  recently  the  Council  made  recommendations  on  preventing  and 
combatting  sexism  (2019) 39,  and  recommendations  on  gender  equality  in  the 
audiovisual  media  sector  (2017)  40.  To  combat  sexism,  members  of  the  CoE  are  for 
instance,  called  to  take  measures  to  prevent  manifestations  of  sexism  in  public  and 

private  life,  but also  to monitor  progress and  implementation  of the  recommendation, 

and to ensure that the recommendation is disseminated across relevant stakeholders. 

The  recommendations  on  the  audio-visual  sector  is  highly  important,  due  to  the  idea 

and value shaping power of this sector. The sector is called on to address examples of 

sexism, and to promote gender equality through a variety of different avenues. These 

include  making  the  sector  more  aware  of  the  gender  perspective  in  different  working 

practices, as well as making other related stakeholders such as EU and national funds, 

and co- and self-regulatory bodies more aware of the gender perspective. The CoE also 

cites  how  campaigns  such  as  the  #MeToo  movement  have  helped  to  heighten  the 

35 European Parliament, (2019), The Istanbul Convention: A tool to tackle violence against women and girls, 
available at: 
http://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/ATAG/2018/630297/EPRS_ATA(2018)630297_EN.pdf . 
36 Council of Europe, (2019), Gender Equality Strategy, available at: 
https://www.coe.int/en/web/genderequality/gender-equality-strategy . 
37 Council of Europe, (2018), Implementation of the Council of Europe Gender Equality Strategy 2018-2023 – 
Annual Report 2018, available at: https://rm.coe.int/annual-report-2018/1680952132 . 
38 Council of Europe, (2018), Implementation of the Council of Europe Gender Equality Strategy 2018-2023 – 
Annual Report 2018, available at: https://rm.coe.int/annual-report-2018/1680952132 . 
39 Council of Europe, (2017), PREVENTING AND COMBATING SEXISM - Recommendation CM/Rec(2019)1, 
available at: https://rm.coe.int/prems-055519-gbr-2573-cmrec-2019-1-web-a5/168093e08c. 
40 Council of Europe, (2019), Recommendation CM/Rec(2017)9 of the Committee of Ministers to member States 
on gender equality in the audiovisual sector, available at: 
https://search.coe.int/cm/Pages/result_details.aspx?ObjectID=09000016807509e6. 

22 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
awareness and attention for how pervasive sexism and sexist behaviour can still be. In 

response to this, the CoE took more concrete steps, such as adopting a recommendation 
for members to adopt legal instruments to stop sexism 41. This was a celebrated step as 
it is one of the first international legal instruments to stop sexism. 

The Council of Europe has in this way provided a series of recommendations and analysis 

of  gender  inequality  across  the  spheres  of  work  and  private  life.  There  has  been  less 

focus  on  gender  equality 

in 

the  cultural  and  creative  sector,  barring 

the 

recommendations  on  the  audio-visual  sector.  That  being  said,  many  of  the 

recommendations  made  are  transversal  and  are  relevant  for  different  types  of  policy 

areas.  Sexism  and  how  it  can  manifest,  the  need  for  data  and  monitoring  of  gender 

equality  and  the  measures  implemented  to  achieve  it,  and  the  importance  of  also 

mobilising men and boys in the efforts for gender equality are all relevant issues across 

sectors and policy areas.  

The UN also works to improve gender equality through various other avenues. In 2010 

the UN established the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment 

of Women, namely, UN Women. This group has the mission of mobilising governments 

and societies to improve gender equality across the world. In practice, UN Women builds 

on the existing policies and strategies by highlighting and introducing a focus on gender 
equality and empowerment 42. 

Other  important  policy  developments  which  enshrine  gender  equality  as  a  priority  for 

the  international  community  to  work  towards  include  the  UN  2030  Agenda  for 

Sustainable Development and the SDGs. This agenda aims to “eradicate poverty and 

achieve  sustainable  development  by  2030  world-wide,  ensuring  that  no  one  is  left 
behind 43”. Sustainable and inclusive economic development and social well-being have 
been part of European policy priorities in the run up to 2015. Between 2013 and 2015, 

the EU developed communications on ending poverty, decent and dignified lives for all 

EU citizens, and on removing poverty in combination with sustainable development. As 

such,  the  UN  2030  Agenda  aligns  closely  with  existing  EU  policy  priorities.  Within  the 

UN 2030 Agenda, a series of 17 different Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) were 

outlined which UN countries would work towards in order to remove poverty and achieve 

sustainable development. One of these SDGs, goal 5, is to “Achieve gender equality and 
empower all women and girls” 44. 

Within this SDG goal on gender, a series of sub-goals are listed which state amongst 

other things, that countries will work to end all forms of discrimination against women 

and girls, end all forms of violence against women and girls, and end harmful practices 

towards women and girls, (such as forced genital mutilation and marriage). Other sub-

goals  include  recognition  of  unpaid  care  and  domestic  work,  ensuring  women’s  equal 

access  to  the  labour  market,  accessible  sexual  and  reproductive  health  care,  initiate 

actions  to  give  women  equal  access  to  economic  resources,  enhance  the  use  of 

41 Council of Europe, (2019), Council of Europe adopts first-ever international legal instrument to stop sexism, 
available at: 
https://search.coe.int/directorate_of_communications/Pages/result_details.aspx?ObjectId=090000168093b532 
42 UN Women, (no date), About UN Women, available at: 
https://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/daw/index.html. 
43 European Commission, (2019), The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the SDGs, available at: 
https://ec.europa.eu/environment/sustainable-development/SDGs/index_en.htm . 
44 United Nations, (2015), Transforming our World: The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, available at: 
https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/content/documents/21252030%20Agenda%20for%20Sustainable%20D
evelopment%20web.pdf . 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
technology and empowerment regarding technology amongst women, and adopting and 
strengthening policies and enforceable laws which protect and empower women 45. 

Concerning gender and the cultural and creative sectors, UNESCO developed the report 
"Gender Equality: Heritage and Creativity" in 2014. 46 It was one of the first reports 
to collect existing research, policies, case studies and statistics on gender equality and 

women's  empowerment  in  culture.  This  report  pointed  out  that  women  were  being 

marginalized  from  cultural  life, facing numerous  barriers to equally access, contribute 

to and participate in film, theatre production, arts, music and heritage. According to the 

report, indicators of the gender inequality in the cultural and creative sectors are: 

• 

limited  participation  of  women  in  decision-making  positions  (the  'glass 

ceiling');  

segregation into certain activities ('glass walls');  

restricted opportunities for ongoing training, capacity-building and networking;  

• 
• 
•  women's unequal share of unpaid care work;  
• 
Poor employment conditions (part-time, contractual work, informality. etc.);  
•  Gender stereotypes and fixed ideas about culturally appropriate roles for women 

and men, not necessarily based on the consent of those concerned.  

The report showed that research and awareness-raising for equal rights, responsibilities 

and  opportunities  for  women  and  men  in  the  fields  of  heritage  and  creativity  at  the 

institutional levels were minimal. A major factor for this is the lack of sex-disaggregated 

cultural  data,  which  masks  the  scale  of  the  problem.  The  report  also  includes  the 

following  recommendations  for  governments,  decision-makers  and  the  international 

community within the cultural and creative sectors: 

1.  Full implementation of international conventions and declarations in the field of 

culture in respect of gender equality and diversity; 

2.  Regular,  methodical  collection  and  distribution  of  sex-disaggregated  data  by 
national  statistical  offices  in  all  areas  of  the  cultural  sector  including 

employment, education, capacity-building, participation and consumption; 

3.  Gender-responsive policies and strategies  in  culture, taking  into consideration 
the  intersection  of  broader  social  factors  and  inequalities  that  may  compound 

disadvantages; 

4.  Stimulating  equal  access  for  women  and  men  to  decision-making  processes, 

financial resources and education in cultural fields; 

5.  Leadership  and  mentoring  initiatives  for  women  creators  and  heritage 
professionals and gender balance at senior leadership levels in the cultural and 

creative sectors; 

6.  Support  international,  national  and  local  awareness-raising  and  advocacy 
campaigns that tackle gender stereotypes and discrimination in cultural life; 

7.  Involve all members of society in strategies promoting gender equality in culture 

through  partnerships  with  groups  and  communities  promoting  long-term 

solutions for gender equality in culture; 

8.  Interdisciplinary  research  on  gender  equality  in  heritage  and  the  creative 

industries that involve groups and communities concerned. 

In the same year, 2014, UNESCO launched their Priority Gender Equality Action Plan 
2014-2021. 47 Amongst other things, the document provides guidance on how UNESCO 
will ensure that a gender equality perspective is reflected in all its policies, programmes 

45 Idem. 
46 https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000229418 
47 https://en.unesco.org/sites/default/files/geap_2014-2021_en.pdf 

24 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
and processes so that gender equality is advanced. The section on culture shows four 

expected results: 

• 

Increased recognition of women’s contributions to cultural life through enhanced 

advocacy, improved data collection and knowledge management; 
•  Creative horizons of women and girls broadened and encouraged; 
•  Cultural policies that respect and support gender equality, women’s rights and 
freedom of expression and ensure women’s access to decision-making posts and 

processes; 

•  Women’s and girls’ access to and participation in cultural life, including cultural 
heritage,  creative  expression  and  enjoyment  of  cultural  goods  and  services 

enhanced. 

The  EU  and  UNESCO  has  developed  and  implemented  policies  and  programmes  on 

cultural heritage more broadly, and in parallel has incorporated gender equality issues 

in  many  of  its  sectoral  policies.  Programmes  which  combined  gender  equality  in  the 

cultural  and  creative  sectors  are  in  shorter  supply  due  in  part  to  the  unstructured, 

informal and independent natures of these sectors. 

UNESCO  and  EIGE  have  both  conducted  several  studies  on  the  position  of  gender  in 

cultural  areas.  The  lack  of  systematic  data  for  such  a  heterogeneous  and  diverse 

collection  of  sectors,  as  well  as  more  detailed  employment  data  are  cited  by  these 

organisations and the ILO as a barrier to improving the position of women in the cultural 

and creative sectors. The CoE and the EU have various policies and strategies in place 

to target gender equality, and though these developments contribute to progress, the 

goals  and  objectives  of  those  strategies  remain  relevant  today.  Besides  the  need  for 

more gender mainstreaming across policy sectors, the EU and CoE indicate that the pay 

gap and access to decision-making must be addressed. The CoE also points to the role 

of men and boys in helping to promote gender equality. 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
3  Gender gaps within the cultural and 

creative sectors  

3.1 

Introduction 

The  following  section  draws  together  the  findings  from  data  collection  carried  out 

amongst the sub-sectors of the CCSs. Interviews and desk research were conducted in 

order  to  explore  the  main  types  of  gender  gaps  present  in  the  cultural  and  creative 

sectors.  A  note  here  again  is  that  the  CCSs  and  their  sub-sectors  are  diverse  and 

heterogeneous, and that a systematic analysis of each sector is not feasible here. Rather 

the individual realities in each sub-sector have been explored. The findings from these 

sub-sectors  have  been  aggregated  into  the  analysis  in  this  chapter  on  the 

overarching gender gaps and drivers that are present across the CCSs. 

Across the different sub-sectors of the CCSs, some types of gender inequality are more 

prevalent  in  some  sub-sectors  than  others.  This  chapter  examines  the  presence  and 

prevalence of different types of gender gaps across the various sub-sectors within the 

cultural and creative industries.  

The  drivers  and  causes  of  those  different  gender  gaps  are  also  examined  throughout 

the  discussion on  gender gaps. Some  of  the drivers of gender  gaps are  cross-sectoral 

and  quite  universal,  compared  to  some  drivers  which  are  more  sector  specific.  An 

observation at the outset of this analysis is that some of the drivers identified interact 

with  other  drivers  and  can  work  to  reinforce  (or  undermine  and  reduce),  some  of  the 

gender gaps discussed in this report. Furthermore, it appears that these gaps interact 

with the specific sectoral features of the creative and cultural industries. 

It  should  be  noted  at  this  juncture  that  certain  sub-sectors  are  larger  and  more 

formalised  in  their  patterns  of  working.  Some  sectors  also  enjoy  more  study  and 

research and more information and sources are available as a result. Other sectors are 

smaller  or  more  difficult  to  define,  and  therefore  less  information  is  available  on  the 

sector and, by extension, the gender gaps present there. 

The different types of gender gaps are discussed in turn below before moving on to the 

analysis of the drivers of those gaps. The aspects of gender inequality examined here 

include:  
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

gender stereotypes,  

access to decision-making and leadership roles,  

access to resources and the gender pay gap,  

access to the arts labour market and  

sexual harassment. 

A figure is presented below to provide a first overview of how the different gender gaps 

interact  and  bolster  each  other  in  the  context  of  the  cultural  and  creative  industries. 

The  figure  summarises  how  expectations  in  the  CCSs  as  well  as  broader  societal 

expectations  regarding  men  and  women,  interact  with  working  practices  in  the  sector 

to produce and reinforce certain roles and gendered professions in the CCSs, which in 

turn impact the access to resources and the arts market for women compared to men. 

26 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Figure 1  Schematic overview of gender gaps and their interaction 

Societal and sectoral expectations regarding 
creative and cultural sectors (CCSs)

Societal expectations for men and women

Sectoral working practices 
CCSs

• 
Informal working culture
•  High importance (informal) 

• 

networking and self-promotion
Freelance and project based 
work

•  Highly comp etitive and dynamic 
•  High level of travel (tours, 

conferences, self-promotion, 
etc).
Classical, historical legacy for 
some sectors

• 

Stereotyped and gendered, 
professions in CCSs

Presence of men and women in 
certain ocupations within CCSs

Reinforcing (or breaking) 
stereotypes in sector

(Less) Access to resou rces 
and Arts labour market for 
women

• 

Issues such as:
• 
Less pay
• 
Lower valuation of female 
creative outputs and female 
dominated sectors
Less active in decision-
making or lead creative 
positions
Less access to networks
Less responsib ility and 
exp ertise developed over 
time.

• 
• 

Source: Report authors 

3.2 

Gender Stereotypes 

Across the various sectors examined, gender stereotypes are apparent in each and every 

one. In some ways this may seem quite intuitive, as gender stereotypes of some kind 

are  pervasive  in  society  towards  both  men  and  women.  However,  the  stereotypes 

examined here are those which are detrimental to the access and professional growth 

of women (and to a lesser degree, men) in the cultural and creative sectors. 

The nature of gender stereotypes in the CCSs differ, but the bases for those stereotypes 

are  similar.  Though  the  specific  types  of  jobs  which  men  and  women  are  expected  to 

hold  in  across  CCSs  vary,  the  underlying  foundations  for  those  stereotypes  are 

similar.  Society  as  a  whole  tends  to  have  certain  perceptions  regarding  the  talents, 

capacities, and skills which women are more likely to have compared to men. Research 

from across different sectors, going beyond the cultural and creative sectors, points to 

number of classic observations and associations regarding the differences between men 

and  women.  Women  are  typically  viewed  as  being  more  communicative,  prone  to 

organisation and coordinating (due to the idea that women’s brains are better able to 

multi-task and focus on multiple things at once amongst other things), more inclined to 

work  within  teams,  working  in  softer  disciplines,  avoiding  conflict,  more  risk  averse, 

more  driven  by  intrinsic  motivation  for  their  work,  take  more  considered  approaches 

and actions, and on average, have a higher emotional intelligence. These are of course, 

all associations and average trends and do not necessarily hold to the individual. Plenty 

of women  exist  who  do  take  risks,  or  who do not shy away  from  conflict for  instance. 

However,  in  both  research  and  in  terms  of  societal  expectations,  these  are  classically 

viewed  as  female  attributes.  Men  in  turn,  tend  to  be  defined  by  reverse  attributes  to 

these  classically  female  attributes.  For  example,  men  are  seen  as  being  more 

autonomous and  individualistic  in  their working  habits, more  prone to action and  trial 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
and error in their approaches, take more risks on average, are more prone to working 

in  harder  disciplines,  have  a  higher  capacity  to  focus  on  one  issue  at  a  time,  and  are 

less prone to avoiding conflict. Here again, it should be emphasised that these are trends 

and associations held with being a man, and will not hold for each individual man. 

Both these sets of gendered associations are ingrained in men and women from an 

early  age.  While  the  exact  nature  of  the  associations  and  gender  expectations  vary 

across societies and cultures, these general trends in attributes remain prevalent across 

Europe  but  also  globally.  Children  are  ingrained  with  these  norms,  expectations  and 

associations  from  a  young  age  in  family,  educational  and  social  settings  and  in  most 

cases come to internalize certain behaviours and ways of thinking. Children absorb the 

social and cultural cues from their surroundings and in turn may grow up to propagate 

and  contribute  to  those  social  and  cultural  cues  concerning  their  gender  roles.  Thus, 

some of the drivers of stereotypes are part of the iterative, cyclical process that is the 

production, maintenance and exchange of cultural norms in a society. 

A final and important association which society holds for men and women is that women 

have a greater share of the home responsibilities, notably when children enter the 

scene. While western countries are paying increasing policy attention to paternity leave, 

the  cultural  shift  in  thinking  that  men  ought  to  take  on  more  of  the  childrearing  and 

home life responsibilities is occurring slowly in European and North American societies. 

As  a  result,  the  dominant  perception  and  practice  is  that  women  take  on  most  of  the 

childcare  activities,  regardless  of  whether  they  work  or  not.  Again,  per  family  this 

differs, but on average, as men have historically tended to be the main bread winners 

in  a  household,  this  idea  has  remained  that  women  take  on  more  of  the  childcare 

responsibilities. This particular expectation, and the effect that having children has on 

a woman’s professional life, contribute to specific gendered stereotypes in the cultural 

and creative sectors. 

Besides  the  expectations  that  Western  societies  may  hold  towards  men  and  women, 

people  in  and  outside  of  the  cultural  and  creative  sectors  also  hold  certain 

associations  that  are  related  to  these  sectors.  The  CCSs  are  seen  as  creative, 

dynamic  and  informal.  The  sector  itself  is  characterised  by  features  and  working 

practices  including  high  competition,  self-promotion,  informal  networking,  irregular 

working  hours,  project-based  jobs  and  occupations,  touring  and  travel.  The  typical 

artist  and  creatives are  often  perceived  by  those  inside  and  outside  of  the  field  as 

sources of creativity and inspiration, driven by passion for their field, and often creating 

and  developing  outputs  by  themselves  to  flexible  and  changeable  working  rhythms  to 

complete creative projects.  

Together,  these  different  types  of  societal  and  sectoral  expectations  concerning  men 

and  women  particularly  in  the  CCSs  lead  to  certain  expectations  regarding  the 

professions and roles men and women hold in those sectors, respectively. This leads to 

gendered  stereotypes  of  men  and  women  in  the  CCSs,  reflecting  the  more  gendered 

stereotypes embedded in our society. 

Gender stereotypes in cultural and creative industries 

The type of gender stereotypes observed in the cultural and creative sectors vary per 

sub-sector.  That  said,  the  research  conducted  shows  some  general  trends  in  gender 

stereotypes which hold across most of the sectors discussed in this report. On average, 

there are higher proportions of men in lead creative positions, decision-making 

and executive roles. This is true for performance arts, visual arts, the music sector, 

28 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
architecture  and  design  as  well  as  in  literature  and  publishing.  In  other  sectors, men 

are  present  in  higher  numbers  at  more  prestigious,  commercial,  competitive, 

or larger cultural institutions. This is the case in cultural education for instance as 

well as in  cultural heritage and related  professions such as museum  governance. One 

sector was an exception in this, namely the artistic crafts. 

For  the  different  sectors,  reports  and  studies  were  examined,  and  expert  interviews 

were conducted. Internationally comparative research for the sub-sectors was often not 

available and, because of this, different national reports have been drawn together to 

offer a first indication of what sort of gender gaps are apparent in the CCSs. Therefore, 

caution  should  be  exercised  in  generalising  these  observations  to  all  EU  states  as 

different countries can have different sectoral contexts and practices for their different 

CCSs. A more systematic comparison could be made in a follow-up study with a large 

scope and access to better quality and geographically scaled data.  

Main  gender  stereotypes  and  position  of  women  compared  to  men  in  the 

cultural and creative sectors 

Looking at  the  specific gender  stereotypes  in the cultural and  creative  sectors,  this 

general  trend  is  expressed  in  the  prevalence  of  men  or  women  in  certain  sector 

specific  professions.  All  in  all,  the  common  gender  stereotypes  visible  across  the 

sectors include: 

• 

The trend that men tend to be more prevalent in more prestigious, decision-

making, and creative leadership positions; 

•  Men tend to be in charge of more commercially important or famous cultural 
institutions  (even  in  sectors  where  women  outnumber  men  in  absolute 

numbers); 

• 

The creative outputs produced by women tend be less valued and appreciated 

compared to those by men across the cultural and creative industries; 

•  Women tend to be the muses or vessels for bringing forth creative visions of 

men, as opposed to being creative leads themselves; 

•  Across sectors there  tend to be more women in the educational trajectories 
for  their  sector  of  choice  than  men.  However,  in  most  cases,  there  are 

ultimately  less  women  present  in  employment  in  those  sectors,  and  as  age 

increases, the proportion of women present in a sector declines 

3.3  Decision making and leadership positions 

The representation of women in decision-making and leadership roles is closely related 

to  the  gender  stereotypes  outlined  above.  In  this  context,  leadership  and  decision-

making  refers to the  senior  management and executive  levels  in  creative and cultural 

organisations,  and  to  lead  creatives  who  develop  and  design  the  creative  direction  of 

projects.  

Based on the different types of gender stereotypes listed above, it also becomes evident 

that  on  average,  women  are  indeed  much  less  represented  in  decision-making 

and leadership roles in the cultural and creative sectors. However, this does vary 

across  sectors  and  even  within  branches  of  sectors.  Within  the performance  arts,  for 

example,  the  dance  sector  has  higher  numbers  of  women  as  lead  choreographers  in 

contemporary  dance  when  compared  to  ballet.  In  cultural  heritage  and  cultural 

education,  women  are  quite  well-represented,  though  often  not  at  the  top  levels  as 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
senior teachers and professors, or directors of more commercial museums because men 

tend to be more represented.  

There  is  also  an  age  trend  present  in  the  cultural  heritage  and  cultural  education 

sectors.  Within  museum  boards  for  example,  there  are  more  women  among  younger 

museum  directors  while  older  directors  tend  to  be  men.  Such  an  age  trend  is  also 

present  in  architecture  and  design;  the  women  in  the  field  tend  to  be  younger,  with 

much fewer older, female architects. This suggests that female architects and designers 

start to leave the field as they get older. 

As indicated, there is variation across sectors, with some sectors being more classically 

masculine, and other sectors being more open to higher numbers of women. In the case 

of  literature  and  publishing  for  instance,  there  are  more  women  present  across 

organizational levels. Despite this, at the executive levels in Europe, there still tend to 

be more men, though the distribution is approximately 60% men and 40% women. In 

the  cultural  heritage  sector  and  especially  in  cultural  education,  many  women  are 

present,  to  the  point  where  these  are  seen  increasingly  as  more  feminine  sectors. 

Artistic crafts in turn are seen as highly feminised to the point where there are almost 
no men active  in the sector 48. This  is also  not desirable, as  this  distribution  reflects a 
generally  lower  societal  and  economic  valuation  of  the  artistic  crafts  amongst  the  art 
and cultural community 49. 

Some  sectors  are  still  seen  as  very  masculine  and  in  such  sectors,  the  proportion  of 

men is higher across levels, and especially in leadership and decision-making positions. 

The  architecture  and  design  fields  are  prime  examples.  Men  are  more  strongly 

represented, fit more into the classical architect image, and are generally approached 

to lead the design on large and important buildings. Women in turn tend to work more 

in support roles and engage in softer areas of the field, such as interior design. Design 

has similar patterns as it is also seen as a harder, more functional sector. While design 

is a very broad discipline, functional and quality products are seen as more masculine, 

whereas  less  functional  or  kitsch  products  are  seen  as  more  feminine,  and  not  as 

creatively inspired.  

The music sector and performing arts also have less women in decision-making and lead 

creative  roles.  Artist  managers,  screenplay  and  script  writers,  directors,  lead 

choreographers,  composers  and  conductors  are  all  roles  which  are  more  likely  to  be 

filled by men. Women are more likely to advance as talented musicians, singers, and as 

vessels for the creative visions of men in higher professional positions. 

3.4 

Access to resources and equal pay issues 

In  the  context  of  this  study,  another  area  of  gender  gaps  relates  to  having  access  to 

necessary  resources  in  the  CCSs  to  thrive  professionally.  The  gender  pay  gap  is  a 

dominant theme in this context. Other resources which are important to have to succeed 

in the CCSs relate to the working practices and working culture in these sectors. 

In order to advance professionally in these sectors, individuals need resources to help 

navigate those working practices. 

48 Tyson, A., (2016), In resisting gendered hierarchies of practice in the art world, [online], 
http://dangerouswomenproject.org/2016/07/20/art-vs-crafts/. 
49 Hughes, C., (2012), Gender, craft labour and the creative sector, International Journal of Cultural Policy, Vol. 
18, No. 4, September 2012, 439–454. 

30 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
Common  sectoral  working  practices  include  flexible,  project-based  styles  of 

working  with creative deadlines  and  erratic  working  hours.  This  is  especially 

the  case  in  visual  arts,  literature  and  publishing  and  notably  in  the  fields  of 

architecture  and  design  but  also  in  the  music  sector  and  in  performance  arts. 

Furthermore,  a  sectoral  practice  in  the  cultural  and  creative  industries  is  the 

predominance of informal working, self-promotion, and networking. Travel in 

aid  of  music,  theatre,  dance,  opera,  circus  tours,  as  well  as  book  promotions  and 

apprenticeships are also inherent in the cultural and creative sectors. 

In  order  to  access  the  field,  workers  need  certain  resources.  Resources  in  this 

context include having personal and professional networks, the time and resources 

to  maintain  those  networks,  time  and  resources  to  travel  in  order  to  self-

promote and gain more work. Through working and developing project references, 

an  individual  builds  up  expertise  and  experience,  thereby  adding  to  their  own 

professional resources in the CCSs. 

Looking first at networking, in several CCS these activities can often take place in the 

evening  (for  example,  attending  concerts  or  events).  As  women  on  average  take  on 

more  of  the  childrearing  and  home  responsibilities  in  society,  there  is  an  expectation 

and sometimes a reality in the sector, that women are less able to access and maintain 

such networks within these settings. Given that much of the sector also revolves around 

self-promotion in order to score or win the next project, the lack of a network can be 

problematic for someone working in the CCS. Having a network is related to a person’s 

profession  and  time  spent  working  in  a  sector.  In  the  case  of  women,  they  are  more 

likely  to  be  employed  in  less  prestigious  roles,  thus  meeting  fewer  and  perhaps  less 

useful individuals in the field. Due to the fact that women are also more likely to take 

on more child caring responsibilities compared to men, women also tend to have less 

opportunity  to  maintain  networks  and  attend  informal  networking  events,  or 

engage in as much self-promotion.  

In this context, mentors can be very useful. However, across the CCSs examined in 

this  study,  mentors  to  women  appear  to  be  in  relatively  short  supply.  A  few 

women reach higher positions and become mentors to other young people, often women 

as  well,  but  these  female  role  models  and  mentors  seem  to  be  in  the  minority  across 

most CCSs. 

The  higher  levels  of  childcare  responsibility  usually  taken  by  women  also  means  that 

travelling for work becomes more problematic. Women are less able to go on tour 

for weeks or months on end, nor can they usually drop everything at a moment’s notice 

to travel and promote, meet potential clients, or work the late hours often required to 

meet  strict  creative  deadlines  (notably  in  the  architecture  and  design  sectors).  While 

these activities are of course not impossible for women to engage in, there tends to be 

more  organisation  and  coordination  involved  to  ensure  that  home  responsibilities  are 

taken care of beforehand. This can undermine the flexibility for some women and lead 

to a perception in fields that this trend of being less flexible applies to all women (and 

not  just  the  mothers),  thereby  contributing  to  gender  stereotypes  and  work 

environments that do not allow women to reach their full potential. On top of the fact 

that  women build up,  on average, less  expertise and experience as  they are  less able 

to network, travel, and self-promote to get into new work or projects. Women thereby 

are more quickly perceived as less competent in the CCSs when in reality it is because 

they have literally had less chance to build up experience compared to the average male 

in the sector.  

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Related  to  this,  the  lower  levels  of  women  in  the  CCSs  is  taken  almost  as  a  sign  by 

individuals working in the sectors that women cannot or do not want to work in those 
sectors. This was evidenced in the dance sector for instance 50. It appears that though 
gender  imbalances  remain,  the  barriers  to  resources  have  become  more  implicit  and 

less visible. Again, these are trends and are likely to differ at the individual level; women 

do  enter  the  field  and  can  grow  to  senior  positions,  but  the  prevalence  of  doing  so  is 

much  lower  compared  to  men.  This  appears  to  be  closely  tied  to  the  less  than  visible 

and  implicit  obstacles and  hurdles which  women face more of compared  to  their male 

counterparts. 

Gender Pay Gap 

A key resource is of course financial income. The pay gap is a pervasive phenomenon 

which holds across sectors and the world over. In the case of the cultural and creative 

sectors in Europe and the United States of America, the gender pay gap is also present.  

There  is a gender pay gap  for  men  and women working  at  the  same  level of 

seniority or in the same position, and a gap in the sense that women are less 

likely  to  advance  to  more  senior  positions  (and  the  chance  of  higher 

remuneration).  

As  previously  stated,  there  are  still  far  more  men  working  in  senior  positions  than 

women,  which  tends  to  be  closely  tied  to  less  financial  resources.  If  women  are  less 

likely to reach such senior positions, their access to financial resources is also lower, to 

say nothing about the gender pay gap for men and women in the same position. In the 

field of architecture and design, the 2018 sectoral survey by the Architects’ Council of 

Europe  illustrates  that  a  gender  pay  gap  also  exists  cross  all  types  of  employment  in 

the  sector.  Across  jobs,  including  sole  principle  architects,  partners  and  directors  of 

architectural bureaus, private practice architects, government architects, and freelance 

architects all show the same patterns of men earning more than women. Added to this, 

the creative outputs of women in the CCSs also tend to be less valued compared 

to those produced by men. This translates to lower monetary valuation and payments 

for creative works by women compared to men.  

3.5 

Access to the Labour and Art Market 

As  was  touched  upon  above,  certain  resources  are  necessary  for  an  individual  to 

advance in the cultural and creative sectors.  

The access to the labour market is tied to resources such as networks, mentors, time 

and financial resources to self-promote, travel, and so doing, to bring in new creative 

and cultural projects and work. Lack of access to such resource also undermines 

a  person’s  ability  to  advance  in  the  sector.  Women,  by  virtue  of  sectoral 

stereotypes and certain working practices specific to the CCSs have, on average, less 

access  to  these  resources  compared  to  men. This also means that  women  face 

higher difficulties in accessing the labour and art market as a result. 

There are other labour market related issues which affect the ease of access to the CCS 

market  for  women.  Besides  the  fact  that  women  on  average  advance  less  to 

decision-making  and  creative  leadership  roles  across  sectors  means  that  a 

certain section of the labour market is less accessible to them. Indeed, research 

50 Cardim, D., (2013) ‘What are the Reasons for the Low Percentages of Female Artistic Directors in Western 
European Ballet Companies?’ Dissertation for BA in Arts Management at London South Bank University. 

32 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
and experts interviewed often refer to the glass ceiling for women; they see men around 

them advancing due to gendered stereotypes regarding roles, and the demands of the 

sector, which appear more tailored to the idea that the classic worker in the CCSs is a 

male with few home responsibilities. The perceptions and expectations regarding women 

and their capacities held by other individuals in the sector play a key role here.  

Accessing  the  full  CCS  labour  market  is  thus  more  of  a  challenge  for  women  when 

compared  to  men.  Other  features  of  the  sector  which  impact  the  labour  market 

include  the flexible, project-based, freelance styles of working. These  forms of 

work  and  employment  are  less  stable  and  riskier,  as  they  tend  to  involve  less  social 

security  coverage.  Less  stable  streams  of  income  also  make  working  in  this  sector, 

notably the arts market, less secure. This can be perceived as a challenge to workers 

in and of itself, but when children and home-care responsibilities come into play as well, 

accessing the CCS labour market, and the arts market in particular, becomes even more 

challenging.  As  childcare  responsibilities  tend  to  fall  more  to  women,  so  too  do  the 

challenges to accessing the labour and arts market. 

The challenge of children and home-care responsibilities, and the fact that women 

take on more of these responsibilities has been much discussed in society, in research, 

and here in this report. It remains however one of the dominant reasons for which 

women are attributed certain expectations, and one of the main reasons for gender 

stereotypes arising. This  is no less  the case  for  the cultural and  creative sectors (and 

according to some experts, may even be more prevalent in these sectors compared to 

other economic sectors).  

Having children while working  in  the  creative  and  cultural sectors  entails  a 

number  of  consequences.  When  a  mother  gives  birth,  re-entering  the  sector  of 

work  can  be  very  difficult,  and  if  she  does,  she  will  obtain  a  lower  position  than 

earlier.  This  was  cited  as  a  special  challenge  in  the architecture  and  design  sector, 

where the sector is so competitive that being out of it for several months can mean 

that  a  person  has  to  fight  to  re-establish  themselves  and  gain  back  lost  ground  in 

their  work.  Furthermore,  across  sectors,  the  assumption  is  that  a  woman  will  work 

less, be less focused, less flexible, and less dedicated when they start having children. 

In both the music sector and in visual arts this was particularly apparent. 

Childcare  and  home  responsibilities  are  difficult  to  combine  with  the  long  and 

irregular  work  hours  and  absences  dedicated  to  creation,  production, 

networking, promotion and performance in a creative career. As women carry 

more of these responsibilities, motherhood is thought to have a negative impact on 
career  progression 51  and  may  lead  to  women  opting  out  for  working  part-time. 
Stereotypes play a strong role here: for example, in the visual arts, pregnant artists 

find  their  exhibitions  postponed  or  cancelled,  based  on  the  assumption  that  they 

couldn’t continue their work, wouldn’t be as focussed or reliable, or would find their 

creativity changed. 

Within  the  CCS,  maternity  leave  can  be  challenging  especially  for  small  businesses 

that only consist of two or three employees. From the sectors researched in this study, 

it appears that women in the cultural industries as a whole tend to be put in a position 

where they sacrifice family in favour of work (or vice versa). Furthermore, working from 

51 https://www.kcet.org/shows/artbound/life-lessons-motherhood-and-art 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
home is detrimental to building networks, which is an essential part of the work within 

some CCS’s for securing new project work.  

3.6 

Sexual harassment 

As  indicated  in the  introduction  to  this section,  this  chapter on  gender  gaps  in CCS  is 

based on the findings from sub-sector desk research and interviews. Based on this data 

collection, not much insight or data came to light on sexual harassment in the sub-

sectors. At the aggregate level however, cultural and creative sectors do appear to be 

subject  to  sexual  harassment.  Current  and  systematic  data  on  this  issue  is, 

unsurprisingly, lacking. This would appear to have much to do with the stigmatization 

and highly personal and sensitive nature of this particular area of gender inequality. 

That  said,  some  of  the  more  recent  literature  does  give  an  indication  of  the  state  of 

affairs in the cultural and creative sectors. In their examination of sexual discrimination 
amongst  Dutch  women  working  in  the  creative  industries,  Hennekam  and  Bennett 52 
provide an overview of the literature on this subject to date. The authors also arrive at 

a series of contextual factors which facilitate sexual harassment, and demonstrate that 

the  features  of  the  cultural  and  creative  sectors  make  them  fertile  ground  for  sexual 

harassment. 

Sexual harassment first of all, is understood by the authors as “unwelcome sexualized 

behaviours in the organizational context” and in practice may concern “unwanted 

verbal comments, jokes and sexual gestures, demands for sexual favours as a condition 

of  employment,  requests  for  dates  and  actions  encompassing  touching  and  coercive 
attempts to establish a sexual interaction.” 53 The authors find that sexual harassment 
was considered a normalised issue in the creative sectors in The Netherlands, not 

to mention prevalent, and as part of getting ahead amongst many of the participants in 

their study.  

Based on this research, the authors arrive at 4 main contextual factors which drive and 

facilitate  sexual  harassment:  competition  for  work,  industry  culture,  gendered 

power  relations,  and  the  importance  of  informal  networks.  The  cultural  and 

creative sectors are  characterised, amongst others, by  high competition  for  work,  the 

sectoral  practices  requiring  the  need  to  self-promote  amongst  informal  and  formal 

networks, and the gendered role relations. As has been shown in preceding sections of 

this chapter, in many of the cultural and creative sectors, women do not have the same 

access to prestigious, decision-making, or creative leadership positions; there is more 

often a trend of a male having professional influence and power over a woman than the 

reverse.  Furthermore,  in  the  visual  arts,  the  music  sector,  and  the  various  kinds  of 

performing  arts,  women  are  often  celebrated  for  their  physical  appearance,  thereby 

contributing to a gendered power dynamic between men and women. 

Indeed,  the  authors  arrive  at  the  conclusion  that  contrary  to  the  cool,  informal, 

accessible and egalitarian reputation of the cultural and creative sectors, there are in 

fact more hidden hierarchies and power relations. The informality is a blessing and a 

curse  it  seems,  as  have  been  evinced  in  previous  sections.  Sexual  harassment 

happens  in the  cultural  and creative  industries, and seems  to be  more prevalent 

in these sectors than in other economic sectors. 

52 Hennekam and Bennett, (2017), Sexual Harassment in the Creative Industries: Tolerance, Culture and the 
Need for Change, Gender, Work and Organization Vol. 24 No. 4 July 2017. 
53 Ibidem. 

34 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
Given  that  sexual  harassment  is  also  part  of  socially  ingrained  attitude  towards  men 

and women, addressing this issue within the CCSs is challenging. The authors argue for 

initiatives  which  target  the  individual,  educational,  sectoral,  and  government  levels. 

Movements such as the #MeToo had widespread success in helping to make the issue 

visible; women all over the world shared their experiences with sexual harassment, from 

wolf whistling on the street, to sexual assault and rape. The movement has made the 

individual  experiences  visible  and  given  the  sheer  numbers  of  women  (and  men  to  a 

lesser  extent),  coming  forward,  attention  was  garnered  for  more  action  at  the 

educational and governmental levels. At the sub-sectoral level, an example of a similar 

campaign was #WakingTheFeminists, which arose in reaction to widespread reports 

of  sexual  harassment  in  the  Irish  theatre  sector.  This  campaign  made  the  problem 

visible, and this triggered policy discussions at the national level and legislative change. 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
4  The situation of women in the cultural and 

creative sectors 

4.1 

Introduction 

This  section  will  provide  an  overview  of  the  current  situation  of  women  artists  and 

professionals working within various sub-sectors of the cultural and creative sectors in 

the  EU.  This  section  presents  the  data  collected  from  desk  research  and  through 

interviews for each of the sub-sectors within the cultural and creative sectors.  

Each  section  provides  a  description  of  the  state  of  affairs  in  the  sector  regarding  the 

position of women, and the causes and drivers for this state of affairs. Available data is 

used  where  relevant,  though  in  many  cases  in  the  absence  of  harmonised, 

internationally comparable data for a sub-sector, national reports and academic sources 

focussing  on  one  or  several  countries  have  been  used.  For  each  sub-sector  a  section 

has  been  included  to  describe  some  of  the  initiatives  and  practices  that  have  been 

implemented in order to help address gender gaps. As the information available for each 

sector varies substantially, so too do the level of information collected and the analysis 

provided.  

4.2  Music sector 

S ta te  o f a ffa i rs  a n d  dr iv e rs 
According  to  ‘Women  in  Music’ 54,  the  gender  divide  across  within  the  music  sector  is 
roughly 70% male to 30% female across all regions. 55 In Europe, women represent 20% 
or less of registered composers and songwriters 56, on average earn 30% less than men 
working within the sector, composed only 2.3% of classical works performed at concerts 
and own only 15% of record labels. 57 Although these ﬁgures almost certainly represent 
increases on previous eras, it is known that from the moment a woman takes an interest 

in music, she enters a culture that is dominated by men. This permeates throughout all 

areas of the industry, and is not limited to certain genres or roles within the sector.  

For instance, in the UK, women make up just 5% of all sound engineers, 58 and according 
though  women  are  slightly 
to  Dutch  Authors  society  Buma/Stemra,  even 

overrepresented  among  graduates  from  music  schools  and  conservatories  in  the 

Netherlands,  they  are  still  highly  underrepresented  among  members  of  professional 
organizations for  both  performing artists and  music creators. 59 In addition, of roughly 
25.000  Buma/Stemra  members,  only  13%  are  female.  This  disparity  is  not  limited  to 

those working within the sector, as there are also inequalities within representation of 

artists and works. For instance, in 2018, the stage representation of women performing 
at  US  festivals  was  14%,  with  12%  of  acts  containing  a  mix  of  genders. 60  Apart  the 
pop/rock world, in 2018, 15 major orchestras that performed more than 1,400 concerts 

54 https://www.womeninmusic.org/about.html 
55 https://www.womeninmusic.org/stats.html 
56 https://www.womeninmusic.org/stats.html 
57 Keychange Manifesto, 2018. See: https://keychange.eu/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/1052-keychange-A5-
v15-web.pdf  
58 https://www.theguardian.com/inequality/2017/oct/12/tonights-live-music-acts-will-mostly-be-male-only-
whats-holding-women-back 
59 https://www.bumastemra.nl/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/BUM18147_Onderzoeks-rapport.pdf 
60 Keychange Manifesto, 2018. See: https://keychange.eu/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/1052-keychange-A5-
v15-web.pdf  

36 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
worldwide  performed  only  76  concerts  will  at  least  one  piece  by  a  woman  composer, 
accounting for only 2.3% of classical works performed. 61 

Behind these statistics regarding the concentration of women and men is occupational 

and job segregation by sex, which is highly apparent in the music sector, where some 

occupations and jobs are historically and culturally strongly associated with women and 

some  with  men,  respectively.  From  a  horizontal  perspective,  men  typically  work  in 

technical  or  prestigious  creative  jobs,  such  as  Artists  and  Repertoire  (A&R),  artist 

manager or producer, while women are often to be found in marketing, PR, production 
or  retail. 62 There  is a  notable absence  of  female music producers,  which  is  potentially 
caused  by  a  lack  of  women  role  models,  which  makes  it  difficult  to  pursue  given  that 
the image of a producer remains masculine in nature. 63  

At  the  vertical  level,  working  within  the  music  sector  is  similar  to  other  cultural 

professionals whereby there exists a ‘glass ceiling’ through which women can see men 

moving up, but cannot break through it themselves. Women are therefore required to 

be exceptionally good in order to receive the notice and reward which would be granted 

to a man for more ordinary achievements. Less than 20% of leading positions, such as 

being the CEO or being on the board of a company in the music industry, are held by 
women. 64  

These  disparities  of  roles  lead  to  large  pay  gaps  between  men  and  women.  For 

example, in 2018 in the UK, Sony, Warner and Universal had average female pay gaps 

of 22.7%, 49% and 29.8%, respectively. These figures act as evidence that there are 

still far more men working in senior positions than women. The issue of unequal pay in 

the  music  industry  becomes  more  pronounced  when  paired  with  the  "winner  take  all" 
mentality. 65  Prestigious  positions  in  the  music  industry  such  as  the  famous  manager, 
the genius A&R or the superstar-producer are disproportionally much better paid than 

other, less prestigious jobs, which are paid disproportionally poorly. Therefore, there is 

a  prestige  pay  gap  as  well  as  a  gender  pay  gap.  As  women  in  the  music  industry  are 

underrepresented  in  prestigious  positions,  those  working  in  these  roles  are  typically 

men. When this is considered in relation with the general gender wage gap, it is clearer 

why  women  in  the  music  industry  have  a  difficult  financial  standing  in  comparison  to 
men. 66 

According  to  statistics,  popular  and  commercial  music  has  been  predominantly 

male-dominated.  According  to  data  collected  from  the  US  since  1951,  the  only  year 
where  male  artists  sunk  below  50%  in  year  end  chart  Billboard  Chart  is  1997. 67  This 
situation is not improving: considering the top 10,000 songs streamed on Spotify from 

May to September 2016, 73.2% of the songs were by male artists, followed distantly by 

14.3%  women  and  12.5%  mixed.  This  is  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  female  superstars 

outnumber  their  male  counterparts  today.  Additionally,  since  the  1980’s,  women  are 

more likely to dominate charts than man superstars, who rarely chart more songs than 

the  top  female  artists  in  recent  years.  This  gender  gap  is  evident  across  genres, 

61 http://www.drama-musica.com/stories/2018_2019_orchestra_seasons.html  
62 Anna-Lisa Willrodt (2016), Gender and Labour in the Music Industry: An exploration into why the music 
industry has a gender problem and what can be done to change it, University of Agder, available at: 
https://uia.brage.unit.no/uia-xmlui/bitstream/handle/11250/2423576/Willrodt%2c%20Anna-
Lisa.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y  
63 https://www.billboard.com/articles/business/8095107/female-music-producers-industry-grammy-awards  
64 https://musically.com/2017/11/28/women-music-glass-ceiling/  
65 Creative Labour: Media Work in Three Cultural Industries, David Hesmondhalgh and Sarah Baker, 2010. See: 
https://www.academia.edu/1092289/Creative_Labour_Media_Work_in_Three_Cultural_Industries  
66 Anna-Lisa Willrodt (2016), Gender and Labour in the Music Industry: An exploration into why the music 
industry has a gender problem and what can be done to change it, University of Agder.  
67 https://medium.com/@Spotify/the-persistent-glass-ceiling-of-music-cf7f455d3ce9 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
although some fare better than others; most notably, pop and rock. Punk, metal, and 
R&B/jazz/blues all come out extremely male-dominated. 68 

Within  the  classical  and  choral  music  world,  the  challenges  woman  face  are  mostly  in 

the field of the professional conductors and composers. Women conductors are still 

highly under-represented, and pieces by women composers are less frequently 

performed. There are fewer woman workshop conductors and jury members, and much 
fewer woman professors of conducting. 69 In the orchestral world, women conductors are 
even rarer. In Sweden, this is being addressed through the Dirigent initiative, which is 
a  conducting  program  for  women. 70  Women  who  participate  in  the  program  receive 
instruction  in  conducting,  experience  at  the  podium,  and  mentoring  from  professional 

women  conductors.  The  long  term  goal  is  to  make  conducting  a  natural  choice  for 

anyone with the necessary desire, drive, and skills, regardless of their gender.   

Furthermore, the lack of representation of women composers is not the case in all fields 

of music, as in the field of children and youth choir’s one finds more women conductors 

than  men.  At  a  governance  level,  Boards  and  Music  Commissions  usually  have  a  vast 

man majority and the Presidents and chairs of commissions and boards are still much 

more often men than women. In the offices, on the other hand, there is a clear majority 

of women working and there gender equality may mean that you should consciously try 

to also employ men.  

Issues around the sexual harassment of women working in the music sector are being 

brought more in to focus, although there has yet to be a movement in the vein on the 

#MeToo movement which has taken place within Hollywood. This is despite the fact that 

the  music  sector  has  a  long  history  of  abusive  behaviour  toward  women  by  male  hit 
makers and executives. 71 The music industry has long suffered from the kind of gender 
inequality  that  has  repeatedly  placed  women  in  vulnerable  positions  under  threat  of 

career  advancement,  with  male  artists  and  industry  figures  preying  on  women  and 

young girls.  

Additionally,  woman  music  industry  professionals  who are working  closely with artists 

are  all  too  often  objectified  as  ‘groupies’.  One  of  the  biggest  factors  to  swaying 

perception  about  women  backstage  at  concerts  is  the  dominant  hegemonic  ideas 

towards women in society brought forth in part by the media. The inclusion of groupies 

in  movies  and  other  forms  of  media  has  continuously  altered  the  gaze  of  society  to 
perceive all women who appear backstage as groupies. 72 Within the media, groupies are 
often portrayed as slim, white women attractive to a heterosexual male gaze. Because 

these  stereotypes  exist  and  continue  to  be  perpetuated,  women  attempting  to  be 

involved  in  the  music  industry  may  be  perceived  as  groupies.  Ulterior  motives  of  this 

pattern are that some traditionally masculine music professions are characterised by a 
competitive behaviour, showing the need to prove themselves continuously. 73  

In the music industry, women working within the profession are usually considered the 

"promo-babes" who work with following the artist around, and it is often the case that 

they  do  not  work  in  A&R  or  executive  positions.  Additionally,  it  has  been  reported 

68 https://medium.com/@Spotify/the-persistent-glass-ceiling-of-music-cf7f455d3ce9  
69 Information from expert interview. 
70 https://www.kulturivast.se/sites/default/files/pdf_dirigent17_eng2.pdf  
71 https://pitchfork.com/features/article/why-the-mainstream-music-industry-is-still-struggling-to-address-
metoo/  
72 http://christineosazuwa.com/portfolio/gender-inequality-in-the-rock-pop-music-industry-breaking-the- 
ceiling/  
73 http://christineosazuwa.com/portfolio/gender-inequality-in-the-rock-pop-music-industry-breaking-the-glass-
ceiling/   

-

38 

 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
                                                 
sometimes  that  the  artists  didn’t  take  the  questions  from  the  woman  journalists 
seriously enough. 74 Women music journalists must regularly navigate conflicted feelings 
and complicated grey areas, and the profession presents a distinct set of challenges in 
order to be taken seriously. 75  

The  various  stereotypes  of  women  working  within  the  music  sector  lead  to  the  issue 

that a woman’s level of competence in the music business is sometimes doubted 
because of their gender. 76 In a survey conducted by Buma/Stemra 77, women indicate 
that they experience not being taken seriously (34%) more often than men (19%). In 

the  results,  women  often  encountered  others  who  would  not  take  them  for  music 

creators, but instead presume that they are fans or partners, or that they are a singer.  

The  gender  imbalance  in  the  music  industry  is  highly  affected  by  the  difficulty  to 

combine work and motherhood. Employers often fear motherhood for their women 

staff  and  colleagues  and  as  such,  the  expectation  that  women  of  a  certain  age  will 

become mothers acts as an implicit barrier for women in the sector. Working within the 

music sector often includes odd hours, weekend work and frequent travelling. There is 

a  disadvantage  for  women  in  the  industry,  as  the  combination  of  late  concerts  and 

alcohol are considered easier to handle for men with children than women with children. 

Maternity leave can be challenging especially for small businesses that only consist of 

two or three employees, or self-employed people. Although the rise of digitalisation has 

had an effect on the work environment in terms of making jobs less spatially dependent, 

many of those who do it, usually do it out of necessity as they cannot afford either an 

office  space  or  the  day-care  fee.  As  a  consequence,  women  in  the  music  as  in  other 

cultural industries tend to sacrifice family in favour of work. In addition, working from 

home  is  detrimental  to  building  networks,  which  is  an  essential  part  of  the  music 
industry for securing new project work and keeping up with the scene. 78  

This male dominance  in the informal networking culture  in  the music  industry 

contributes  to  putting  women  at  a  disadvantage.  The  music  industry’s  creative  and 

exciting  apparel  hides  a  work  environment  that  is  characterised  by  informality, 

insecurity,  exclusiveness  and  discrimination.  It  is  based  on  exploitation  and, 

interestingly, self-exploitation that is closely linked to the urge for self-fulfilment of the 

workers  entering  the  music  industry.  Those  inherent  structures  and  patterns  also 

contribute  to  making  the  industry  gender  unequal.  The  industry  is  highly  informal, 

controlled by  man  gatekeepers who  make  hiring  decisions and thus  decide about  who 

"makes it". In an industry as popular as the music industry there never is any deficit of 

eager and highly educated people willing to work hard for low to no pay.  

I n it ia t i ve s a nd  p ra c t ic es 

Although there are multiple drivers for the lack of equality and the underrepresentation 

of women in the music industry, there are many initiatives across Europe and beyond 

that look to address some of these issues. One of the most targeted efforts for gender 
balance  has  been  the  Keychange  initiative 79,  led  by  the  UK’s  PRS  Foundation. 
Keychange  specifically  targets  the  gender  imbalance  at  music  festivals  by  pushing 

festivals across Europe to commit to a 50:50 gender balance at music festivals by 2022 

74 Anna-Lisa Willrodt (2016), Gender and Labour in the Music Industry: An exploration into why the music 
industry has a gender problem and what can be done to change it, University of Agder.  
75 https://www.vice.com/en_uk/article/695zx3/being-a-female-music-journalist  
76 Anna-Lisa Willrodt (2016), Gender and Labour in the Music Industry: An exploration into why the music 
industry has a gender problem and what can be done to change it, University of Agder.  
77 The Dutch collecting society for composers and music publishers 
78 Anna-Lisa Willrodt (2016), Gender and Labour in the Music Industry: An exploration into why the music 
industry has a gender problem and what can be done to change it, University of Agder. 
79 https://keychange.eu/  

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
(for more information, see section 5.2). Over 140 global festivals having signed up to 

the  Keychange  pledge  since  September  2018.  With  predominantly  man  organisers  at 

festivals,  it  is  easy  for  man  booking  agents  and  managers  to  form  bonds  with  man 

performers,  giving  them  ample  opportunity  to  charge  ahead  in  their  careers.  Women 

are all too commonly not given equal standing, and even backstage, women artists can 

feel they are being treated as groupies — simply treated as faces. All in one, these are 

the problems that the Keychange initiative aims to tackle, giving women the opportunity 

to  be  treated  on  equal  grounds  by  educating  and  investing  in  women  in  the  music 

industry.  

Additionally,  the  European  Composer  Songwriter  Alliance  (ECSA)  Gender  Equality 

Charter has  been created, which is  the  result  of  collaboration, discussion and  debate 

among the ECSA Gender Equality Working Group and the community of ECSA’s members 

and it is meant to inspire ECSA Member Organisations and other stakeholders to take 

action and act to change the gender imbalance women experience in the music industry 

today. The ECSA Gender Equality Charter focuses on gender imbalances and challenges, 

especially for composers and songwriters, and aims to encourage all members of ECSA 

as well as relevant partners to rectify the imbalances and ensure better conditions for 

women composers. 

At  the  professional  level,  SheSaid.So 80  is  a  global  forum  to  support  female 
professionals  in  the  music  sector.  It  is  a  diverse  international  community,  comprising 

women  from  across  all  sectors  of  the  industry  -  from  tech  to  record  labels,  PR  to 

management,  and  more.  With  headquarters  in  London  and  LA,  the  shesaid.so 

community has 15 active chapters around the world including New York, Paris, Berlin, 

Mumbai and more. Established 5 years ago, it provides awareness of issues and more 

visibility for problems that women face when working in the music sector. It has a global 

membership of around 4,000 individuals, along with 10,000 local members. This forum 

provides a wide portfolio of activities: support, events and panel sessions, updates on 

employment  opportunities,  conscious  raising  campaigns  to  increase  the  number  of 

women  who  progress  in  their  careers  with  She.Grows,  and  a  mentoring  program  for 

women  professionals.  SheSaid.So  has  created  an  awareness  of  issues  and  more 

visibility  for  the  problems  facing  women  working  within  the  sector,  and  is  striving  to 

create an alternative culture in the industry. 

In Sweden there are examples of several initiatives that have been identified that seek 

to address gender gaps in the music sector. For example, Women in Jazz is an informal 

initiative  and  network  that  for  the  past few  decades  has  organized  festivals,  concerts 

and  seminars  around  the  world.  In  2015,  a  project  of  international  cultural  exchange 

with the Washington Women in Jazz Festival was launched. The overall purpose of the 

project was to  encourage and  support  female musicians and composers  in  their  effort 

to enhance gender equity on the music scene. The aim of the festival was to create an 

opportunity  for  musicians,  promoters  and  anyone  involved  in  the  trade  to  meet  and 
discuss issues of gender and equal opportunities relating to the music industry. 81 

Additionally,  the  Om  Jämställd  Festival  (Equal  Festival)  was  an  initiative  that  in 

2012-2017 released annual reports on the gender distribution at Sweden's ten largest 

music  festivals,  formed  public  opinion  and  arranged  workshops  on  equality  in 

organization. During  the  years  Jämanstaltld  festival  was  active,  employment  at 

festivals went from being something not talked about, to becoming a natural part of the 

80 https://www.shesaid.so/our-story  
81 http://www.womeninjazzsweden.se/in-english/ 

40 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
public conversation about music festivals. The biggest achievement of the initiative was 

that many festival now have an active discussions on gender equality which leads to a 
more equal representation of both genders at festivals. 82  

4.3 

Audiovisual sector 

Ten years ago, the audiovisual (AV) sector has been the starting point of world-

wide heated debates, protests and shocking revelations of incidences of sexual 

harassments against women coined under the #MeToo movement. The #MeToo 

movement got to prominence in October 2017, after women came forward publicly with 
allegations  of  sexual  harassment  and  assault  by  movie  producer  Harvey  Weinstein. 83 
Now,  in  March  2020,  Harvey  Weinstein  has  been  sentenced  to  23  years  in  prison  for 
rape and sexual assault. 84 Since 2017, the #MeToo movement had an immense impact. 
It  inspired  debates  and  initiatives  not  only  in Hollywood  but  also  in  Europe  as stories 

came to light about harassment or assault in the workplace by often men in positions 

of power.  

The #MeToo movement has deep roots in the film sector but very fast became 

part  of  the  whole  AV  sector  in  Europe  and  also  the  creative  and  cultural 

industries  in  general.  For  instance,  in  2018,  the  German film  director  Dieter  Wedel 

was the first German  celebrity  that became prominent  in the #MeToo  debate.  He was 
accused by several actresses of violent and sexual assaults in the 1990s. 85 In Sweden, 
several  women  used  the  #MeToo  to  confront  TV  presenter  Martin  Timell,  whose  TV4 
broadcasts were dropped shortly after. 86 In Flanders (Belgium), former TV host Bart De 
Pauw  was  under  the  #MeToo  campaign  accused  of  inappropriate  behaviour,  including 
sending  of  explicit  text  messages  and  stalking. 87  Another  example  in  the  video  game 
industry is the so-called “gamergate” campaign. The gamergate controversy stemmed 

from a harassment campaign that targeted female gamers conducted primarily through 

the use of the hashtag #GamerGate.  

The #MeToo movement created a new public consciousness for women issues 

in Europe going beyond the AV, which can be seen as a new vitalization of social 

media  driven  women  movements.  The  AV  sector  plays  in  this  new  movement  an 

especially important role. The revelations under the #MeToo about sexual harassment, 

created  a  broader  discussion  about  implications  of  inequalities  of  women  in  terms  of 

salaries, labour conditions, funding, career paths and so on.  

The progress, actions and changes that are the result of the new public consciousness 

today can be a springboard for other sectors. We argue that stakeholders and political 

actors  can  learn  from  the  AV  sector  in  Europe.  Since  this  new  uptake,  we  are  able  to 

make  much  better  assessments  of  the  situation  of  women  in  the  AV  sector  in  Europe 

and create tangible actions through the broader consciousness of issues, data gathered 

and made available in the last couple of years and willingness of political stakeholders 

to act. Still, while much has happened, there are problems women in the AV sector in 

Europe  face  and  available  data  shows  this. We  argue  that  lessons  can  be  learned 

from  recent  activities  and  data  not  only  for  moving  forward  in  the  AV  sector 

82 https://jamstalldfestival.se/ 
83 Zeit (2018) „Verpfeif dein Schwein“, Zeit.de [online], available at: https://www.zeit.de/gesellschaft/zeitgeschehen/2018-
10/metoo-weltweit-korrespondenten-berichte  
84 BBC (2020) „Harvey Weinstein jailed for 23 years in rape trial”. [online], available at: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-
canada-51840532 
85 Simon & Wahba (2018) „Im Zwielicht“, Zeit.de [online], available at: https://www.zeit.de/zeit-magazin/2018/02/dieter-wedel-
regisseur-sexuelle-uebergriffe-vorwuerfe 
86 The Local (2017) “Swedish media probe sexual offence allegations”, TheLocal.se [online], available at: 
https://www.thelocal.se/20171020/swedish-media-probe-sexual-offence-allegations 
87 Nieuwsblad (2017) “Vlaamse actrices getuigen over aanrandingen: “Hij wou een ‘goei’ verkrachtingsscène oefenen”, 
Nieuwsblad.be [online], available at: https://www.nieuwsblad.be/cnt/dmf20171011_03126994 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
itself but to also use the AV sector as locomotive to drive future actions in other 

sectors in Europe as well. 

S ta te  o f a ffa i rs 

What  is  the  state  of  affairs  of  women  in  the  AV  sector  in  Europe?  In  the  eye  of  the 

#MeToo  movement,  many  reports  and  studies  have  been  started  and  get  a  lot  of 

attention. This makes the AV sector quite unique compared to other cultural and 

creative sectors and other industries in Europe in access to statistics. Academic 

research on Europe (except feminism studies that mostly look at female representation 

in AV content) in this area is still rare. Therefore, conclusions can be drawn from mostly 

current  European  and  national  reports.  Additionally,  we  found  that  reports  in  some 

countries are not available or could not be identified, while in other countries, data from 

several sources is available. There is a clear imparity. We identified data on the level of 

Europe, but also Austria, France, Germany, Italy, Slovenia, Sweden, UK, and Finland. 

Looking  at  these  different  studies,  it  can be concluded that  there is clear  gender 

disparity in the AV sector in Europe. The findings can be summarised as follows and 

are based on the data presented for the different sub-sectors of the AV sector (film, TV 

and video games) below: 

•  The share of women in the AV sector in Europe can be broadly 

estimated at about 20-30% (depending on occupation, position and 

sub-sector).  

•  A clear pay gap and issues in labour conditions, funding, and career 
paths for women have been found by different studies in the AV 

sector.  

•  Still, there are differences that need to be taken into account as: 

Some countries do better 
than others in terms of 
gender equality (e.g. 
Northern European 
countries do better than 
Eastern European 
countries); 

Women are represented 
better in certain sub -
sectors (with the video 
game sector having the 
lowest share of women); 

Women are represented 
better in certain genres 
than others (this is the 
case for children films for 
example);  

Women are better or 
worse represented 
depending on the 
occupation in the AV 
sector in Europe (this is 
the case for example for a 
stronger under-
representation in senior 
positions for women). 

Based on our desk research and the interviews conducted, we can find that most detailed 

data  on  women  in  the  AV  sector  in  Europe  can  be  found  for  directors,  screenwriters, 

producers,  and  employees  of  public  broadcasters.  Studies  in  Europe  on  women  in  the 

AV  sector  are  regularly  conducted  by  different  organisations  that  report  on  different 

matters on women and use different methods and data for their studies. Organisations 

that  publish  studies  on  women  in  the  AV  sector  in  Europe  include:  film  funding 

institutions,  initiatives  that  represent  women  in  the  AV  sector,  university  research 

groups, public and private broadcasters, public bodies and ministries, and associations 

of industry occupations. 

In the following section we give an overview of the most important findings 

on the state of women in the AV sector in Europe of the identified studies 

presented for (1) the film, (2) TV (including public broadcasters) and (3) 

video game sub-sector. 

42 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
(1) Film sub-sector 

Exemplary studies on a European level: 

•  The  Creative  Europe  MEDIA  programme,  the  European  Commission's 
framework programme for support to the culture and audiovisual sectors, which 

supports the European AV sector, with funding for development, distribution and 

promotion, shows that 29% of MEDIA funding applicants were women (between 

2014-2018),  while  52%  women  were  successful  in  acquiring  funding  from 
MEDIA. 88  

•  The  social  partners  of  the  EU  Audiovisual  Social  Dialogue  Committee  - 
the  Association  of  Commercial  Television  in  Europe  (ACT),  the  European 

Broadcasting  Union  (EBU),  the  Association  of  European  Radios  (AER),  the 

European  Audiovisual  Production  Association  (CEPI), 

the 

International 

Federation of Film Producers Associations (FIAPF), the International Federation 

of Actors (FIA), the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ), the International 

Federation  of  Musicians  (FIM)  and  UNI  Europa  –  Media,  Entertainment  &  Arts 

(UNI  MEI)  –  adopted  in  2011  a  Framework  of  Actions  on  gender  equality.  In 

June 2018, to follow up on the adoption of the Framework of Actions, the social 

partners  launched,  with  the  support  of  the  European  Commission,  a  study  to 

evaluate the progress made towards gender equality in the sector, but also to 

explore  the  broader  issue  of  diversity.  As  a  result  of  this  mapping  exercise  a 

Good  Practice  Handbook  on  gender  equality  and  diversity  in  the  European 

Audiovisual sector will be published in May 2020. 89 

•  Eurimage,  the  cultural  support  fund  of  the  Council  of  Europe  established  in 
1989, reports that the share of eligible projects with female directors was 31% 
in 2019 while 8 of the projects supported were directed by women (44%). 90 
•  The  European  Audiovisual  Observatory  is  working  on  data  collection 
methodologies  across  Europe  (see  below)  and  published  in  2019  a  report  on 

“Female  directors  in  European  cinema”  drawing  on  data  from  the  European 

Audiovisual Observatory’s LUMIERE database, which collates annual admissions 

to  theatrically  released films  from a  variety  of sources,  including  national  film 

agencies. The study sample comprised a total of 21 054 European feature films 

produced between 2003 and 2017 and theatrically released between 2003 and 

2018.  The  study  found  that  female  directors  represent  21%  of  all  directors  of 

European films produced between 2003 and 2017. 49% of all women directors 

included  in  the  sample  only  directed  one  single  feature  since  2003.  The 

prevalence  of  female  directors  is  higher  in  documentary  than  in  fiction  and 

animation. 91 

•  The  European Women's  Audiovisual  Network  (EWA)  published  in  2016  a 
report,  which  studied  female  directors  in  7  European  countries.  It  was  found 

that  in  Europe only one  in five  films are  directed  by a  women  (21%) and that 

the vast majority of funding resources (namely 84%) go into films that are not 
directed by women. 92  

88 Creative Europea MEDIA (2019) “What MEDIA Data tells us”, [online], available at: https://ec.europa.eu/digital-single-
market/sites/digital-agenda/files/newsroom/gender_broch_42575.jpg 
89 See https://ec.europa.eu/social/main.jsp?catId=521&langId=en&agreementId=5206 
https://www.uniglobalunion.org/news/framework-actions-gender-equality-audiovisual-sector 
90 Ruiz (2019) “Euroimages nearly reaching equal share”, EWAwomen.com [online], available at: 
https://www.ewawomen.com/film-industry-articles/eurimages-nearly-reaching-equal-share/ 
91 European Audiovisual Observatory (2019) “Female directors in European film”, Report by the European Audiovisual Observatory, 
[online], available at https://rm.coe.int/female-directors-in-european-cinema-key-figures-2019/16809842b9 
92 EWA (2016) “Where are the Women Directors?”, Report by the EWA [online], available at: https://www.ewawomen.com/wp-
content/uploads/2018/09/Complete-report_compressed.pdf 

 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
•  The research institute MeCETES of the University of New York found that 
female  directed  European  films  are  seen  by  half  as  many  people  in  Europe  as 
films made by their male counterparts. 93 

Exemplary studies on national level: 

• 

In Austria, the Universität Wien studied in 2018 public film funding, salaries 

and fees for  movie staff, film team  composition, and  film festivals, which was 

commissioned  by  the  Austrian  Film  Institute  and  the  Bundeskanzleramt 

Österreich. The study found that in Austria 80% of funding went to film projects 

with men directing, producing or writing the screenplay. The study also found a 

clear  gender  pay  gap.  34%  of  staff  positions  in  filmmaking  were  female.  But 
women only received 29% of the honorary. 94  

•  The  French  Centre  National  du  Cinéma  (CNC)  published  a  study  in  2014, 
which  analysed  the  situation  of  women  in  the  French  film  industry.  The  study 

found that the CNC staff composition is quite balanced, except that the higher 

the employment category, the greater the proportion of men in the workforce. 

About  25%  of  directors  of  companies  in  the  AV  sector  in  France  are  women. 

23% of licensed filmmakers in France were women in 2012. The study also found 
that in film production in France, wages are generally lower for women. 95  
In  Germany,  the  Frauenhofer  Institut  on  behalf  of  the  FFA  (German 

• 

Filmförderungsanstalt) confirmed in 2017 based on data from Germany, that 

the  gender  balance  in  feature  films  is  uneven  meaning  men  are  often 

overrepresented. Most interesting is, that the study found that gender inequality 

in  the  film  sector  is  differently  distributed  among  different  professions  / 

occupations. While costume design as profession has an over-representation of 

women (89%) and editing is quite equal (51%), professions in sound (3%) and 
cinematography (6%) have a very low percentage of women. 96  

•  The Berlin International Film Festival found a constant upward trend for the 
share of films  by  women presented at  the  yearly  festival  in Germany (15%  in 

1980  to  29%  in  2016)  but  that  a  clearly  rising  share  of  female  directors  can 

only  be  reported  in  the  sections  Children’s  Film  Festival/Generation  and 
Perspektive Deutsches Kino. 97  

•  The “Dea: Donne e Audiovisivo” project in Italy from the CNR, sponsored 
by the SIAE found that 88% of films with Italian public funding are directed by 
men while 91% of films that reach cinemas are directed by men. 98  

•  The Slovenian Film Fund in Slovenia published in 2018 a study, that found 
that in certain years between 2012 and 2017, not a single feature film by female 

directors  was  supported  by  the  fund  and  that  the  percentage  of  female  co-

authors  applying  for  project  development  has  been  decreasing.  In  the  same 

period  only  around  12%  of  films  supported  by  the  Slovenian  Film  Fund  and 
Slovenian Film Centre were directed by women. 99  

93 Jones, H. D. (2017) “Female Film Directors in Europe: A Statistical Report on Production, Funding, Distribution and Reception 
2005-14”, Mediating Cultural Encounters through European Screens (MeCETES), University of York, February 13, 2017, [online], 
available at: http://mecetes.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/Female-film-directors-in-Europe.pdf 
94 Flicker & Vogelmann (2018) “Österreichischer Film Gender Report 2012-2016“, Österreichische Filminstitut [online], available at: 
https://equality.filminstitut.at/de/zentrale-ergebnisse-oesterreichischer-film-gender-report-2012-2016/ 
95 CNC (2014) “La place des femmes dans l’industrie cinématographique et audiovisuelle”, Report by CNC [online], available at: 
https://www.cnc.fr/cinema/etudes-et-rapports/etudes-prospectives/la-place-des-femmes-dans-lindustrie-cinematographique-et-
audiovisuelle_224715 
96 Hochfeld, Iffländer & Prommer (2017) “Gender and Film“, Study by Frauenhofer Institut on behalf of the FFA [online], available 
at: https://www.ffa.de/index.php?gender-und-film-rahmenbedingungen-und-ursachen-der-geschlechterverteilung-von-
filmschaffenden-in-schluesselpositionen-in-deutschland 
97 HFF MUNICH “Stories and Films have (no) Boundaries”, Study for Berlin International Film Festival [online], available at: 
http://www.filmfestival-studien.de/wp-content/uploads/PM_HFF_Berlinale-Diversity-Study-_Abt-I-
Krainhoefer_Wiedemann_Schreiber.pdf 
98 Dea (2017)“Donne e Audiovisivo”, Report by CNR Istituto di Ricerche sulla popolazione e le politiche sociali and sponsored by the 
SIAE [online], available at: https://www.irpps.cnr.it/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/presentazione_dea.pdf 
99 Slovenian Film Centre (2018) “Facts & Figures: Gender Equality”, Study by Slovenian Film Fund [online], available at: 
https://issuu.com/sfilmc/docs/sfc_2018_facts___figures_gender_equ_27512fe95c5704 

44 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
• 

In the UK, the BBC found that out of the 413 British independent film directors 
who released films between 2010 and 2012, only 47 were women (11%). 100 
•  The Swedish Film Institute revealed in its study that in 2016 the goal of 50% 
female  filmmakers  for  the  period  2013–2016  was  achieved.  Still  some 

imbalances  in  Sweden  are  highlighted,  e.g.  films  with  a  male  lead  have  on 

average a higher production budget; only a very small number of high-budget 

films are directed by women; and that it is harder for female directors to attract 
distributors to their projects. 101  

(2) TV sub-sector 

Exemplary studies on European level: 

•  The  European  Broadcasting  Union  (EBU)  conducted  a  survey  among  its 
public service media members in 2019. They found that public service media in 

Europe made big advancements  in  terms of  gender equality. 45%  of the  total 

surveyed public service media workforce are women (5% more than the rest of 

the  EU  audiovisual  sector).  Based  on  the  report  women  are  also  increasingly 

making inroads into more senior positions with 40% of EBU public service media 

managers being female. 102 

•  The European Advertising Alliance (EASA) informed about a project by the 
ARPP (French Regulator for Advertising), which started in 2018, in which AI is 

used  to  identify  gender  stereotyping  in  TV  advertising.  The  model  is  still  in 

development. 103 

Exemplary studies on national level: 

• 

In  the  UK,  BBC  published  the  first  gender  pay  gap  report  in  2017,  which 

demonstrated  it  had  a  median  pay  gap  of  9.3%  between  women  and  men.  In 

2018,  it  fell  to  7.6%  and  in  2019,  it  has  been  reduced  to  6.7%.  As  there  are 

still too few women in senior positions, the focus has been on developing senior 

female  leaders  across  the  organisation  and  43.8%  of  the  leadership  roles  are 
now filled by women. 104  

•  The  German  public  broadcaster  ARD  found  out  that  in  2017  almost  all  of 
ARD  institutions  have  a  balanced  number  of  female  employees  (49.8%)  and 

male employees (50.2%). However further engagement is aimed at achieving a 

balanced  gender distribution at all hierarchical  levels and  institutions where  it 

should  be  noted  that  the  proportion  of  female  executives  is  still  around  one-
third. 105  

•  The public broadcaster in Finland, YLE points in a report from 2018 out that 
exactly  half  (50%)  of  YLE’s  permanent  employees  are  women  where  women 

account  for  approximately  55%  of  journalists,  editors  and  producers.  In  the 

collective  labour  agreement  area  of  employees  engaged  in  programme 

production, the average salary of women is 99.7% of the average salary of men. 
The  corresponding  figure  is  98%  among  the  entire  personnel  of  YLE. 106  The 

100 CNC (2014) “La place des femmes dans l’industrie cinématographique et audiovisuelle”, Report by CNC [online], available at: 
https://www.cnc.fr/cinema/etudes-et-rapports/etudes-prospectives/la-place-des-femmes-dans-lindustrie-cinematographique-et-
audiovisuelle_224715 
101 The Swedish Film Institute (2018) “The Money Issue – Gender Equality Report 2018”, [online], available at: 
https://www.filminstitutet.se/globalassets/_dokument/sfi-gender-equality-report-2018---lowres.pdf 
102 EBU (2019) “Balance for Better” Report by the EBU [online], available at: https://www.ebu.ch/news/2019/03/balance-for-
better 
103 EASA (2019) “Artificial Intelligence and Representation of Women and Men in TV/VOD Advertising” Study by the ARPP [online], 
available at https://www.easa-alliance.org/news/easa/news-easas-members-march-2019 
104 BBC (2019) “BBC Gender Pay Gap Report 2019”, Report by BBC [online], available at: 
http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/aboutthebbc/reports/reports/gender-pay-gap-2019.pdf 
105 ARD (2018) “Gleichstellung in der ARD“, Online article [online], available at: http://www.ard.de/home/die-
ard/fakten/Gleichstellung_in_der_ARD/4127162/index.html  
106 YLE (2019) “Well-being at work and equality” Report by YLE [online], available at: https://yle.fi/aihe/node/285928/ 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
Italian  public  broadcaster,  RAI,  reported  a  division  of  workforce  between  men 
and women with 58% and 42% respectively. 107  

•  The SACD in France (author society) in its study from 2018, found that 36% 
of management board members of public broadcasting companies were women 

while  there  are  60%  women  (3  out  of  5)  among  the  presidents  in  2016.  The 

percentage of women as directors and writers of works broadcasted on television 
in France from 2010 to 2014 rank from 10%-35% depending on the genre. 108 

(3) Video game sub-sector 

Exemplary studies on European level: 

•  Bryter  working  together  with  Women  in  Games  in  Europe,  presented  at 
the Women in Games European Conference in 2018 a new report. It is reported 

that one in three female gamers has experienced online abuse from their male 

counterparts.  Of  the 

female  gamers  who  has  experienced  abuse  or 

discrimination, 31% had received verbal abuse from other gamers while playing 

online  multiplayer  games,  33%  had  been  sent  inappropriate  content  or 
messages, and 14% had received threats of rape. 109 
ISFE (Europe’s Video Games Industry) highlights in its regular studies that 

• 

46%  of  European  gamers  are  women  and  that  the  majority  of  mobile  gamers 

are women (52%). 110 

•  The  International  Game  Developers  Association  conducted  a  survey  in 
2015  and  found  among  nearly  3000  workers  (with  24%  of  the  respondents 

representing different European countries), it was found, that three-quarters of 

workers  in  the  gaming  industry  identified  as  “male”.  This  can  be  compared  to 

22% identifying as female and 1% identified as male-to-female transgender. It 

was also found that workers identifying as male are disproportionately dominant 

in core technical content creation roles. Only, 11% of female respondents were 

programmers,  software  engineers  and  technical  designers  in  the  video  game 
industry, compared with 27% of male respondents. 111  

Exemplary studies on national level: 

• 

In  the UK,  the  Creative  Employment  Survey  published  in  2016  found  that 

employment levels of women in the video game sector in all occupations is only 

19% and in key occupations like strategic management is around 27% showing 

that  in  this  case  higher  positions  in  the  video  game  sector  have  also  a  higher 
share of women. 112  

I n it ia t i ve s a nd  p ra c t ic es 

What initiatives and practices are in place in Europe to strengthen the position of women 

in the AV sector? Based  on  our  desk  research and the  interviews conducted, we have 

found  that  there are many  initiatives and organisations  that  work  on  gender issues  in 

the  AV  sector  in  Europe  implementing  different  interventions.  Compared  to  other 

cultural  and  creative  sectors,  the  AV  sector  has  a  unique  position,  where 

women have access to and are supported by a vast and European-wide network 

of organisations.  

107 RAI (2017) “Financial Statements” Report by RAI [online], available at: 
https://www.rai.it/dl/doc/1536229057967_Bilancio%20Rai%202017%20-%20Inglese%205.09.2018.pdf 
108 SACD (2018) “Où sont les femmes ?” Report by the SACD [online], available at: https://www.sacd.fr/o%C3%B9-sont-les-
femmes-cinq-ans-d%C3%A9j%C3%A0 
109 Orr, L. (2019). 'This industry has a problem with abuse': dealing with gaming's #MeToo moment. In The Guardian, [online], 
available at: https://www.theguardian.com/games/2019/sep/17/gaming-metoo-moment-harassment-women-in-games 
110 ISFE (2019) “ISFE Key Facts” [online], available at:  https://www.isfe.eu/isfe-key-facts/ 
111 European Parliament (2018) “Gender Equality in the Media Sector“, [online], available at: 
http://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/STUD/2018/596839/IPOL_STU(2018)596839_EN.pdf 
112 Creative Skillset (2016) “2015 Employment Survey”, [online], available at: 
https://www.screenskills.com/media/1562/2015_creative_skillset_employment_survey_-_march_2016_summary.pdf 

46 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
In  the  following  section  we  present  the  different  goals,  actions  and 

organisations that we identified while giving examples of real-life initiatives. 

What do initiatives try to achieve?  

Initiatives and actions aim to support women in the audiovisual sector in Europe by 

different means. These include the goal to reach equality in the labour market, 

tackling sexual harassment, tackling discrimination and creating visibility of women 

issues. Initiatives focus on one or several goals at the same time: 

Identified goals: 

Description: 

Equality in the labour market 

This includes impacting access to leadership and 

management positions, payment inequalities, as well 

as diversity in the workspace. 

Tackling sexual harassment & violence 

Such goals include helping and supporting victims of 

sexual harassment and violence in the sector and to 

provide a support structure for women who face such 

problems. 

Fighting gender stereotyping & discrimination 

This includes the combating of bias and enhancing 

positive and equal representation of women. 

Creating visibility for women’s issues  

This includes consciousness raising, creating wider 

public debate, creating knowledge about women’s 

issues and making voices heard. 

What actions exist to achieve these goals?  

In order to achieve the outlined goals various concrete actions have been developed to 

support  women  in  the  audiovisual  sector  in  Europe.  A  study  made  by  the  Festival  de 

Cinema  Europeen  des  Arcs  on  behalf  of  the  association  Révélations  Culturelles  from 

2016  finds  that  "the  most  interventionist  policies,  and  in  particular  the  policies  of 

quotas, are those with the most immediate results” in terms of creating gender balance 
in the AV sector in Europe. 113 Actions, that we identified include provision of networking 
opportunities,  mentoring  and  training,  regulatory  measures,  provision  of  legal  and 

psychological support, as well as data gathering & provision: 

Identified actions: 

Description: 

Example of initiatives: 

Provision of networking 

This includes organisation of 

Women in Games 114 (organises a 

opportunities  

events, debates, workshops, 

yearly conference for networking) 

Mentoring & training 

This includes for example advocacy, 

ARD 115 (mentoring programme 

conferences, etc. 

achievement programs in schools, 

where experienced executives 

workshops, coaching programs, 

mentor young female talent) /  

mentoring and training. 

Regulatory measures  

This includes official quotas, parity 

EURIMAGES 116 (commits to achieve 

in selection committees of film 

50/50 funding of film) / UNI MEI 

funding bodies, and soft quotas 

113 Halfon (2016) „Etude sur l’émergence d’une nouvelle génération de réalisatrices européennes”, Report for Festival de Cinema 
Europeen des Arcs [online], available at: http://femmesdecinema.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/EtudeFinale.pdf 
114 Information about WIGJ has been provided by Marie Claire Isaaman in an interview that took place in 2019. 
115 Information about initiatives of the ARD / ZDF in Germany has been provided by Sandra David in an interview that took place in 
2019. 
116 EURIMAGES (2017) “EURIMAGES Gender Equality Strategy (2018-2020): Aiming for 50/50 by 2020”, Report by the 
EURIMAGES [online], available at: https://rm.coe.int/eurimages-gender-equality-strategy-2018-2020-aiming-for-50-50-by-
2020/1680760bff  

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
promoting the financing of realized 

Framework as supported by the 

films by women. 

European Commission 

Provision of legal and 

This includes for example services 

THEMIS 117 (provides legal and 

psychological support 

and support for women suffering 

psychological support for women) 

Data gathering & provision  

This includes carrying out gender-

European AV Observatory 118 

from sexual harassment. 

based data collection and 

(develops a strategy to streamline 

publishing of reports. 

gender data collection in Europe 

and builds a European-wide data 

platform) 

What type of initiatives and organisations exist?  

What  actions  are  taken  and  how  successful  initiatives  are  can  depend  on  the 

organisational and funding structure/public support. Most initiatives involve NGOs, PSB, 

film festivals, public institutions and film funding bodies: 

Type: 

NGOs 

Description: 

Examples of initiatives: 

Such NGOs are often independent 

Women in Film & Television 

bodies that are driven by single 

International (WIFTI) 119 / WAVE 

women who are engaged in this work 

Women in AV 120 / EWA 121 / Le 

besides having another full time job. 

Boostcamp 122  

PSBs 

PSBs have often strategies in place 

BBC (UK) 123 / ARD (Germany) 124 / 

and can take actions based on public 

YLE (Finland) 125 

financial support such as licence fees. 

Film festivals  

As film festivals get a lot of public 

Cannes Film Festival 126 / Films de 

attention, actions have been taken to 

Femmes (France) / Tricky Women 

support the visibility of women at 

(Austria) 127 

such festivals. Also specific feminist 

film festivals exist all over Europe. 

Political bodies 

This includes political bodies like 

EC’s Voices of Culture 128 

ministries and public sector 

(organisation that has as theme 

organisations. On a European-level 

gender equality) / EC’s Creative 

the European Commission (EC) and 

MEDIA Europe  

other official European bodies are 

involved in women initiatives. 

117 https://ec.europa.eu/digital-single-market/en/news/women-move-overview-good-practices-audiovisual-industry-and-policy-
makers-eu  
118 European AV Observatory (2019) “Female Directors in European Cinema: Key Figures”, Report by the European AV Observatory 
[online], available at: https://rm.coe.int/female-directors-in-european-cinema-key-figures-2019/16809842b9   
119 https://www.wifti.net/ 
120 http://womeninav.com/ & http://womeninavuk.com/  
121 https://www.ewawomen.com/ 
122 http://leboostcamp.com/  
123 https://www.bbc.com/aboutthebbc/reports/policies/5050  
124 Information about initiatives of the ARD / ZDF in Germany has been provided by Sandra David in an interview that took place in 
2019. 
125 RAI (2017) “Financial Statements” Report by RAI [online], available at: 
https://www.rai.it/dl/doc/1536229057967_Bilancio%20Rai%202017%20-%20Inglese%205.09.2018.pdf 
126 https://www.theguardian.com/film/2019/may/10/cannes-festival-adapts-metoo-era-gender-issues-remain & 
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/15/movies/cannes-women-metoo.html 
127 https://www.ktpress.co.uk/feminist-film-festivals.asp  
128 Voices of Culture (2018) “Gender equality: Gender Balance in the Cultural and Creative Sectors”, Report by Voices of Culture 
[online], available at: https://voicesofculture.eu/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/VoC-Brainstorming-Report-Gender-Balance-in-the-
Cultural-and-Creative-Sectors.pdf 

48 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
Film funding bodies 

Film funding bodies in Europe often 

Swedish Film Institute 129 / 

have specific quotas or report on the 

EURIMAGES Gender Equality Strategy 

funding that was given to women film 

makers. 

In the following section, we present a number of initiatives and organisations in Europe 

in more detail that we identified and that promote gender balance in the AV sector. 

(1) AV sector initiatives 

Exemplary initiatives on European level: 

•  The  social  partners  (management  and  labour)  of  the  EU  Audiovisual 
Social  Dialogue  Committee 130  adopted  an  Equal  Opportunities  Statement  in 

2009  and,  in  2011,  a  Framework  of  Actions  on  gender  equality.  The  EU 

Audiovisual Social Dialogue Committee is composed of workers’ and employers’ 

representative  organisations  in  the  radio,  television  and  film  industry. 131  The 

objective  of  the  Framework  of  Actions  is  to  support  organisations  in  the 

European audiovisual sector to develop their practices with a view to enhancing 

gender equality. It puts forward joint considerations and recommendations for 

actions in five key areas: gender portrayal, equality of pay, equality in decision 

making,  gender  roles  in  the  workplace  and  reconciliation  of  work  and  private 

life.  A  Framework  of  Actions  is  one  of  the  formal  outcomes  of  the  work  of  EU 

social  dialogue  committees.  It  is  classified  as  a  “process-oriented  text”  which 

means it must be followed up, and progress in implementing it must be regularly 

assessed. A follow up exercise has been launched by the social partners in 2018 

and  a  publication  presenting  the  key  outputs  of  the  research  and  mapping 

exercise  will  be  published  in  May  2020.  The  framework  focusses  on  gender 

portrayal,  gender  roles  at  work,  equality  in  decision  making  and  work-life 

balance  in  the  European  AV  sector.  In  2018,  the  AV  SDC  launched  a  study  to 

map good practices in Europe (see above). 

•  Voices of Culture 132 funded by the European Union invited to an event in Prague 
(Sept  4-5  2019) focusing on “Gender Equality:  Gender Balance  in the  cultural 

and  creative  sectors”.  Over  a  period  of  one  and  a  half  days,  a  group  of  pre-

selected stakeholders from countries across the European Union, comprising 33 

women  and  3  men,  came  together  to  discuss  the  relevant  issues  and  jointly 

brainstorm  about  gender  inequality  and  discrimination  in  all  cultural  fields  as 

well  as  specific  means  of  addressing  existing  gaps,  barriers  and  issues.  The 

report is now published.  

•  The European AV Observatory, 133 as public service organisation, which is part 
of the Council of Europe in Strasbourg, has taken several steps to improve the 

availability and the comparability of gender data in the AV sector across Europe 

in co-operation with the European Film Agency Research Network (EFARN). The 

activities  of  the  European Audiovisual Observatory are  partly funded  by direct 

contributions from its member states and the European Union, represented by 

129 The Swedish Film Institute (2018) “The Money Issue – Gender Equality Report 2018”, [online], available at: 
https://www.filminstitutet.se/globalassets/_dokument/sfi-gender-equality-report-2018---lowres.pdf  

130 See https://ec.europa.eu/social/main.jsp?catId=521&langId=en&agreementId=5206 
https://www.uniglobalunion.org/news/framework-actions- gender-equality-audiovisual-sector 
131 This includes the Association of Commercial Television in Europe (ACT), the Association of European Radios (AER), 
the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), the European Audiovisual Production Association (CEPI), the European 
Federation of Journalists (EFJ), the International Federation of Actors (FIA) , the International Federation of Film 
Producers Associations (FIAPF), the International Federation of Musicians (FIM) and UNI Europa – Media, Entertainment 
& Arts (EURO-MEI). 
132 https://voicesofculture.eu/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/VoC-Brainstorming-Report-Gender-Balance-in-the-Cultural-and-
Creative-Sectors.pdf  
133 See https://www.obs.coe.int/en/web/observatoire/about 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
the  European  Commission.  The  Observatory  is  enriching  its  film  database 

LUMIERE  by  systematically  tagging  the  gender  of  film  directors.  The  data 

collates annual admissions to theatrically released films from a wide variety of 

sources,  including  national  film  agencies  and  statistics  offices,  inter-industry 

bodies,  distributor  and  exhibitor  associations,  the  trade  press  and  a  small 

number  of  private  tracking  bodies.  Creative  Europe  MEDIA  will  provide  a 

mandate and grant to expand the scope of gender related data beyond directors 

of  theatrical  films  to  directors  of  TV  series  and  screenwriters  of  films  and  TV 

series and it will also explore the feasibility to collect data for producers and TV 

series showrunners. Results are expected for May 2021. 

•  The  Women  in  Film  &  Television  International  (WIFTI) 134  has  a  global 
reach targeting women and non-binary people working in all areas of film, video, 

and other screen-based media. The first WIF network (Women in Film LA) was 

established  in Los Angeles  in the  70’s as a  reaction to male dominance  in the 

film  industry.  WIFTI’s  goal  is  gender  balance  in  the  industry.  They  aim  to 

connect  all  members,  share  knowledge,  experiences  and  industry  information 

and to make gender issues visible and acknowledged. Today, there are around 
50  WIFT  and  WIFT-partner  branches  on  six  continents. 135  In  Europe  there  are 
local “Chapters” in Czech Republic, Finland, Germany, Greece, Sweden, Ireland, 

Italy, UK, France (5050collectif), Denmark, Iceland, Norway, Lithuania, Georgia, 

Austria (FC Gloria), Switzerland (SWAN), and Cyprus.  

•  WAVE  Women  in  AV 136  is  a  AV  community,  originally  founded  by  Jennifer 
Willard in the US, and overseen by Abi Brown in the UK since September 2014 

was  created  to  educate,  support  and  inspire  women  across  the  AV  sector 

through  collaboration,  networking  and  mentoring  opportunities.  Through  the 

generous support of organisations who are involved with AV, home automation, 

technology, broadcast and more, WAVE holds events throughout the year. 
•  The  European  Audiovisual  Entrepreneurs  (EAVE) 137  initiative  encourages 
female  professionals  to  participate  in  advanced  management  and  leadership 

programmes.  EAVE  realized  that  a  gender  gap  exists  at  the  top  levels  in  the 

audiovisual  sector  and  they  committed  to  train  and  raise  the  number  of 

experienced  female  professionals  for  them  to  run  sustainable  and  successful 

companies.  Mentoring  sessions  will  cover  topics  such  as  female  leadership, 

work-life balance, career planning, stress management, negotiation, combating 

bias in the industry etc. 

(2) Film sub-sector initiatives 

Exemplary initiatives on European level: 

•  The  Creative  Europe  MEDIA  programme  of  the  European  Commission  is 
committed to improve gender balance and promote the circulation of the works 

of  talented women  through a  global strategy and  in  close  cooperation  with 25 

European  audiovisual  stakeholders’  organisations,  to  define  priorities  and  a 
series of actions based on studies, networking and policy activities. 138 Aimed at 
bringing  the  European  institutions,  private  and  public  organisations  and 

stakeholders from the audiovisual sector together, it illustrates the commitment 

of  the  Commission  to  continue  working  on  the  issue  of  gender  balance  within 

the film industry in the years to come. At the Berlinale this year, Creative Europe 

MEDIA  organised  a  roundtable  to  explore  what  specific  measures  could  be 

134 https://www.wifti.net/ 
135 See https://www.wifti.net/chapters/ for a full list of “Chapters” of WIFTI. 
136 http://womeninav.com/ & http://womeninavuk.com/  
137 https://ec.europa.eu/digital-single-market/en/news/women-move-overview-good-practices-audiovisual-industry-and-policy-
makers-eu 
138 https://eacea.ec.europa.eu/kreatives-europa/media_de  

50 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
introduced in the next programme set to run from 2021 to 2027 and what could 

be implemented by national and international funds. On the same topic, MEDIA 

has presented together with Collective 50/50 a new report on parity among film 

critics in Europe, following a study done in partnership. 139 

•  Eurimages of the European Council started considering gender issues already 
in  2012  and  has  been  informed  by  a  study  of  the  EWA.  In  2017  a  Eurimages 

Gender Equality Strategy has been developed by the Gender Equality Working 
Group implemented by the Council of Europe. 140 

•  Collective  50/50 141  is  an  initiative  /  group  started  by  the  French  film  sector. 
The initiative aims to achieve gender parity and better diversity in film by 2020. 

As  part  of  the  initiative,  an  Equality  Observatory,  which  will  publish  research 

related to inclusivity in film was launched. The group collects pledges from form 

all kind  of European  institutions and  for  example film festivals  to commit  to a 

50/50 distribution of gender in film. 

•  The  European  Women’s  Audiovisual  Network  (EWA) 142  was  started  by 
Francine  Raveney  in  2012  and  in  its  current  incarnation  was  formed  in  2013 

with its headquarters in Strasbourg, supports women working in the European 
AV sector with a focus on the film industry. 143 The aim of EWA is to reach gender 
equality  for  women  working  in  the  film  industry  in  terms  of  access  to  and 

opportunities  for  employment  and  funding  throughout  Europe.  Through 

networking  opportunities,  career  boosting  programs,  research  and  advocacy, 

and further member benefits (i.e. notice board, job postings, networking events, 

member  index,  mentoring  programme,  workshops,  trainings),  EWA  encourage 

the  professional development  of  women  in the audiovisual  sector. Through an 

online  Blog  and  research,  EWA  promotes  the  visibility  of  female-driven 

audiovisual content in general and of EWA Network members in particular.  

Exemplary initiatives on national or local level: 

• 

Le Boostcamp 144 (Belgium) is an initiative that was started in 2017 by Diana 
Elbaum.  Le  Boostcamp  is  a  week-long  training  programme  for  women  film 
directors. 145  The  programme  aims  to  accelerate  the  development  of  women's 
initiative film projects and enable women directors to strengthen their network. 

Women have to apply to participate. The initiative is supported by a number of 

public  and  private  organisations  including  le  Groupe  Ouest,  Google  Belgique, 

Casa  Kafka  Pictures,  La  Fédération  Wallonie-Bruxelles,  Screen.Brussels, 

Proximus , Eurimages and more. Because of the success of the programme, it 

has been copied in other European countries. 

•  Cannes  Film  Festival 146  signed  in  2018  this  pledge  committing  to  gender 
equality and to publish gender breakdowns of the number of films submitted to 

the festival each year and to reveal the composition of the selection committees. 

Because  of  this,  several  actions  have  been  started  in  2019  to  promote  and 

support  women  at  the  festival.  The  festival  organised  a  harassment  hotline, 

where  three  women  were  on  hand  to  field  calls  until  2  a.m.  each  day  for  the 

festival and tote bags were handed out with fliers warning that misconduct can 

lead  to  prison  or  a  hefty  fine.  The  festival  appointed  Cate  Blanchett  as  jury 

139 https://ec.europa.eu/digital-single-market/en/news/media-gets-ready-berlinale-films-roundtables-and-eff-sustainability 
140 https://www.coe.int/en/web/eurimages/gender-equality  
141 http://collectif5050.com/en 
142 https://www.ewawomen.com/ 
143 Information about EWA have been provided by Francine Raveney in an interview that took place on 13 June 2019 via 
telephone. 
144 http://leboostcamp.com/  
145 Information about Le Boostcamp have been provided by Diana Elbaum in an interview that took place on 10 June 2019 via 
telephone. 
146 https://www.theguardian.com/film/2019/may/10/cannes-festival-adapts-metoo-era-gender-issues-remain & 
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/15/movies/cannes-women-metoo.html  

 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
president.  She  is  one  of  the  campaigners  who  helped  establish  the  Time’s  Up 

organization against sexual harassment. Still, the festival is under critic. Cannes 

has been criticised for giving an honorary Palme d’Or to the French actor Alain 

Delon, despite concerns raised by groups over his statements opposing adoption 

by  same-sex  couples  and  his  admission  of  slapping  women.  There  were  only 

four women out of 21 directors in competition for the main price in 2019. 
•  National or international feminist or women film festivals in Europe 147148 
focus for example on films made by women and / or films that feature women 

and organise sessions and debates on gender issues: Birds Eye View Festival / 

Images of Black Women Festival / London Feminist Film Festival (UK), Cineffable 

/ Films de Femmes (France), Elles Tournent/ Dames Draien (Belgium), Fem Tour 

Truck / Mostra Internacional de Films de Dones / mujerDOC III INTERNATIONAL 

DOCUMENTARY  FESTIVAL 

/  Mujeres  en  Direccion 

(Spain),  Femmina 

International  Film  Festival  (Norway),  Frauen  Film  Festival  (Feminale) 

(Germany),  International  Female  Film  Festival  /  LadyBug  Festival  (Sweden), 

International  Festival  (The  Netherlands),  Isabella  International  Film  Week  / 

Sguardi  Altrove  International  Women's  Film  Festival  /  Women  and  Cinema 

Festival  of  Florence  (Italy),  Serseliafam  Women’s  Film  Festival  (Lithuania), 

Tricky Women (Austria). 

(3) TV sub-sector initiatives 

Exemplary initiatives on European / international level: 

•  The  Rise  initiative 149  is  a  non-profit  group,  for  gender  diversity  within  the 
broadcasting  technology,  manufacturing  and  services  sector.  They  organize 

events such as talks, meetings, networking sessions, or workshops to open up 

new  opportunities  for  women  and  help  them  grow  professionally.  In  February 

2018, they launched the first UK-based mentoring scheme with the purpose of 

supporting  women  in  operations,  engineering,  sales,  marketing  and  business 

roles  in  the  broadcasting  industry,  by  encouraging  exchange  between 

experienced professionals and mentees over different encounters.  

•  SVG Europe Women 150 is a European network of women working in the sports 
media  that  provides  the  arena  for  women  to  connect  for  ideas,  support,  help 

and  advice.  It  is  made  up  of  members  from  across  TV  sports  broadcasting, 

production, distribution and technology, and related areas. The initiative holds 

regular  networking  events,  for  members  globally,  both  to  provide  information 

and education, while increasing the discussion of women in sports broadcasting. 
•  THEMIS 151  is  a  joint  initiative  of  professional  associations,  broadcasters,  and 
cultural  institutions,  launched  in 2018 to offer psychological and  legal support 

to victims of sexual harassment in the AV sector.  

Exemplary initiatives of public service broadcasters: 

•  The  ARD  broadcasting  organization 152,  the  public  service  broadcaster  in 
Germany,  has  an  equal  opportunities  commissioner,  or  a  women's 

commissioner. Sandra David, Equal Opportunities Commissioner and also chair 

of  the  Equal  Opportunities  Conference  of  ARD  and  ZDF,  mentioned  in  our 

interview  that  every  ARD  institution  has  an  equal  opportunities  concept  or  a 

women's promotion plan. These plans are valid for 3-5 years and must then be 

147 https://www.ktpress.co.uk/feminist-film-festivals.asp  
148 https://www.raindance.org/10-feminist-film-festivals-to-follow/  
149 https://risewib.com/ 
150 https://www.svgeurope.org/womens-initiative/ 
151 https://ec.europa.eu/digital-single-market/en/news/women-move-overview-good-practices-audiovisual-industry-and-policy-
makers-eu 
152 Information about initiatives of the public services broadcasting services in Germany have been provided by Sandra David in an 
interview that took place on 18 September 2019 via telephone and email. 

52 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
updated. In these plans, objectives are defined, and measures are proposed to 

achieve better gender equality at the public broadcaster. 

•  The  Bayerischer  Rundfunk  initiated  the  Cross-Mentoring  Program  by 
Bayerischer  Rundfunk  in  2011.  The  initiative’s  objectives  are  encouraging 

women for leaderships positions and supporting women for management tasks. 

The  program  is  geared  for  female  executives  at  the  beginning  of  their 

management  careers  while  experienced  executives 

in  higher  positions 

participate in the program as mentors.  

•  The  Executive  Development  Program  by  Bayerischer  Rundfunk  was 
initiated in 2012 to encourage more women in leadership positions and increase 

the number of female executives. Originally it was initiated for both sexes, but 

actually more women participate in the program. David further points out that, 

the  sustainable  development  of  prospective  managers  involves,  among  other 

things,  becoming  aware  of  one’s  own  role  and  individual  strengths.  In  this 

program,  participants  learn  about  practical  management  and  leadership  tools 

where these can be applied immediately in live practical situations.  

•  The  BBC  50-50  project 153  is  a  collective  action  on  increasing  women’s 
representation  in  BBC  content.  The  project  aims  to  inspire  and  assist  other 

media organisations to equally represent women and men in their content. More 

than 500 teams, including several thousand journalists and programme makers 

at  the  BBC  are  involved  across  TV,  radio,  and  digital,  and  from  news,  sports, 

factual, children’s, science and music.  

•   BBC’S  “Expert  Woman”  programme 154  was  initiated  to  tackle  the  gender 
imbalance in expertise presented in news. Male experts were significantly more 

represented in interviews and such as women experts, by almost 4 to 1 at the 

BBC. Therefore, BBC started  looking for more  female experts to appear  on air 

or  as  contributors.  The  programme  is  a  wider  collaboration  between  the  BBC 

Academy  and  Broadcast  Magazine,  with  support  from  BBC  diversity,  Creative 

Skillset,  Channel  4,  Sky,  ITV  and  wider  broadcast  industry.  The  programme 

welcomes applicants from any area of expertise. In addition, BBC has launched 

a  series  of  popular  “Expert  Women”  training  days  that  offer  insight  and 

networking opportunities to improve skills. 

(4) Video game sub-sector initiatives 

Exemplary initiatives on European / international level: 

•  A  project  by  the  Creative  Assembly 155  was  installed  to  tackle  issues  of 
gender  inequality  in  the  video  game  sector.  The  initiative  works  with  schools 

and  educational  institutions  all  the  way  from  playground  until  the  point  of 

coming into the industry. 

•  Women in Games WIGJ 156 (WIGJ) 157 was founded in 2009 by David Smith as 
the founder and Marie Claire Isaaman as the CEO. It is a network that focusses 

on women in video, mobile, online games and esports. Their target group is girls 

in  the  educational  pipeline,  women  in  the  workplace  at  all  levels  as  well  as 

female  entrepreneurs  in  the  game  industries.  In  our  interview,  Marie  Claire 

Isaaman  defines  the  organising  principle  of  the  initiative  as  “Equality,  it’s  our 

North  Star”.  She  points  out  that  everything  they  do  is  in  service  of  achieving 

lasting equality for all women throughout the game industries and beyond. The 

initiative has many ambassadors not only from Europe, but also other parts of 

153 https://www.bbc.com/aboutthebbc/reports/policies/5050 
154 https://www.globecast.com/blogpost/5-initiatives-for-women-in-media-and-technology/ 
155 https://www.creative-assembly.com/blog/partnership-women-games 
156 http://www.womeningames.org/  
157 Information about WIGJ have been provided by Marie Claire Isaaman in an interview that took place on 18 September 2019 via 
telephone and email. 

 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
the world. WIGJ focusses on several main activities. This includes research work 
with  universities  and  3rd  sector  research  organisations.  Critical  data  and 
information is collected to inform policy that attempts to strengthen the rights 

and  conditions  of  women  in  the  games  industry.  The  Women  in  Games 

Conference is organized annually representing the diversity of the talent in the 

industry by bringing together leading speakers and panellists and organisation 

of workshops followed by the Women in Games Awards. 

•  Womenize! 158159, a gender equality advocacy group, was introduced in 2019 at 
the  Women  in  Games  Conference.  Developed  by  Ruth  Lemmen  and  Michael 

Liebe,  it  regards  itself  as  an  action  program/initiative  for  women  in  games, 

technology and film, combining practical and theoretical sections. The initiative 

connects  people,  features  success  stories,  and  promotes  many  activities 

encouraging  the  success  of  women  in  the  video  game  sector.  Womenize!  got 

financial support for the kickoff through the so-called “Projekt Zukunft” of the 

Berlin Senate Department of Economics, Technology, Research. Since then the 

yearly  events  are  getting  financial  support  by  the  respective  regional  funding 

institutions. In our interview, Ruth Lemmen mentions some of the objectives of 

Womenize!:  offering  an  atmosphere  that  allows  for  a  low  entry  threshold  for 

exchange, creating the possibility for effective networking and more diversity in 

the workspace, fostering awareness with companies of the addressed industries, 

making  role  models  visible  and  supporting  the  emerging  talents  who  are 

entering  the  respective  industry,  offering  an  opportunity  for  recruitment  and 

being the platform for Heroes-women who have inspirational personalities that 

motivate others. 

•  Putting the G into Gaming 160 is a campaign to build more gender diverse and 
inclusive  workplaces  in  games  with  actionable  steps.  It  has  four  focus  areas: 

attracting  women  outside  the  industry  into  games,  supporting  women  already 

in  the  industry,  working  with  schools,  universities  and  parents  to  promote 

games as an attractive career option for girls and young women and providing 

studios  with  practical  advice  on  how  they  can  address  gender  imbalance, 

regardless of their size. The initiative, therefore, champions women working in 

the industry by sharing advice, support, guidance, and a voice to speak out. 

Moving forward in the AV sector 

Based  on  the  analysis  and  insights  gathered,  we  can  conclude  that  the  AV  sector  in 

Europe is in a unique position in access to data, reports and that a lot of different and 

unique initiatives and organisations are acting in that area. The AV sector through this 

unique position and the public attention can act as a locomotive to drive future actions 

in other sectors in Europe as well. We highlight the following main conclusions that we 

draw from the analysis: 

1.  We  found  that  data  collection  remains  a  cornerstone  of  any  sustainable 

gender equality agenda.  

But,  it  becomes  essential  to  avoid  duplicating  work  and  competition  among 

organisations  who  conduct  studies  in  access  to  finances.  As  we  have  shown  studies 

apply different methods and reporting is done in different ways. At the same time, it is 

difficult to access the underlying data that belongs to organisations in order to conduct 

studies  going  beyond  borders  or  organisations.  There  are  still  wide-ranging  gaps, 

imparity and inconsistencies in existing studies in the AV sector in Europe. Although the 

158 http://www.womenize.net/ 
159 Information about Womenize! have been provided by Ruth Lemmen in an interview that took place on 19 September 2019 via 
telephone and email. 
160 http://www.g-intogaming.co.uk/ 

54 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
                                                 
actions of the European AV Observatory with the support of the European Institutions 

will provide improvement in this regard (see above), there is still work to be done. 

2.  Even  though  much has  changed  and  improved  in the  audiovisual  sector  in 
the face of #MeToo, we identified 20-30% gender gap in representation of 

women which is still a significant problem.  

This  is  especially  relevant  in  women’s  lack  of  representation  in  leadership  and 

management  positions  as  well  as  access  to  employment,  funding  and  equal  payment. 

We  conclude  that  equal  gender  representation  in  the  AV  sector  can  have  a  positive 

impact on all other women related issues in the sector as it can impact equality in the 

labour  market,  tackle  sexual  harassment  &  violence,  can  fight  gender  stereotyping  & 

discrimination  and  create  visibility  for  women’s  issues.  Initiatives  like  the  50/50 

Collective (see above) and the UNI MEI Framework for gender balance in the AV sector 

in Europe can have therefore a substantial effect on all issues women face in the sector.  

3.  We need to go beyond the visible and most-talked about issues of women in 
the  audiovisual  sector  (celebrities  and  highly  visible  positions  like  film 

directors) and adopt an intersectional approach instead.  

The film and TV sector is easily one of the most prominent sectors in Europe that can 

also have an impact through films and AV content on cultural change. Led by prominent 

figures like actresses and directors, issues for women can be made easily prominent in 

the  public  consciousness.  However,  as  we  have  found,  other  areas  regarding  gender 

imbalances that are less in the spot-light, like occupations behind the public stage are 

often overlooked. An intersectional lens should be an overarching key line, as also the 

overlap of various social identities (age, race, sexual orientation, disability etc.) actively 
contribute to systemic discrimination on grounds of gender. 161 

4.  Having  an  impact  on  the  gender  gap  due  to  its  systematic  grounding,  can 
take  a  long  time.  Therefore,  sustainable  and  long-lasting  actions  and 

initiatives should be implemented. 

Clearly,  forward-looking  systematic  evaluation  of  initiatives  on  a  long-term  basis  is 

necessary  for  the  longevity  of  consciousness  raising  and  the  robust  analysis  of 

initiatives’  impact.  Based  on  the  learnings  of  the  AV  sector  in  Europe,  it  becomes 

increasingly necessary to create a sustainable ecosystem of initiatives that can have an 

impact on the long-term that connects European, national and local activities better in 

the future. We highlight that the European Commission and other European institutions 

through their efforts and initiatives in this regard (see above) can be the driving force 

to have a long term impact on gender balances bringing the many initiatives even closer 

together in the future and thereby having an impact not only on the AV sector in Europe 

and being a catalyst for systematic changes in all industries and the society in Europe 

at large. 

4.4 

Performing arts 

Performing arts are a form of art in which artists use their voices, bodies, or inanimate 

objects  to  convey  artistic  expression.  It  includes  a  range  of  disciplines  which  are 

performed in front of a live audience, such as theatre and dance. This study discusses 

the areas of theatre, opera, dance, and circus as sub-sectors of performing arts (music 

having been discussed separately).  

161 Voices of Culture (2018) “Gender equality: Gender Balance in the Cultural and Creative Sectors”, Report by Voices of Culture 
[online], available at: https://voicesofculture.eu/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/VoC-Brainstorming-Report-Gender-Balance-in-the-
Cultural-and-Creative-Sectors.pdf 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
In  February  2018,  the  French  ‘Haut  Conseil  à  l’Egalité’  presented  a  report 162  on 
inequality between men and women in art and culture in France. The report shows that 

even though women are in the majority among students in art schools, they are 
less  active,  less  well  paid,  less  programmed 163,  and  have  less  responsibilities 
than men. For the performing arts in France, it presents the following figures. Women 

constitute:  

-  52% of the students in education preparing for performing arts;  
-  31% of practicing artists;  
-  11% of programmed artists;  

-  18% of managerial positions;  
-  4 to 12% of rewarded artists (awards etc.) since 1980.  

Furthermore,  23%  of  the  projects  supported  by  public  funds  are  led  by  women.  For 

equal  positions  or  competences,  woman  artists  earn  on  average  27%  less  than  male 

artists. 

These  figures  from  France  appear  to  correspond  with  the  situation  in  other  Member 

States,  although  most  sources  do  not  refer  to  the  ‘performing  arts  sector’  in  general, 

but  rather  to  its  sub-sectors.  Therefore,  the  following  section  presents  figures  on  the 

state of affairs (including drivers) for the sub-sectors theatre, opera, dance and circus.  

S ta te  o f a ffa i rs  a n d  dr iv e rs 

The following sections present available information on the state of affairs and drivers 

of gender gaps in the different sub-sectors of the performing arts in turn. 

Theatre 

A  2015  study  from  the  UK  on  the  theatre  sector  shows  that  less  than  a  third  of  new 

plays are written by women. It also found that on average, of the new plays performed 

in  theatres,  31%  were  written  by  women,  while  the  ticket  price  is  on  average  23% 
lower 164.  Despite  accounting  for  70%  of  the  UK’s  community  performers,  stagehands 
and  production  staff,  women  make  up  only  36%  of  all  professional  casts  and 

crew. This study revealed that most aspects and jobs within the industry reflected the 

man  gender  bias.  Men  made  up  the  lion’s  share  of  almost  every  role  within  the 
professional  theatre  business 165.  In  a  2016  study 166  it  is  suggested  that  the 
disproportionate situation (fewer  women in professional theatre), stems from  a deep-
rooted acceptance, and continued reinforcement, of the gender imbalance.  

Research 167  commissioned  by  #WakingtheFeminists,  a  grassroots  initiative  from  the 
theatre  sector  in  Ireland  (see  Chapter  5  for  more  information)  shows  an  inverse 

relationship  between  the  levels  of  funding  and  female  representation  in  the 

Irish  theatre  sector:  the  higher  the  funding  an  organisation  receives,  the  lower  the 

female  presence  in  key  roles.  The  study  shows  that  women  are  underrepresented  in 

every  role  studied,  with  the  exception  of  costume  designers.  For  other  roles,  28%  of 

script authors employed are women, only 9% of sound designers employed are women, 

and 37% of directors employed are women.  

162 HCE (2018). Inégalités entre les femmes et les hommes dans les arts et la culture. Available : http://www.haut-conseil-
egalite.gouv.fr/stereotypes-et-roles-sociaux/travaux-du-hcefh/article/egalite-dans-la-culture-le-temps-de-l-action 
163 Oeuvres written by women in the programs of 102 subsidised theatres, orchestras and operas. 
164 https://www.thestage.co.uk/news/2015/less-third-new-plays-written-women-report-finds/ 
165 https://www.lboro.ac.uk/news-events/news/2017/march/the-theatre-industrys-gender-paradox.html  
166 Sage, D. and Rees, C., 2016. To do or not to do (gender)’ and changing the sex-typing of British theatre. 
Gender, work and organization, 23 (5), pp. 518-534.  
167 Donohue, B. et al (2017). Gender counts: an analysis of gender in Irish Theatre 2006-2015. Available: 
http://www.wakingthefeminists.org/research-report/  

56 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
Respondents from the theatre sector  both  in the  UK and Ireland,  observe a structural 

inequality in terms of ‘institutional big building based’ theatre, dominated by men and 

freelancing  done  mainly  by  women.  This  naturally  has  consequences  in  terms  of 

consistent pay, sick pay, etc.  

According to one expert interview, the theatre world is committed to the traditional 

cannon  which  is  mostly  written  by  white  men.  Moreover,  gender  stereotyping  is 

enforced  by  the  fact  that  artistic  choices  are  made  by  men.  The  number  of  woman 

directors  is  only slowly  increasing. If  women  are  in  powerful  positions,  it  is usually  in 

the role of executive producer rather than artistic producer.  

An interviewee from the Irish theatre sector explained that gender equality in the sector 

wasn’t so clear to those involved. Since women are visible in the sector, it is considered 

liberal  and  equal.  It  appears  that  inequality  is  a  blind  spot,  as  is  the  case  in  other 

sectors as well.  Once  structural  inequalities  became  clear through  the  presentation of 

data, 

this  came  as  a  shock 

to 

insiders.  This  also  marked 

the  start  of 

#WakingtheFeminists.  

Opera 

Female  underrepresentation  is  inherent  to  the  opera  sector.  UK  figures  show  that 
women  account  for  2%  of  opera  composers  and  8%  of  librettists 168.  This  is  easily 
explained: the most popular pieces are traditional ones, generally written by deceased 

white men throughout history. Moreover, creating a new opera is very costly compared 

to, for instance, writing a new play, which essentially costs the same as performing a 

traditional play. ‘Being stuck’ as a sector with the traditional pieces, does not only reflect 

in the overrepresentation of men in roles of composers and librettists. This also means 

that there are many more opportunities for man singers, as most parts are traditionally 

written for the male voice. Hence, women do not compete with men here, but with each 

other over the scarce woman roles.  

Therefore, part of the state of affairs can be ascribed to the adherence to traditional 

pieces.  However,  the  woman  underrepresentation  is  also  visible  for  directors  (26% 
women) and conductors (4% women) 169. An expert from within the British opera sector 
notes that  at  the  early career  stage,  there are a  lot  of women  in  the  roles  of director 

and  conductor.  It  seems  however,  that  they  do  not  make  the  jump  to  the  main 

stages. An expert mentioned a few drivers for this situation, largely corresponding to 

what  is  already  known  regarding  general  drivers  related  to  gender  stereotypes:  1)  it 

seems there is a gender bias: men are likely to hire men; 2) the risk of hiring someone 

new is taken more willingly on men than on women; 3) there are very few female role 

models,  except  in  educational  roles.  The  difficult  combination  of  parenthood  with  a 

career in opera, which requires a lot of flexibility regarding rehearsal and performance 

schedules, also plays a role.  

Despite the constant conversation in the (UK) opera sector on gender imbalance and a 

number  of  initiatives,  progress  seems  to  be  slow.  There  is  a  lot  of  focus  on  providing 

women with training, which also seems to relate to a bias assuming that women are not 

ready and don’t have the required skills to succeed in the sector.  

Dance 

168 https://www.swap-ra.org/about  
169 https://www.swap-ra.org/about 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
The  most  evident  gender  imbalance  in  this  subsector  is  the  lack  of  top  woman 

choreographers.  What  the  history  of  British  classical  dance  overwhelmingly 

demonstrates is that while women may run ballet schools and become ballet company 

administrators and directors, they are rarely, if ever, invited to the choreographic high 

table. In other words, they are permitted responsibility, but not creative power. The 

consequence in recent years has been a succession of works, all bearing a recognisably 
male, creative stamp 170. 

Data,  based  on  an  analysis  of  the  2016-2017  season  dance  repertoires  of  32  dance 

companies  in  the  UK,  Europe,  and  North-America,  shows  a  gender  imbalance  among 
choreographers  in  Europe 171.  Overall,  woman  choreographers  are  better  represented 
within contemporary dance companies than in classical ballet companies. The data for 

classical ballet companies is severely imbalanced with 40% (2 of 5) companies showing 

no female representation in their season programming (Chart 1). The absence of female 

choreographers  might  have  a  direct  link  to  the  lack  of  female  Artistic  Directors,  as  a 

large  proportion  of  Artistic  Directors  rise  to  their  positions  after  becoming  renowned 

choreographers. 

Chart 1 – European Classical Ballet companies (2016) 

Source: Teague, 2016. 

170 https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2013/apr/28/women-choreographers-glass-ceiling 
171 Teague, J., (2016), Where are the female choreographers? A study on the gender imbalance among 
professional choreographers working in the fields of classical ballet and contemporary dance, available at : 
http://www.danceicons.org/_doc/FemanleChoreograohers.pdf page 37 

58 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
Chart 2 – European Contemporary Dance companies (2016) 

Source: Teague, 2016. 

The majority of  choreographers  in  classical  ballet have been and  continue to be men. 

On the other hand, women have enjoyed a significant presence within the contemporary 

dance field. Generally, women  constitute around  30%  of  the sport coaches within the 

EU. However, the proportion of women coaches in dancing is slightly higher as a result 
of the high proportion of women participants. 172 

From  a  legal  perspective,  Article  14  of  the  Recast  Directive  explicitly  prohibits 

discrimination between men and women in the context of employment and occupational 
activities. 173  However,  exceptions  can  be  made  on  the  national  level  in  the  case  of 
specific  occupational  activities, 174  such  as  dance-related  professions  (most  of  these 
exceptions have been developed through national legislation and some of them, through 
case  law). 175  Belgium,  Bulgaria,  Cyprus,  France,  Italy,  the  Netherlands,  and  Northern 
Ireland,  have  exempted  dancers  from  the  purpose  of  Article  14. 176  In  light  of  this,  in 
dance-related professions there is not necessarily a prohibition related to discrimination 

between men and women.  

Data  from  Scandinavia  shows  a  healthy  gender  balance  among  classical  ballet 

companies, while an imbalance exists within 2 of the 3 contemporary dance companies. 

In  Scandinavia,  female  choreographers  are  better  represented  within  classical  ballet 

companies than in contemporary dance companies. This is striking as the data stands 

in opposition to other geographic locations examined in this particular study. A deeper 

172 European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE), Gender equality in sport.  
173 Directive 2006/54/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 5 July 2006 on the implementation of 
the principle of equal opportunities and equal treatment of men and women in matters of employment and 
occupation (recast) [2006] OJ 2 204/23 (Recast Directive) Art. 14. 
174 European network of legal experts in gender equality and non-discrimination, A comparative analysis of 
gender equality law in Europe (2015). 
175 https://ec.europa.eu/esco/portal/occupation 
176 European network of legal experts in gender equality and non-discrimination, A comparative analysis of 
gender equality law in Europe (2015). 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
inquiry into Scandinavian legislation, culture, and policies would be useful to understand 
how classical ballet companies are achieving a higher level of gender equality 177.  

This  report  distinguishes  several  drivers  of  gender  inequality  for  the  dance  sector, 

notably  relating  to  stereotypes  and  gender  roles.  In  the  dance  business,  men  are  in 
the minority. 178 The majority of (aspiring) dancers and dance audiences are women. 179 
Looking at the education system, it has been suggested that boys in dance academies 

encounter  different  treatment  than  girls  in  the  sense  that  they  are  encouraged  to  be 

individuals  from  a  young  age.  Moreover,  they are  often  afforded  special  privileges  as 

opposed to their woman counterparts who are taught early on that as girls, they are ‘a 
dime a dozen’ and very common in the sector. 180 More generally, the mechanism of the 
glass  escalator  can  possibly  play  a  role  here:  this  refers  to  the  fact  that  men  enter 

higher ranked positions more quickly when entering a woman dominated profession. 

Mackrell  notes  that  modern  dance  used  to  be  dominated  by  women,  but  identifies  a 

reverse  trend.  She  suggests  that  it  might  be  the  aggressive  culture  of  marketing 

and funding, which goes hand in hand with the higher profile of the sector, might be 
difficult  for  women,  particularly  those  who  want  or  have  children. 181  Besides 
motherhood,  ‘lack  of  interest’  is  also  mentioned  as  a  driver 182.  La  Rocca  argues  that 
women  in  ballet  show  less  interest  in  choreographing  than  men.  Supporting  that 

theory, a 2013 study surveyed 71 dancers working in professional ballet companies and 

found  that  0%  of  women  and  27%  of  men  answered  ‘yes’  to  the  question  ‘Are  you 
interested in becoming a Choreographer?’.  183 

Moreover, concerning gender roles, the traditional rules of dancing assigned men with 

the dominant and the women with the submissive position in a dance couple. Generally, 
there has not been much emancipation from this strict dichotomy of roles. 184 

Circus 

It is reported that the presence of women in circuses is generally low. For instance, in 

Spain,  figures  show  that  the  presence  of  women  in  the  circus  sector  is  almost  half  in 

companies with low income, while their presence is notably reduced in companies that 

are  economically  stronger.  Furthermore,  according  to  this  Spanish  research, 80%  of 

artists  on  stage  were  men  versus  20%  of  women.  The  directors  of  the  shows 

themselves  were  nearly  100%  men.  Circuses  are  highly  masculinised  spaces  in  terms 
of the positions of power 185. Furthermore, based on insights from Spain, it appears that 
the  circus  sector  continues  to  represent  gender  in  a  stereotyped  way.  Bodies  are 

idealised under a patriarchal hetero perspective, training schools follow the tendency to 

divide  circus  disciplines  by  gender,  man  costumes  tend  to  cover  more  skin  whereas 

woman costumes tend to be more revealing, and the dramaturgies of circus continue to 

represent  stereotyped  hetero  love  stories.  Men  continue  to  win  the  circus  awards,  to 

direct festivals, and to run the associations and creation centres. In the same way, men 

write circus pieces (directors), write about circuses (journalists), and decide about the 

177 http://www.danceicons.org/_doc/FemanleChoreograohers.pdf p. 39. 
178 http://wendyperron.com/is-there-a-bias-against-women-in-dance-then-now/ 
179 https://journals.openedition.org/rsa/1048?lang=en 
180 La Rocca, C (2007) ‘Often on Point but Rarely in Charge’. In The New York Times [Online] 5 August, 2007. 
Available at: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/05/arts/dance/05laroc.html?pagewanted=all  
181 Mackrell, J. (2009) ‘The Ladies Vanish.’ In The Guardian, Dance [ONLINE] Wednesday 13 May 2009. 
Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2009/may/13/dance-sadlers-wells-southbank 
182 La Rocca, C (2007) ‘Often on Point but Rarely in Charge’. In The New York Times [Online] 5 August, 2007. 
Available at: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/05/arts/dance/05laroc.html?pagewanted=all 
183 Cardim, D., (2013) ‘What are the Reasons for the Low Percentages of Female Artistic Directors in Western 
European Ballet Companies?’ Dissertation for BA in Arts Management at London South Bank University. 
184 https://www.worlddancesport.org/News/WDSF/Gender_Equality-2339 
185 https://circustalk.com/news/circus-and-gender-second-meeting-of-cirqueras-in-spain/ 

60 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
circus  sector  (politicians). In other  words,  the circus  sector is  revealed as a space for 
reproducing sexism in all areas 186.  

I n it ia t i ve s a nd  p ra c t ic es 

To  address  the  various  pressing  gender  gaps  in  these  sub-sectors  of  the  performing 

arts, different initiatives have been introduced. For each of the sub-sectors some of the 

initiatives  taken  have  been  briefly  summarised  to  given  an  impression  of  the  type  of 

activity taking place in the sectors to address gender inequalities.  

Theatre 
Tonic  Theatre 187  in  the  UK  has  a  range  of  initiatives  to  combat  gender  inequality.  It 
was  established  in  2011  to  catalyse  a  culture  shift  in  how  the  UK  theatre  industry 

thought about and responded to the challenges of persistent gender imbalances. Tonic 

takes a holistic approach and is committed to changing the culture, including access to 

work by woman writers, pay grade issues, and decision making powers. Tonic’s Advance 
programme 188 brings together the Artistic Directors, Chief Executives, and senior staff 
of leading performing arts organisations. From October 2013 to May 2014 Tonic piloted 

the  Advance  process  with  a  cohort  of  11  theatres,  guiding  them  through  a  six-month 

period of research, reflection, and activity which tasked them to take an interrogative 

and methodical approach to understanding the root causes behind the comparative lack 

of  women  in  key  creative  roles.  Rather  than  settling  for  quick  fixes  or  addressing 

symptoms  rather  than  causes  of  challenges,  Advance  tasked  the  theatres  with 

understanding not only where barriers to woman talent exists within their organisations 

but more importantly point, why they exist. The second cycle of the programme began 

in January 2016. 

Another initiative relating to the theatre sector, is the Diversity in Action - ETC Code of 
Conduct for European Theatres 189. ETC, located in Berlin, is a network of public theatres 
in Europe, with about 40 members from 20 countries. In December 2018, ETC Member 

Theatres  and  European  networks  voted  and  adhere  to  a  series  of  code  of  conduct 

principles:  

•  Ensure gender equality and increased diversity amongst theatre staff employees; 
•  Reflect gender and diversity across artistic creation and programming; 
• 

Invest in training allowing  equal opportunities for gender and  diversity minority 

groups; 

•  Ensure equal pay across genders; 
•  Set forward clear objectives in our theatre’s artistic and management plans. 

Opera 
Since  2015,  the  Académie  du  Festival  d'Aix 190  has  been  running  an  empowerment 
programme  for  female  opera  creators,  composers,  authors,  stage  directors,  and 

conductors,  in  the  middle  of  their  careers.  The  5-day  programme  aims  to  offer  tools, 

support, and advice for women working in the opera industry. The aim is to help these 

women grow stronger in their art, improve their ability to communicate this art, and to 
develop the skills needed to navigate a male-dominated profession. 191 

186 https://circustalk.com/news/circus-and-gender-second-meeting-of-cirqueras-in-spain  
187 https://www.tonictheatre.co.uk/  
188 http://www.tonictheatre-advance.co.uk/about/ 
189 https://www.europeantheatre.eu/news/etc-stands-up-for-a-strong-diverse-and-gender-equal-theatre-sector-
in-europe 
190 https://academie.festival-aix.com/fr 
191 https://academie.festival-aix.com/en/workshop/2020-women-opera-makers-workshop 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
Another example is the Supporting Women and Parents in Opera (SWAP’ra) 192, a 
UK  based  initiative,  led  by  a  group  of  female  opera  singers  and  directors  (volunteer 

based). This initiative is further explored in chapter 5 on practices and initiatives.  

In 2016, composer Stephen McNeff’s opera piece, Banished, featured the story of some 

of  the  women  who  were  transported  from  the  UK  to  the  penal  colonies  in  Australia. 
These women with strong and earthy characters 193 are portrayed by 18 female students 
from Trinity Laban (UK) who make up the bulk of the cast. 194 The production, based on 
Steve  Gooch’s,  Female  Transport,  represented  a  good  opportunity  for  young  women  to 
get good roles in opera. 195 This practice seeks to enhance the representation and visibility 
of women in opera. 

During  a  joint  seminar  in  July  2018,  the  members  of Les  Forces  Musicales 196 
and Association Française des Orchestras 197  stepped up their activities in favour of 
gender  equality  in  their  respective  organisation.  The  “Charter  for  gender  equality 
within  orchestras  and  opera  houses” 198,  which  provides  a  series  of 
recommendations,  was  approved  during  the  seminar.  A  steering  and  follow-up 

committee will draw up a five year action plan, create a toolkit for orchestras and opera 

houses, analyse the activities implementing the charter, and validate or amend its terms 
each year. 199 
In the North, Pop-up Opera 200 is a Swedish opera company where women make up the 
bulk  of  the cast. The  founder, Swedish Soprano, Karin Fjellander,  says the aim  of  the 

company is to revitalise the opera environment. When scores call for a tenor or bass, 

they  simply  transcribe  the  part  up  by  an  octave,  which  allows  a  soprano  or  mezzo-
soprano to sing it. 201 

Dance 
One initiative to be mentioned in relation to the dance sector is The Bench 202. This was 
a programme established in 2015 by the Artistic Director of 2Faced Dance Company in 
the UK 203 in response to the serious concerns about the lack of equality faced by female 
choreographers within the dance sector.  

The programme aimed to influence change and current behaviours within the UK dance 

sector by: 
• 

Initiating  projects,  programmes  and  resources 

to  better  support 

female 

choreographers  (for  example,  between  2015  and  2017  The  Bench  worked  and 

directly  funded  12  woman  choreographers  across  the  UK  and  5  woman 

choreographers  from  India  to  undertake  an  intensive  programme  of  training, 

mentoring and reflection).  

• 

Provoking  debates  about  the  lack  of  support  and  opportunities  for  female 

choreographers; 

192 https://www.swap-ra.org/about  
193 http://boulezian.blogspot.com/2016/07/stephen-mcneff-banished-trinity-laban.html 
194 https://www.standard.co.uk/go/london/arts/opera-on-exiled-convicts-to-be-staged-near-docks-where-
prison-ships-set-sail-a3279006.html 
195 https://www.standard.co.uk/go/london/arts/opera-on-exiled-convicts-to-be-staged-near-docks-where-
prison-ships-set-sail-a3279006.html 
196 https://www.lesforcesmusicales.org/ 
197 http://www.france-orchestres.com/ 
198 https://behindthestageorg.files.wordpress.com/2019/02/charter-for-gender-equality.pdf 
199 https://behindthestage.org/2019/02/28/charter-for-gender-equality-within-the-orchestras-and-
opera-houses/ 
200 https://www.popupoperan.se/ 
201 https://www.economist.com/prospero/2016/03/15/where-have-all-the-good-tenors-gone-and-where-are-all-
the-basses 
202 http://www.the-bench.org/ 
203 https://www.2faceddance.co.uk/ 

62 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
•  Building  a  network  of  programmers  and  promoters  that  have  a  long-term 

commitment to equality. 204 

Circus 

In June 2018, the first Women in Circus State meeting was held in Spain. Thanks to 

the support of the CircoREDFederation and with the collaboration of Circada Festival and 

the  International  University  of  Andalusia,  fifty  professionals  gathered  to  reflect  and 
debate about the gender issue in the circus world 205. The circus women of Spain have 
met again for the second time, from the 10th to the 13th of December 2018, in Granada, 
Spain, thanks to the coordination work of a volunteer team of Cirqueras, the hospitality 

of  the  CAU  Festival,  and  the  support  of  the Circored  Federation  (the  federation  of 
associations of circus professionals.) 206  

The Gynoïdes Project (Sweden) is an artistic operation that raises and examines the 

question of female agency in circus art. The project engages in a female-centred circus 

creating  process  and  seeks  to  describe  and  produce  feminist  strategies  in  circus 
composition. 207  

4.5 

Visual Arts 

The Visual Arts is an umbrella term for a broad category of artistic disciplines 208 which 
include ceramics, drawing, painting, sculpture, printmaking, and photography. Though 
this term can also include filmmaking, design, crafts, video, architecture 209, and the field 
of  applied  arts 210  (which  encompasses industrial  design, graphic  design, fashion 
design, interior  design and decorative  art. 211),  these  sectors  are  discussed  separately 
from  the  visual  arts  sector  for  the  purposes  of  this  study.  Many  artistic  disciplines 

(performing arts, conceptual art, textile arts) involve aspects of the visual arts as well 
as arts of other types. 212 For the purposes of this study, the visual arts examined in this 
section include, drawing, painting, sculpture, printmaking, and photography, as well as 
professions relating to these art forms.  

S ta te  o f a ffa i rs  a n d  dr iv e rs 

Woman  artists  are  underrepresented  in  both  the  commercial  galleries  and  non-

commercial  galleries  and  museums.  Moreover,  a  gender  pay  gap  is  apparent.  With 

women  accounting  for  only  14%  of  the  Top  500  Contemporary  artists  in  the  world  in 

terms  of  auction  turnover,  the  contemporary  art  market  certainly  looks  to  be 

dominated by men. At the same time, if we were to take into consideration the artists 
born  after  1980,  the  percentage  of  women  rises  to  31%. 213  However,  despite  these 
improvements, the gender bias against female artists in the visual arts field is far from 
gone. 214  

In 2017, the National Museum of Women in the Arts reported that artworks by female 

artists  represent  only  3%  to  5%  of  major  permanent  collections  in  Europe  and  the 
USA. 215 At the same time, only 13.7% of living artists represented by galleries in Europe 

204 http://www.the-bench.org/about 
205 https://circustalk.com/news/women-in-spanish-circus-take-a-step-forward-on-gender-issues/  
206 https://circustalk.com/news/circus-and-gender-second-meeting-of-cirqueras-in-spain/ 
207 http://cirkusperspektiv.se/About/ 
208 http://www.visual-arts-cork.com/definitions/visual-art.htm 
209 https://www.unboundvisualarts.org/what-is-visual-art/ 
210 https://arthearty.com/different-forms-of-art 
211 https://www.widewalls.ch/applied-arts-meaning-kinds/ 
212 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visual_arts 
213 https://www.artprice.com/artprice-reports/the-contemporary-art-market-report-2017/towards-art-market-
gender-equality 
214 https://www.genderavenger.com/blog/inequality-women-visual-arts 
215 https://www.bbh.com/en-us/insights/women-in-the-arts-infographic-22708 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
and  North  America  are  women.  A  study  carried  out  on  1.5  million  art  auction  sales 

across the last 40 years showed that the works created by women were being sold for 
almost 50%less than paintings by their male counterparts.  216 The study collected data 
on  paintings  from  more  than  60,000  distinct  artists  from  45  countries.  University  of 

Technology  researcher  Marco  Navone,  reported  that  "even  when  we  withdrew  all  the 

paintings above $1 million – the stars, like Leonardo da Vinci – you still see a gender 

pay gap of 28%". Research from the Netherlands shows similar results. In 8 well-known 

Dutch  museums,  on  average  only  13.4%  of  the  artists  in  the  main  collections  and 
temporary solo exhibitions were female 217.  

Women  constitute  the  majority  (70%)  of  the  workforce  in  museums  and 
galleries 218. A study into the representation of woman artists in Britain during 2018 219, 
shows that while women account for 64% of the undergraduates studying creative arts 

and  design,  women  are  underrepresented  in  both  commercial  galleries  and  non-profit 

organisations.  In  Italy,  the  most  popular  museums  reveal  an  overall  woman 

representation  of  37%  in  leadership  positions.  In  Sweden,  the  percentage  is  slightly 
higher, with women comprising over 50% of all leadership positions in museums. 220 

In  the  UK,  53%  of  museum  and  gallery  directors  in  the  non-profit  sector  are  women. 

However,  of  the  organisations  receiving  a  high  amount  of  funding,  only  23%  of  the 
directors are women 221. Moreover, with public funding decreasing, public institutions are 
increasingly depending on commercial galleries for arranging expositions. According to 

one  interviewee,  this  increasing  interaction  between  commercial  galleries  and  public 

institutions,  also  means  that  the  underrepresentation  of  women  in  the  commercial 

sector is increasingly reflected in the work shown in museums.  

The same study shows that 58% of the artists awarded grants for the Arts by the Arts 

Council England are women. This seemingly positive result could however be explained 

by  the  fact  that  people  apply  because  they  do  less  well  commercially  and  need  more 

legitimation through grants to be accepted in the art system. As such, this can be read 

as a gender imbalance as well.  

Figures  from  ArtsFacts  from  2010 222  underline  the  clear  underrepresentation  of 
women artists in different market segments. Even if women artists reach a master 
position, the prices of their works are not comparable to those of men artists. 

216 https://happymag.tv/study-reveals-that-women-in-the-arts-experience-a-50-pay-gap/ 
217 
https://www.mamacash.org/media/documents/the_position_of_women_artists_in_four_art_disciplines_in_the_
netherlands__mama_cash_2019.pdf  
218 https://www.a-n.co.uk/news/women-in-the-visual-arts-leadership-is-not-a-gender-neutral-space/  
219 https://freelandsfoundation.co.uk/research/representation-of-female-artists-in-britain-2018  
220 https://www.hertie-
school.org/fileadmin/2_Research/2_Research_directory/Research_projects/Women_in_media_culture/FINAL_Re
port_Women_in_arts_and_culture.pdf 
221 https://freelandsfoundation.co.uk/research/representation-of-female-artists-in-britain-2018 
222 The data are based on an elaboration of data extracted from ARtfacts. ArtFacts04/2010 

64 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
Women artists at top international levels (ArtFacts.net 04/2010) 

Moreover,  data  shows  a  clear  under-representation  of  women  in  leading  positions  in 
visual arts organisations (i.e. museums, art fairs, art auction houses, etc.). 

The % of women in different professional groups at the highest international levels 

                      Total + women artists | Total + women directors | Total + women gallerists 

Parenthood  plays  a  major  role  in  the  gender  imbalances  described  above:  as  women 

take on primary care giving roles, the perceptions of gallery directors is that artists are 

not  going  to  produce  enough  work  to  sell.  Similar  to  other  sectors,  drivers  of  gender 

gaps in this sector are often connected to motherhood and family lifestyle. Domestic 

and  caring  responsibilities,  in  which  women  still  play  a  bigger  role  than  their  male 

counterparts,  are  difficult  to  combine  with  the  long  and  irregular  work  hours  and 

absences dedicated to creation, production, networking, promotion, and performance in 
a  creative  career. 223  Motherhood  is  thought  to  have  a  negative  impact  on  career 
progression 224  and  may  lead  to  women  opting  out  or  working  part-time.  In  the  visual 
arts sector, dealers may be concerned that a woman will take time off to have children 

and  raise  a  family-thereby  making  her  career  trajectory  and  prospective  output  less 
reliable than that of a man. 225 Discrimination at the employment level may also occur 
as the market and galleries are sceptical about emerging female artists’ “likelihood of 
future success.” 226  

223 https://cultureactioneurope.org/files/2016/05/Gender-Inequalities-in-the-Cultural-Sector.pdf 
224 https://www.kcet.org/shows/artbound/life-lessons-motherhood-and-art 
225 https://news.artnet.com/market/art-market-study-1179317 
226 https://news.artnet.com/market/art-market-study-1179317 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
Even  though  this  seems  to  be  a  general  driver  to  gender  inequality,  there  are  some 

specific  factors  at  work  in  the  visual  arts.  Firstly,  networking  and  visibility  is 

extremely important in the sector. If someone with young children decides to spend less 

time  on  this  aspect  (events  usually  take  place  in  the  evenings)  for  a  couple  of  years, 

the artist loses ground. Secondly, unlike other sectors, people are not in paid positions 

but  are  essentially  freelancers,  making  them  more  financially  vulnerable.  Finally,  a 

specific stereotype in the visual arts industry is that women are perceived as muses, 

rather  than  ‘true’  creators.  At  the  same  time,  12  artists  from  different  European 

countries have reported that, in their perception, art is associated with “aggressiveness, 

ruthless  ambition,  arrogance  and  self-promotion”,  character  traits  often  attributed  to 
men. 227 This gap is evident not just in terms of remuneration but also in market visibility 
as many famous artist couples show (Delaunay, Picasso and Francoise Gilot, Frida Kahlo 

and Diego Rivera, Man Ray and Lee Miler, among others). 

I n it ia t i ve s a nd  p ra c t ic es 

There  are  quite  some  initiatives  in  the  visual  arts  sector  that  aim  to  address  gender 

inequalities. This section presents some of them.  

The Freelands Award was established in 2016 in the UK by Freelands Foundation 228, a 
visual  arts  charity  ‘with  a  mission  to  support  artists  and  cultural  institutions’ 229.  The 
Award has the purpose of enabling a regional arts organisation to present a large-scale 

exhibition,  including  significant  new  work,  by a mid-career female artist  who may not 

have  yet  received  the  acclaim  or  public  recognition  that  her  work  deserves.  The  total 

annual  value  of  the award  is  £100,000, of  which £25,000  is to be  paid  directly to the 
artist. 230 

In Romania, less than 5% of the paintings represented in galleries have been made by 

women.  In  light  of  this,  the  exhibition  “Equality.  Art  and  Feminism  in  modern 
Romania”, organised in 2016, aimed to promote the works of 21 Romanian artists. 231 
At  the  same  time,  the “Urban  Girls  Event”  embodies  different  forms  of  visual  arts, 

fashion and music. This event, which initially aimed to develop a local community and 

lead  charitable  activities,  had  a  significant  role  in  supporting  women  and  woman 
leadership in arts throughout the time 232. 

In  Spain,  the  EmPoderArte  Association  is  a  non-profit  organization  which  works 

exclusively on the concept of gender, particularly the visibility of women artists in the 

visual arts. EmPoderArte is made up of a large group of women artists, many of which 

have  experience  in  functions  of  cultural  management  and  curating,  which  allows 

EmPoderArte to be an independent and self-managed group. The main type of actions 

are exhibition projects. In addition to these exhibition projects, other types of actions 

are  carried  out  that  are  aimed  at  raising  awareness,  disseminating  and  analysing  the 

issues  addressed 

in  each  of 

the  exhibitions.  Therefore,  accompanying  and 

complementing  exhibitions  are  parallel  activities,  such  as  round  tables,  conferences, 

lectures and conferences.  

227 https://cultureactioneurope.org/files/2016/05/Gender-Inequalities-in-the-Cultural-Sector.pdf 
228 https://freelandsfoundation.co.uk/ 
229 https://www.a-n.co.uk/news/new-100000-award-launched-for-women-artists/ 
230 https://www.artlyst.com/news/freelands-foundation-announce-100k-female-artist-award-veronica-ryan-
spike-island/ 
231 http://revistaarta.ro/en/more-than-just-equality/ 
232 http://urbanmirror.ro/proiect1-test/ 

66 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
denounced  the 

At  the  international  level,  Guerilla  Girls 233  emerged  30  years  ago  as  a  group  of 
anonymous  feminist  activist  artists.  Ever  since  then,  the  group  has  continuously 
in  museum  collections. 234 
The plastered  billboard  with  the  slogan  "Do  women  have  to  be  naked  to  get  into  the 
Met.  Museum?"  was  one  of  the  most  influential  elements  of  their  movement, 235  which 
hit the proverbial nail on the head: women are represented in museums much more as 
naked objects than as creative subjects. 236  

flagrant  dominance  of  man  artists 

Another international initiative, #5WomenArtists, is a social media campaign launched 
by  the  National  Museum  of  Women  in  Arts. 237  The  National  Museum  of  Women  in  the 
Arts, located in Washington D.C., is the only major museum in the world solely dedicated 

to championing women through the arts. The campaign aims to increase the awareness 

of gender inequity in the art world by asking cultural organisations and individual social 

media  users  the  question  “Can  you  name  five  women  artists?” In  2019, over 22,000 

posts were tagged  #5WomenArtists  on Instagram and  Twitter, and  751 museums and 

institutions  took  part  in  the  campaign.  The  8,400  campaign  participants  were  located 

across 38 countries and 48 states in the USA. 

4.6 

Cultural Heritage and related professions 

As this particular sector is rather broad and “related professions” is also a fairly broad 

category, a definition is necessary in order to delineate the scope of sub-sector. UNESCO 

defines  cultural  heritage  broadly  as  'the  legacy  of  physical  artefacts  and  intangible 

attributes of a group or society that are inherited from past generations, maintained in 
the present and bestowed for the benefit of future generations’ 238. The organisation sub-
categorises cultural heritage into: tangible heritage, intangible heritage, (such as oral 

traditions, performing arts, crafts and rituals), natural heritage, and cultural heritage. 

Professions related to cultural heritage include: Professions with an institutional origin, 

that is, all those which fall into the cultural heritage institutions (archivists, librarians, 

museum  keepers,  documentarists),  all  those  whose  subject  of  work  is  the  cultural 

heritage  and  its  different  areas  of  management  (antiquarians,  exhibition  organizers, 

cultural  heritage  educators/interpreters/managers,  exhibition  experts,  heritage 

keepers),  and  professions  with  an  academic  profile  (anthropologists,  archaeologists, 
heritage architects, restorers of cultural assets). 239 

S ta te  o f a ffa i rs  a n d  dr iv e rs   

As the professions related to cultural heritage cover a broad range, it is difficult to talk 

about  the  ‘cultural  heritage  sector’  in  general.  Evidence  from  different  subsectors, 

however, leads to the impression that the sector is characterised by gender inequality, 

similar to other cultural and creative sectors. Several studies on different areas within 

cultural  heritage  illustrate  this.  For  instance,  a  2014  study  aimed  at  mapping  the 

Library,  Archives,  Records,  Information  Management,  and  Knowledge  Management 

professions  in  the  UK,  shows  that  a  significant  gender  pay  gap  is  present  in  the 

233 https://www.guerrillagirls.com/ 
234 https://www.artprice.com/artprice-reports/the-contemporary-art-market-report-2017/towards-art-market-
gender-equality 
235 https://i-d.vice.com/en_uk/article/gygjam/guerilla-girls-have-been-disrupting-the-art-world-with-the-f-word-
for-30-years 
236 https://www.artprice.com/artprice-reports/the-contemporary-art-market-report-2017/towards-art-market-
gender-equality 
237 https://nmwa.org/5WomenArtists/campaign-updates 
238 European Parliament, (2018), Briefing: Cultural heritage in EU policies, available at:  
http://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/BRIE/2018/621876/EPRS_BRI(2018)621876_EN.pdf . 
239 Intituto Andaluz de  Patrimonio Histórico, (no date), Professions, available at:  
https://www.iaph.es/web/canales/formacion/orientacion-profesional/profesiones/index.html?lang=en . 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
sector. Men in the sector earn more than women. On average, 47% of men earn £30,000 

of more, whereas 37.3% of women do so. Furthermore, the study shows that women 

dominate  the  workforce  in  this  sector:  the  overall  gender  split  of  the  workforce  is 

78.1% female compared to 21.9% male, while the gender division for the UK workforce 

as  a  whole  is  50.1%  female,  49.9%  male.  That  being  said,  women  are  under-

represented in senior management positions in this sector: male workers are more 

likely to occupy management roles than their female peers. The 10.2% of men in senior 
management roles is almost double that of female workers (5.9%) 240. 

A study into the archaeological profession in 21 European countries points to an overall 

trend that in the future, women will form the majority of workers in the sector. However, 

the  conditions  under  which  women  work  differ  per  country  and  in  several  countries 

women  are  paid  less  than  men,  and  are  not  well  represented  in  leadership  positions. 

The  study  concludes  that  gender  equality  needs  to  be  put  on  the  agenda  and  each 
country  should  take  measurements  to  close  the  gap 241.  Moreover,  according  to  a 
UNESCO  report  from  2014  on cultural  heritage, women’s  contributions  to  the  creation 

of cultural heritage is still undervalued; they are kept in a less visible role “as part of a 
broader  domination  system” 242.  In  France,  according  to  the  national  Observatory, 
women are present in higher numbers in the heritage sector, with on average  67% of 

the  workers  being  women  between  2015  and  2017.  This  report  also  points  to  gender 

pay gap across the cultural and creative sectors, including heritage. 

Generally,  the  information  presented  above,  shows  a  dominance  of  women  in  the 

cultural  heritage  workforce,  as  well  as  imparity  regarding  their  position  in  terms  of 

salaries and seniority. Though little information on the specific drivers was found, the 

mechanism of the ‘glass escalator’, referring to a phenomenon where men enter higher 

ranked  positions  quickly  when  entering  a  women  dominated  profession,  can  possibly 

play a role here. More general drivers described in chapter 3 of this report, may be at 

work  here  as  well;  the  2014  UNESCO  report  points  to  the  phenomenon  of  women’s 

contributions  being  under-valued  and  under-appreciated.  This  phenomenon  has  been 

observed  across  different  sub-sectors  within  the  CCSs,  and  this  look  to  be  one  of  the 

drivers at work in the cultural heritage sector as well. 

With regard to the small role of women in the creation of cultural heritage, it should be 
mentioned that, according to a report by UNESCO 243, this is partly due to the fact that 
in all societies, women’s activities have been traditionally identified with, and relegated 

to  the  private  or  domestic  sphere,  while  the  public  sphere,  seen  as  more  relevant, 

important and prestigious, has historically been men’s monopoly. In the same vein, the 

dismissal  of  certain  forms  of  women’s  contributions  to  heritage  is  often  explained  by 

their  belonging  to  what  is  considered  as  merely  falling  under  woman  role  (traditional 

food production and  preparation, textile weaving and  making pottery are some  of the 

examples  mentioned  in  the  UNESCO  report),  rather  than  practices  to  be  valued  and 

safeguarded as heritage. 

240 Archives and Records Association  UK & Ireland, (2015), A study of the UK information workforce, available 
at: https://archive.cilip.org.uk/sites/default/files/documents/executive_summary_nov_2015-5_a4web_0.pdf 
241 Lazar, I. et.al. (2014). The Archaeologist of the Future is Likely to be a Woman: Age and Gender Patterns in 
European Archaeology. Archaeologies: Journal of the World Archaeological Congress. Available: 
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/285882042_The_Archaeologist_of_the_Future_is_Likely_to_be_a_Wo
man_Age_and_Gender_Patterns_in_European_Archaeology 
242 UNESCO, (2014), Gender Equality – Heritage and Creativity, available at: 
http://uis.unesco.org/sites/default/files/documents/gender-equality-heritage-and-creativity-2014-en_1.pdf . 
243 UNESCO, (2014), Gender Equality – Heritage and Creativity, available at: 
http://uis.unesco.org/sites/default/files/documents/gender-equality-heritage-and-creativity-2014-en_1.pdf . 

68 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
I n it ia t i ve s a nd  p ra c t ic es 

Across  Europe  different  initiatives  have  been  developed  to  promote  the  position  of 

women in these various cultural heritage and related professions. Research conducted 

identified  general  gender  policies,  as  well  as  initiative  targeting  the  museum  and 

archaeological areas within the cultural heritage sector. Other initiatives were also found 

which centre on providing better access for women to cultural heritage work. 

In  Sweden,  for  example,  the  Culture  and  Democracy  Ministry  promotes  the 

advancement  of  women  to  leadership  positions.  It  does  so  by  filling  board 

vacancies  and  top  decision-making  positions  in  central  and  decentralized  national 

services  with  women,  in  the  event  their  qualifications  are  equal  to  those  of  male 
applicants. 244 In France, the national statistics office  monitors  sectoral progress 
to  close  the  gender  gap  in  the  creative-cultural  fields.  These  gender  statistics  are 

created  in  regular  cycles  using  sex-disaggregated  data  and  are  published  annually  as 

open  data  in  the  Equality  Observatory.  Furthermore,  the  2016  Law  on  Freedom, 

Creation, Architecture and Heritage promotes the gender equality as well. The Culture 

Minister has fully integrated the gender perspective and set down concrete parity goals 

in  a  gender  equality  roadmap,  demonstrating  a  national  level  political  commitment 
to more gender equality in the cultural heritage and related sectors. 245 Compagnonnage, 
a  “network  for  on-the-job  transmission  of  knowledge  and  identities  and  a  training 

system for young people”, previously designated solely for men, is now open to women 
as well. 246 

In  2015,  the  Italian  Culture  Minister  reformed  the  management  of  Italy’s  most 

prestigious  art  heritage  institutions  and  hired  20  new  directors,  half  of  whom  were 

women.  At 

the 

same 

time,  organisation 

level 

initiatives 

such  as 

the 

“#8marzoalmuseo” (March 8 at the Museum) social-media campaign was launched in 

2017.  The  campaign  had  the  purpose  of  raising  awareness  of  women  artists  by 
celebrating their contribution to the country’s arts and cultural heritage. 247 

In  2013,  apprenticeship  workshops  were  organised  for  young  female  and  male 

artists,  educators,  archaeologists  and  designers  in  Cyprus.  The  aim  of  the  workshops 

was to enhance the craftsmanship of women lace makers of Lefkara and the importance 
of the intergenerational transmission of this heritage. 248 

In  the  UK,  different  initiatives  have  been  developed  throughout  time  in  the  cultural 

heritage areas. The Women Cultural Leaders East (WCLE) is a membership network 

for women in the museums, galleries and heritage sector, living or working in the East 
of England. 249  The Glasgow Women’s  Library  in  Scotland 250  supports  thousands  of 
women every year to improve their lives, including support and activities that tackle a 

244 Hertie School of Governance, (2017), Gender Equality Policy in the Arts, Culture and Media, available at: 
https://www.hertie-
school.org/fileadmin/2_Research/2_Research_directory/Research_projects/Women_in_media_culture/FINAL_Re
port_Women_in_arts_and_culture.pdf . 
245 Loi n° 2016-925 du 7 juillet 2016; https://wipolex.wipo.int/en/legislation/details/16755 . 
246 Culture Action Europe, (2016), Gender Inequalities in the Cultural Sector, 
https://cultureactioneurope.org/files/2016/05/Gender-Inequalities-in-the-Cultural-Sector.pdf . 
247 CN Traveler, (2017), Italy Celebrates International Women's Day With Free Museum Admission, available at: 
https://www.cntraveler.com/story/international-womens-day-italy-free-museum-admission . 
248 Culture Action Europe, (2016), Gender Inequalities in the Cultural Sector, 
https://cultureactioneurope.org/files/2016/05/Gender-Inequalities-in-the-Cultural-Sector.pdf . 
249  WCLE, (no date), WCLE Membership, available at: https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/QQCHFZX 
250 Glasgow Women’s Library, (no date), About Us, available at: https://womenslibrary.org.uk/about-us/ 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
wide range of issues from poverty and women’s health, sexuality and surviving violence. 
One of primary aims of the library is to empower women.  251 

An  international  initiative  in  the  area,  is  the  International  Conference  on  the 

Inclusive  Museum,  which  was  founded  in  2008.  This  conference brings  together  a 

community  of  museum  practitioners,  researchers  and  thinkers.  The  key  questions 

addressed by the conference are: “How can the institution of the museum become more 

inclusive?”; “In this time of fundamental social change, what is the role of the museum, 

both as a creature of that change, and perhaps also as an agent of change?” In 2013, 
the annual conference focused on gender equality. 252 This enabled members to publish 
more easily through two routes. First, network members could enter a world of journal 

publication  unlike  the  traditional  academic  publishing  forums—a  result  of  the 

responsive,  non-hierarchical,  and  constructive  nature  of  the  peer  review  process. The 

International  Journal  of  the  Inclusive  Museum provides  a  framework  for  double-blind 

peer review, enabling authors to publish in an academic journal of the highest standard. 

The  second  publication  medium  is  through  the Inclusive  Museum  Book  Imprint, 
publishing cutting edge books in print and digital formats. 253 

4.7 

Literature and publishing 

S ta te  o f a ffa i rs  a n d  dr iv e rs  

Within  the  literature  and  publishing  sector,  finding  European  level  data  that  is 

disaggregated  for  gender  is  difficult.  European-wide  statistics  on  women  writers  and 

publishers does not appear to be publically available. In France, on average 64% of the 

workers in the book sector were women between 2015 and 2017. France has also seen 
an increase in women in executive positions in publishing houses 254. Research conducted 
on  gender  equality  in  a  selection  of  other  Member  States  shows  that  in  Poland  for 

instance,  women  authors  do  better  than  their  counterparts  in  other  CCSs.  By  2017, 

Polish  women  writers  received  35%  of  the  literary  awards  for  two  main,  prestigious 

awards  for  Polish  authors.  For  each  of  the  countries  studied,  the  two  main  literature 

awards  and  the  last  21  recipients  were  examined.  This  same  study  showed  that  in 

France, women authors received 15% of the awards for the two more prestigious awards 

in the country. Italian women authors appears to fare best in this regard, with 55% of 
awards and prizes for the two key literature awards going to women by 2017. 255 

The  literature  found  on  the  state  of  gender  gaps  in  the  literature  and  publishing 

industries are fairly mixed. When looking at literature, many sources indicate that there 

are many woman  writers, but that these are not published to the same degree. Some 

sources  in  turn  indicate  that  precisely  because  there  are  many woman  writers,  these 

should  be  celebrated  and  the  progress  of  the  field  highlighted  more.  Some  say  there 

are  many  woman  writers,  but  a  skew  towards  male  writers  when  it  comes  to  winning 

prizes  or  critics  leading positions. As an  illustration, in  2001  it seems  that the writers 

251 The Art Newspaper, (2018), The library shows that grassroots museums can take a gutsy stand and 
contribute to global debates, available at: https://www.theartnewspaper.com/feature/glasgow-women-s-library-
a-museum-for-the-metoo-era . 
252https://www.theguardian.com/culture-professionals-network/culture-professionals-
blog/2013/may/22/museums-man-or-womans-world 
253https://on museums.com/about/history#block-2 
254 Publishingperspectives, (2019), International Women’s Day 2019: Progress Among Publishers in France, 
available at: https://publishingperspectives.com/2019/03/international-womens-day-2019-progress-among-
publishers-in-france/ . 
255 Hertie School of Governance, (2017), Gender Equality Policy in the Arts, Culture and Media, available at: 
https://www.hertie-
school.org/fileadmin/2_Research/2_Research_directory/Research_projects/Women_in_media_culture/FINAL_Re
port_Women_in_arts_and_culture.pdf. 

70 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
on best seller book lists for the New York Times were evenly split between the genders, 
but by 2016, the split had gone from 50%/50% to 48% of women in 2016. 256  

Other  forms  of  bias  relate  to  the  fact  that  men  and  women  publishers  alike  feel  that 

male writers appeal to both man and woman readers, while woman writers appeal more 

to  woman  readers.  Hence  there  is  a  bias  when  it  comes  to  the  content  of  literature. 

Anecdotal evidence from 2013 shows examples of women writers being asked to either 

balance or  skew the  characters  in books to have a  50:50 split  between men, or  more 
men than women characters so that the books have more widespread appeal 257. 

The  literature  and  writing  areas  of  the  sector  have  several  unique  expressions  of 

different types of gender bias. There is a subject matter or theme bias, where woman 

writers dominate specific sectors, and men others. For example, women dominate the 

historical, romance, and domestic genres, and are more evenly represented in murder 

mystery,  horror  and  paranormal  activity  genres.  Man  writers  in  turn  are  over-

represented  in  the  science  fiction  and  fantasy  genres,  political  and  spy  genre, 

adventure,  and  suspense  genres,  and  to  a  lesser  degree,  in  literary  and  mystery 
genres 258. Literature indicates that there is a devaluation of genres which are dominated 
by women, and that books written in the more female genres tend to be sold for lower 
prices 259. 

Looking  at  the  publishing  sector,  interviews  with  stakeholders  indicate  that  that  the 

publishing  branch  in  Europe  is  fairly  balanced  in  terms  of  the  gender  gap.  If 

anything,  publishing  is  starting  to  see  a reverse  trend,  where  there  are  more  women 

present in the sector. Reasons for this extend to factors such as the reader market being 

composed of more women than men, so that it makes intuitive sense to many publishing 

companies to have more women employees who can better serve the market. Women 

also  are  said  to  be  more  empathetic,  have  higher  emotional  intelligence  on  average, 

tend  to  be  better  communicators,  and  mature  mentally  and  emotionally  at  an  earlier 

age than men. In the case of publishing, these competences are quite desirable, so that 

women  enter  this  sector  more  easily,  and  as  they  enter  earlier,  build  up  experience 

more  quickly and are  more  likely  to reach  higher positions  in this  sector  compared  to 
other creative and  culture  industries 260. There  is an added sectoral  legacy  here  where 
women authors have been more common in history than woman artists for instance, or 

woman  architects.  The  sectoral  norms  and  working  practices  appear  to  be  more 

accepting of women in the field as a result.  

It  should  also  be  noted  however,  that  when  it  comes  to  executive  positions  in 

European  publishing  houses,  the  distribution  of  men  compared  to  women  was 

estimated to be 60% men to 40% women on average. Across other levels, there 
are equal numbers for men and women, or more women. 261 

The drivers of the gender gap are in many ways rooted in common, general drivers of 

gender disparity. In the case of the literature and publishing field, the following causes 

256 Cima, R., (2017), Bias, she wrote: the Gender Balance in the New York Times Best Sellers List, The Pudding, 
[online], available at: https://pudding.cool/2017/06/best-sellers/. 
257 Loewentheil, H., (2013), Can You Guess Which Industry is Now Experiencing a Gender Gap?, Mic.com, 
[online], available at: https://mic.com/articles/54303/can-you-guess-which-industry-is-now-experiencing-a-
gender-gap#.rF99EviUZ. 
258 Cima, R., (2017), Bias, she wrote: the Gender Balance in the New York Times Best Sellers List, The Pudding, 
[online], available at: https://pudding.cool/2017/06/best-sellers/ . 
259 Wienberg, D. and Kapelner, A., (2018), Comparing gender discrimination and inequality in indie and 
traditional publishing. PLoS ONE 13(4): e0195298. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal. pone.0195298. 
260 Information from expert interview. 
261 Information from expert interview. 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
and drivers are mentioned. One driver mentioned in literature is the notion that because 

there are comparatively more female writers, male writers are seen as rarer and more 

in demand. This together with other factors may explain why men are paid more. The 
sector is characterised by a gender pay gap. 262 The conception that men writers attract 
broader,  more  mixed  audiences  leads  to  a  certain  publishing  bias  towards  male 
writers. 263  Men  writers  are  typically  able  to  travel  more  and  to  engage  in  touring  and 
events to promote their books more easily than women writers. Women writers at the 

end  of  the  day  are  typically  more  involved  in  child  care  and  home  life  responsibilities 
which they can less easily leave for work related travel 264. 

Furthermore,  woman  writers  risk  compromising  their  appeal  and  saleability  if 

they speak  out  too much about sexism  in the  industry. Some  sources also mention 

the attitudes of women themselves. Publishing houses claim they simply tend to receive 

less manuscripts from women. One publishing house opened up its submission policy to 

an “open submission”  policy:  out  of 503 submission  received, 32%  were from  woman 
writers 265. 

Though  gender bias still  exists  in the  literature and publishing sector,  it is one  where 

the gender gap appears to be less prevalent compared to other CCSs. Reasons named 

include  the  fact  that  this  sector  requires  competences  which  on  average,  are  held  in 

high  amount  by  women.  Furthermore,  the  historical  legacy  of  the  sector  is  more 

accepting  towards  women  compared  to  other  CCSs.  However,  executive  positions  in 

publishing still show a bias towards more males in the highest leadership positions. 

I n it ia t i ve s a nd  p ra c t ic es 

Good practices on mainstreaming and improving the position of women across sectors 

have  been  identified  and  developed  by  the  European  Institute  for  Gender  Equality 

(EIGE). A selection of these good practices are described here to illustrate what sort of 

initiatives  are  implemented  at  the  moment  to  support  women  in  literature  and 

publishing.  Most  of  these  initiatives  seem  to  focus  on  promoting  awareness  and 

appreciation for women’s literary works, and on bringing women authors and publishers 

together,  thereby  helping  them  build  professional  networks  and  connections.  For 

instance, the German Journalistinnenbund is an association for women journalists with 

some  500  members.  The  association  gives  women  a  platform  to  come  together, 

supports women and helps to improve working conditions and career opportunities. In 

2001, the organisation started a mentoring programme, which by 2019 had supported 
some  70  female  journalists. 266  In  Belgium  in  2011,  the  Association  of  Professional 
Journalists (AJP), representing some 4000 journalists in German and French speaking 

Belgium  inventoried  the  position  of  women  in  the  French-language  media  in  the 

country.  These  results  were  published  within  a  larger  international  study,  the  Global 

Media  Monitoring  Project.  In  Spain,  to  promote  the  visibility  and  coverage  of  gender 

issues, CELEM, the Spanish coordinator of the European Women’s Lobby, developed a 

database of gender issue friendly journalists. These journalists were identified as they 

were more likely to take a gender-aware perspective when writing news stories, thereby 

262 LaHai, Z., (2018), Mind the Gender Gap: Inequality in the Publishing Industry, [online], available at: 
https://ooligan.pdx.edu/publishing-gender-gap/ . 
263 Weinberg, D. and Kapelner, A., (2018), Comparing gender discrimination and inequality in indie and 
traditional publishing, PLoS ONE 13(4): e0195298. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal. pone.0195298 . 
264 Macauley-Gierhart, H., (no date), The Complicated Reality Of Gender Bias In Writing And Publishing, 
[online], available at: https://writersedit.com/news/complicated-reality-gender-bias-writing-publishing/ . 
265 Loewentheil, H., (2013),  Can You Guess Which Industry is Now Experiencing a Gender Gap?, Mic.com, 
[online], available at: https://www.mic.com/articles/54303/can-you-guess-which-industry-is-now-experiencing-
a-gender-gap. 
266 EIGE, (2019), Mentoring for Germany’s women journalists, available at: https://eige.europa.eu/gender-
mainstreaming/good-practices/germany/mentoring-germanys-women-journalists . 

72 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
making the issue of gender equality more salient in the sector and Spanish society as 
a whole 267.  

Prizes and awards are also used to promote women writers. In The Netherlands, there 

is a special woman’s prize for instance which honours female writers who contribute to 

the  emancipation  and  awareness  of  women.  The  Opzij  Prize  for  Literature  (“opzij” 

meaning  move  over  in  Dutch),  entails  a  reward  of  5000EUR  for  female  writers  who 
win. 268 

For  publishing  in  particular,  an  initiative  is  currently  being  developed  for  young 

publishing  professionals  in  Brussels.  The  initiative  was  started  by  the  Federation  of 

European  Publishers  in  order  to  help  support  all  young professionals  in  publishing  by 

facilitating  networking  to  inspire  and  engage  participants.  The  reason  being  that  as 

there  are  many  women  in  publishing,  the  FEP  seeks  to  promote  a  good  balance  and 
career growth trajectory for both men and women in the field. 269  

Other common  examples  include  booksellers  or publishing houses  only publishing and 

selling  books  by  women,  celebrating  woman  authors,  and  more  recently,  highlighting 

gender  pay  gaps  in  the  sector.  Specific  examples  include  the  challenge  in  the  UK  to 

publish  only  female  authors,  which  was  met  with  mixed  reviews  in  2018,  and  the 

practice where women use male pseudonyms, which rather highlights a problem in the 

sector than being a viable practice to reduce the gender gap. It may also be necessary 

to  examine  practices  per  book  genre,  given  that  the  split  of  man  and  woman  writers 

varies per genre. 

4.8 

Architecture and design  

S ta te  o f a ffa i rs  a n d  dr iv e rs  

Architecture 

The  architecture  and  design  fields  are  classically  perceived  as  a  rather  hard  and 

technical field amongst the CCSs, and are viewed as a particularly masculine sector. In 

the  absence  of  publically  available  data  which  compares  the  proportion  of  men  and 

women within the architect and design field, this report consults the statistics collected 

by the Architects Council of Europe. In 2018, the Architects’ Council of Europe published 
a  sector  report  in  Europe 270.  This  report  indicated  that  there  were  some  562.000 
architects active in Europe. 

Year 

2008 

2018 

Women architects 

Men architects 

168.000 

37,09% 

219.000 

38,97% 

285.000 

62,91 

343.000 

61,03% 

Source: Architects’ Council of Europe (ACE), 2018. 

267 EIGE, (2019), A database of gender aware journalists, available at: https://eige.europa.eu/gender-
mainstreaming/good-practices/spain/database-gender-aware-journalists . 
268 Opzij.nl, (2017), Literatuurprijs, available at: https://www.opzij.nl/over-opzij/literatuurprijs 
269 Federatiion of European Publishers, (no date), Young Publishing Professionals in Brussels #YPPiB first edition 
2019, available at: https://fep-fee.eu/YOUNG-PUBLISHING-PROFESSIONALS-IN . 
270 Architects’Council ofEurope, (2018), THE ARCHITECTURAL PROFESSION IN EUROPE 2018 – Sector study, 
available at: https://www.ace-
cae.eu/fileadmin/New_Upload/7._Publications/Sector_Study/2018/2018__ACE_Report_EN_FN.pdf . 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
Looking  at  the  state  of  affairs  in  the  architecture  sector  in  Europe, woman  architects 

form  the  majority  in  the  younger  age  groups.  Of  the  architects  in  their  30s,  53% 

are women, compared with 32% of architects in their 50s. Gender discrimination clearly 

persists in the field of architecture. The sector study also shows that up to the age of 

45,  there  tends  to  be  more  women  architects  practicing  in  Europe  when  compared  to 
men.  After  this  age  point  however,  men  start  to  outnumber  women 271.  When  leaving 
education, the proportions of man and woman architects are relatively equal. However 

when  entering  the  professional  field,  women  appear  to  face  more  obstacles.  These 

obstacles  include  the  glass  ceiling,  the  gender  pay  gap,  cat  calls  at  construction  and 

planning  sites,  sexual  harassment,  lack  of  mentors,  and  a  general  gender  bias  in  the 
working environments towards men. 272 

Similar  findings  are  reflected  in  studies  conducted  by  the  American  Institute  for 

Architects,  suggesting  that  the  under  representation  of  women,  and  the  inverse 

relationship between age and number of women in the sector, suggest these are cross-

continental,  sectoral  dynamics  at  play.  Diversity  in  general  appears  to  be  lacking  in 

architecture.  A  recent  study  by  the  American  Institute  of  Architects  (AIA)  in  2018 

surveyed  over  14,000  architects.  This  particular  survey  examined  gender,  sexual 

orientation and race. The results showed that of men and women practicing architecture, 

the  vast  majority  (over  70%)  were  white.  As  architects  get  older,  the  over-

representation of white men rises sharply according to this same survey; by the age of 
75 or older, over 80% of architects are white men 273. 

The  statistics  from  both the  European  and  American  sectors  suggest  that  something 

prevents women from remaining in the architectural field; women tend to leave 

the field as they get older, which in turn further suggests that women are less present 

in decision-making and leadership positions. Looking at leadership roles in architecture 

firms, a study  on  the  100  largest architecture firms  in Europe  showed that only three 

firms had female CEOs. All three of these companies were Scandinavian: Tengbom and 
White Arkitekter of Sweden, and Henning Larsen of Denmark all have female CEOs 274. 
This same study points to thee fact that 10% of the highest leadership positions in these 

top 100 arhiteture firms are held by women, and if one looks a tier below this, at board 

members,  principals,  senior  partners  and  directors,  women  make  up  20%.  It  appears 

that  as  positions  become  more  prestitgious  and  important,  less  women  hold  them  in 

this sector. 

The 2018 survey by the ACE also illustrates that a gender pay gap also exists cross all 
types  of  employment  in  the  sector. 275  Across  jobs,  including  sole  principle  architects, 
partners and directors of architectural bureaus, private practice architects, government 

architects,  and  freelance  architects  all  show  the  same  patterns  of  men  earning  more 

than women. Information from stakeholder interviews also shows that there is further 

gendering in the types of architecture which women and men engage in. While men are 

271 Architects’ Council of Europe, (2018), THE ARCHITECTURAL PROFESSION IN EUROPE 2018 – Sector study, 
available at: https://www.ace-
cae.eu/fileadmin/New_Upload/7._Publications/Sector_Study/2018/2018__ACE_Report_EN_FN.pdf . 
272 KM&A, (no date), Redesigning the Culture of Architecture: Female Architects Take On Sexual Harassment 
and Gender Discrimination, [online], available: https://lawkm.com/redesigning-the-culture-of-architecture-
female-architects-take-on-sexual-harassment-and-gender-discrimination/. 
273 Lee, L., (2018), The 2018 Equity in Architecture Survey Encourages Industry Soul-Searching, Metropolis, 
[online], available at:  https://www.metropolismag.com/architecture/2018-equity-architecture-survey-
results/pic/49185/ . 
274 Dezeen, (2017), Survey of top architecture firms reveals "quite shocking" lack of gender diversity at senior 
levels, https://www.dezeen.com/2017/11/16/survey-leading-architecture-firms-reveals-shocking-lack-gender-
diversity-senior-levels/ . 
275 Architects’ Council of Europe, (2018), THE ARCHITECTURAL PROFESSION IN EUROPE 2018 – Sector study, 
available at: https://www.ace-
cae.eu/fileadmin/New_Upload/7._Publications/Sector_Study/2018/2018__ACE_Report_EN_FN.pdf . 

74 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
often charged with designing larger buildings, interior design in turn is seen as the remit 
of female architects and designers. 276  

There are a number of drivers which lead to these different forms of gender gaps in the 

field  of  architecture  and  design.  Some  of  these  drivers  and  causes  are  related  to  one 

another  and  may  interact.  In  the  architecture  sector  for  example,  both  people  in  and 
outside of the industry have a certain stereotypical expectation of an architect. 277 This 
stereotype in turn means that architects hire fellow individuals who fit that expectation. 

This and other drivers are explained in more detail below. 

Man stereotype: the man stereotype appears to be persistent in the architecture field. 

While  this  no  doubt  varies  across  countries,  there  is  not  much  diversity  in  terms  of 

gender.  The  stereotyping  linked  with  this  underrepresentation  persists,  with  women 

architects  reporting  that  they  are  more  often  not  seen  as  the  “real”  architect.  From 

customers and clients there appears to be a relatively common perception that women 
are rarely the “main architect”. 278 The reasons for this need to be explored further, but 
as  a  starting  point,  the  technical  and  quantitative  nature  of  the  work,  as  well  as  the 

reigning  perception  of  a  typical  architect,  appear  to  contribute  to  the  gender 

discrimination experienced by women architects. 

When it comes to hiring new employees or colleagues, stereotypes and (gendered) 

expectations  play  a  significant  role.  Stereotypes  and  the  “birds  of  a  feather,  flock 

together”  phenomenon  amongst  hirers  and  recruiters  plays  a  role.  This  phenomenon 

entails that people hiring new people hire similar types to themselves; when these are 
men, there is a stronger tendency to hire fellow men for instance. 279  

The  norms  and  working  habits  of  the  cultural  and  creative  sectors  as  a  whole  can 
also contribute to the gender gaps observed. 280 The architecture and design fields are 
characterised  by  similar  norms  and  working  practices;  which  have  been  identified  by 

interviewed  experts  as  being  highly  competitive,  requiring  creativity  and  innovation, 

with  demanding  working  hours,  and  work  practices  not  conducive  to  a  good  work-life 
balance. 281  Examples  include  informal  networking  practices  and  late  night  meetings. 
These working practices and norms in the industry are generally not conducive to home 

and  care  responsibilities.  As  these  responsibilities  are  more  often  carried  by  women, 

this  means  that  working  and  staying  in  the  field  is  on  average,  more  challenging  to 

women.   

Concretely,  one  driver  for  the  gender  gaps  in  the  sectors  is  motherhood.  Leaving 

architecture to have children is said to be especially challenging because getting back 

in as a mother is so difficult. The hard won progress in growing through the career levels 

is  difficult  to  reclaim  according  to  women  architects  who  wish  to  start  working  again 
after  the  birth,  and  while  raising  children. 282  Having  left  the  job  temporarily  for 
motherhood,  it  becomes  very  problematic  to  re-enter  the  field.  As  it  is  a  very 

competitive, demanding, and fast-paced sector, once a woman leaves, it becomes very 

difficult to get back in and to her former professional level. 

276 Information from expert interviews. 
277 Information from expert interview. 
278 Information from expert interview. 
279 Information from expert interview. 
280 Miller, L., (2016), Gender and the Artist Archetype: Understanding Gender Inequality in Artistic Careers, 
Sociology Compass 10/2 (2016), 119–131, 10.1111/soc4.12350. 
281 Mileston, K., (2016), ‘Northernness’, gender and Manchester’s creative industries, Journal for Cultural 
Research, Volume 20, 2016 - Issue 1. 
282 Information from expert interview. 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
Certain individual level characteristics amongst men and women also contribute to 

this gendered nature of this sector. According to literature and stakeholder interviews, 

women,  on  a  personal  level,  are  more  prone  to  show  more  risk-averse  behaviour,  be 
less outspoken, and work well in a group context, fostering collaboration 283. Women are 
also,  on  average,  more  likely  to  have  less  confidence  compared  to  men  in  their 

capabilities  and  work,  something  related  to  a  tendency  to  have  a  more  realistic 
estimation  of  their  own  capacities. 284  This,  together  with  the  fact  that  women  usually 
have  fewer networks  of fellow  professionals and mentors,  means there are  fewer role 
models around to demonstrate and support and cooperate with a woman. 285  

Men in contrast, tend to work more individually, and this perhaps fits in more with the 

classic  image  of  a  creative  way  of  working:  individually,  working  towards  a  project 
deadline to produce a creative output. 286 Men usually have larger and more established 
professional  networks  with  whom  to  socialise,  swap  industry  insights,  advice,  and 

generally  set-up  collaboration  with.  There  are  of  course  exceptions  to  all  these 

tendencies,  but  these  are  general  trends  which  have  been  documented  in  literature 

across  sectors  when  it  comes  to  men  and  women.  These  tendencies  interact  with  the 

features of the architecture and design fields.  

A final important driver in this field is that most men do not think or know that there is 
a gender pay gap in the field. 287 Remedying a problem that many do not feel exists is 
an added challenge. Therefore, making the phenomenon visible it a key step. 

Design 

Design  is  also  a  relatively  heterogeneous  field,  including  fashion  design,  graphic 
design,  and  interior  design  for  instance. 288  Finding  statistics  which  reflect  the  entire 
sector and the representation of women is therefore somewhat difficult. Based on other 

sources  of  infromation,  including  literature  and  expert  interviews,  it  appears  that  the 

design field  is a  fairly gendered sector. Design  is  seen as  functional  in  its essence, 

where  “functional”  is  a  relatively  gendered  term  within  the  CCSs.  Functional  is  often 

posited in opposition to creative pieces which are  camp or kitschy, and not functional. 
The latter is often seen as more the domain of woman designers. 289  

According to stakeholders interviewed and literature, there are still not many women in 
the  design  fields  which  are  seen  as  “man  oriented”. 290  Such  fields  include  the 
harder,  more  technical  fields  such  as  auto  design,  ICT  design,  game  design,  and 

architecture.  More  typical  female  design  areas  include  working  with  softer  materials, 
such as fabric and fashion and furniture. 291  

On  the  other  hand,  people  in the sector  indicate that women often do not apply to 

jobs  in  the  design  field.  One  of  the  reasons  for  this,  however,  is  that  the  prejudices 

which people in and out of the sector have towards women is worse for the design sector 

283 Information from expert interview. 
284 McKinsey&Copmany, (2013), Women Matter – Gender diversity in top management: moving corporate 
culture, moving boundaries, McKinsey & Company, Paris. 
285 Similarities and Differences Across the Factors Associated with Women’s Self-employment Preference in the 
Nordic Countries - PIA ARENIUS HEC Lausanne, University of Lausanne, Switzerland & ANNE KOVALAINEN Turku 
School of Economics and Business Administration, Finland, 2006. 
286 Information from expert interview. 
287 Information from expert interview. 
288 UNESCO, (no date), What do we mean by Cultural and Creative Industries?, [online], available at: 
https://en.unesco.org/creativity/sites/creativity/files/digital-
library/What%20Do%20We%20Mean%20by%20CCI.PDF . 
289 Information from interviews 
290 Information from interviews 
291 Niiranen, S., and Hilmola, A., (2016), Female Technology Education Teachers’ Experiences of Finnish Craft 
Education, Design and Technology Education: An International Journal 21.2. 

76 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
than other creative and cultural sectors. The expectations regarding the type of design 

which  men  and  women  engage  with  are  more  gendered,  and  roles  within  design  are 
more deeply entrenched 292. 

Gender  gaps  such  as  the  pay  gap,  lack  of  access  to  decision-making  and  leadership 

skills,  sexual  harassment,  access  to  resources  and  the  market,  all  hold  for 
thearchitecture and design field. 293 In the UK for example, there are proportionally more 
woman  than  man  graduates  from  design  courses.  Women  outnumber  men  during  the 
educational  stage,  with  70%  of  design  graduates  being  women  in  2018  in  the  UK. 294 
Despite  this,  11%  of  leadership  roles  were  held  by  women  in  the  design  sector. 295 
Women  are  more  reluctant  to  enter  certain  fields  as  a  result  of  the  gendered  roles  in 

this  sector  in  particular.  In  architecture  and  design  as  in  other  cultural  sectors,  there 
are strong stereotypes and gendered expectations. 296  

Looking at the causes  of these  gender gaps  in  design,  it  is  important  to  bear in  mind 

that  societies  still  have  underlying  expectation  on  what  men  typically  do  and  what 

women do or are expected to do. Likewise, it is noted that what men produce is typically 

valued more compared to what women do. This is a historical legacy, consider doctors 

and  nurses,  managers  and  secretaries,  fashion  design  and  sowing.  Though  these 

gendered jobs are changing, they still exist. This is no less the case in the cultural and 

creative  sector.  Again,  here  the  gendered  jobs  are  also  changing,  especially  amongst 

younger women. 

Gender  pay  gaps  are  apparent  in  this  sector  for  various  reasons.  The  work  of woman 

architects and designers tends to be gendered and valued less compared to the outputs 

of man architects and designers. This usually translates to being paid less well. Added 

to this is the fact that women are less likely to speak up and ask for more salary, and 

to negotiate to the same degree as men do. Women still run into gender stereotyping 

and biases. In design for instance, some women provide anecdotal evidence that they 

need to know about all aspects of their design job, and often need to know more than 

their counterparts to be taken seriously. While this is not limited to the design sector, 
it is something which women in design encounter. 297 

In architecture and design, the big tall houses, museums, and other prestigious building 

projects are usually reserved for men. Women do more interior design. These are very 
much tied to the gendered expectation of female talents. 298 Due to this, there is a lack 
of woman role models, and when there are no women in leadership roles, managers or 

directors,  the  higher  a  woman  grows  in  an  organisation,  the  more  quickly  it  starts  to 

feel like a boys club. Doubts arise as to whether childcare responsibilities have led other 

women to leave, whether there is enough interest in investing in women to grow within 
the enterprise, etc. 299  

292 Information from interviews. 
293 Information from interviews. 
294 Designweek.co.uk, (2018), Gender equality design group Kerning the Gap expands across UK, [online], 
available at: https://www.designweek.co.uk/issues/5-11-november-2018/gender-equality-design-group-
kerning-the-gap-expands-across-uk/ . 
295 Banks, T., (2018), The most important issues for female designers in 2018 and how to address them, Design 
Week, [online], available at: https://www.designweek.co.uk/issues/5-11-march-2018/design-women-
international-womens-day-2018/ . 
296 Information from interviews. 
297 Budds, D., (2018), 4 Top Female Designers On The Design Industry’s Gender Problem, [online], available at: 
https://www.fastcompany.com/90125698/4-top-female-designers-on-the-industrys-gender-problem. 
298 Information from several expert interviews. 
299 Information from several expert interviews. 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
I n it it ia tv es  a n d  pra ct i ce s  i n  th e s e cto r 

Architecture 

Several  practices  mentioned  in  literature  include  reporting  on  gender  pay  gaps  in 

bureaus,  and  helping  women  apply  for  promotions  with  career  development  mentors 

and coaches.  Furthermore, setting up measures to support a better work-life balance, 

notably  for  mothers  are  also  cited.  For  instance,  assisting  mothers  returning  to  work 

from maternity leave with “baby bonusses” and offering flexible working options (such 
as  working  from  home) 300  are  all  mentioned.  As  a  measure  to  address  the  gender 
balance,  many  initiatives  in  the  field  focus  on  promoting  networking  and  connections 

between  women  in  the  sector,  to  compensate  for  the  lower  levels  of  professional 

networks women tend to have access to.  
•  One  such  example  is  the  ReSITE  conference  for  women  in  architecture 301:  this 
conference  takes  place  in  different  European  cities  and  is  aimed  specifically  at 

women, to promote the visibility of fellow women in the field, and to promote idea 

exchange and the building of personal networks. 

•  Another  example  of  initiatives  promoting  gender  is  the  American  Architectural 
Record: Women in Architecture Forum & Awards: Architectural Record are now 

in their fifth year of awards highlighting the contributions of women in architecture 

in  the  United  States  of  America.  Their  November  forum  saw  awards  presented  to 

Elizabeth  Diller,  Lisa  Iwamoto,  Peggy  Deamer,  Upali  Nanda,  and  Ellen  Dunham-

Jones,  across  categories  that  recognise  achievements  across  the  fields  of 
architectural practice, education, and activism. 302 

A  key  issue, as  cited  in the section on  drivers,  is that many  men  in  the  sector  do  not 

consider there to be a gender gap in the sector. This makes it difficult to even begin to 

initiative policies to better support women. 
• 

In this sense, the fact that the ACE examines gender representation in its annual 

sectoral reports on the prevalence of women in the sector, is a good practice. In 

highlighting  the  numerical  imbalance  of  men  and  women  in  the  sector,  the  gender 

gaps are made visible to the sector at large.  

•  The ACE has also set up a Women in Architecture Working Group, to address this 

issue as well. 

•  Other steps to improve the visibility of gender gaps in include the United Kingdom’s 
Government Equalities Office policy on pay gap reporting. This office recently 

released  a  comprehensive  report  on  gender  pay  gaps across  sectors,  including  the 

architectural  sector.  The  report  included specific  instructions  on  calculations and 

accounted  for  all  aspects  of  compensation.  There  is  also  a  law  in  place  in  the  UK 

where architecture firms above a certain revenue threshold must communicate and 

make public the gender pay gaps in their enterprises. 

Interesting  to  note  is  that  the  survey amongst  architects  in  the  UK  conducted  by  the 

Architects’  Journal  also  posed  questions  on  which  practices  would  be  most  useful  to 

reduce the gender gap in the field. The perceptions of men and women were collected 

for a series of measures. These responses suggest that men are less aware of implicit 

biases  which  play  a  role  in  the  hiring  and  training  process;  men  have  more  faith  in 

measuers  to  encourage  salary  negotiations,  structured  interviews,  and  skill-based 

300 Jessel, E., (2019), Women in Architecture: Mind the pay gap, Architects’Journal, [online], available at: 
https://www.architectsjournal.co.uk/news/women-in-architecture-mind-the-pay-gap/10039915.article . 
301 https://www.resite.org/stories/resite-to-rebalance-gender-inequality-in-architecture-and-design  
302 Architecture Review, (2018), Initiatives promoting gender equality in architecture, [online], 
https://www.architectural-review.com/awards/women-in-architecture/initiatives-promoting-gender-equality-in-
architecture/10037345.article . 

78 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
assessments than women. Women in turn favour more female role models and actively 
including more women in short lists. 303 

Actions to address the gender gap 

Men 

Women 

Including  multiple  women  on  shortlists  of  recruitment  and 

48% 

54% 

promotion 

Use skills-based assessment tasks in recruitment 

Use structured interviews for recruitment and promotions 

Encourage salary negotiations by showing salary ranges 

45% 

52% 

32% 

Introduce  transparency  to  promotion,  pay,  and  reward 

43% 

35% 

37% 

34% 

39% 

processes 

Appoint diversity managers and/or diversity task forces. 

20% 

25% 

Source: Architects’ Journal, 2018. 

Design 

The  practices  which  could  help  in  the  field  of  design  do  not  substantially  differ  from 

other sectors. The  literature  cites the  following types  of measures as  being useful  for 

addressing the gender gap in the design sector: 

• 
Ensuring equal recruitment and promotional pathways for both men and women, 
•  Maternity  and  flexible  working:  this  is  easier  for  larger  enterprises  to  achieve 
than  for  smaller  ones,  but  something  worth  pursuing  nonetheless.  In  one  UK 

enterprise,  O  Street  (based  in  London  and  Glasgow),  this  is  a  priority.  Many 

employees  work  flexibly  as  well  to  combine  work  with  home  responsibilities. 

This policy is tied to needing more women in leadership positions in the design 

sector. Not only do more balanced teams lead to more creativity and efficiency 

across  levels  of  an  organisation,  the  role  model  effect  is  important  for  other 
women in the design sector. 304 This is especially true for higher level positions 
where women are typically strongly underrepresented.  

• 

Introducing  more  female  role  models  and  increasing  the  visibility  of  women: 

initiatives on this include the International Gender Design Network, set up 

in 2013 by experts from the field in Germany and the USA, and the iphiGenia 
Gender  Design  Award, 305  which  celebrates  international  female  designers  to 
promote visibility and role models in the sector. These awards are affiliated with 

the International Gender Design Network. 

4.9 

Artistic crafts 

S ta te  o f a ffa i rs  a n d  dr iv e rs  

The  crafts  sector  is  characterised  by  great  diversity  and  heterogeneity.  A  shared, 

universal  definition  of  artistic  crafts  is  difficult  to  establish  across  countries.  This  has 

something  to  do  with  the  fact  that  different  countries  perceive  and  define  crafts 

differently as well. Artistic crafts are said to be more of a form of producing art, a skill, 

where  the  emphasis  of  the  creative  piece  is  on  the  skill  which  went  into  making  it. 

Broadly speaking, the artistic crafts involve a wide range of activities involving making 

things with one’s own hands.  

303 Architects’ Journal, (2017), Women in Architecture survey reveals widening gender pay gap, available: 
https://www.architectsjournal.co.uk/news/women-in-architecture-survey-reveals-widening-gender-pay-
gap/10017147.article . 
304 Banks, T., (2018), The most important issues for female designers in 2018 and how to address them, Design 
Week, [online], available at: https://www.designweek.co.uk/issues/5-11-march-2018/design-women-
international-womens-day-2018/ . 
305 http://www.iphigenia.genderdesign.org/ . 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
This definition still leaves much room for different interpretation, and this is evident in 

the attitude towards crafts across countries. France appears to also celebrate the artistic 

and historical aspect of crafts, whilst The Netherlands and Romania frame crafts more 
broadly, in terms of skills which can be learnt and also used on the labour market. 306  

Turning to the status quo of women in the artistic crafts sector, a first note to make is 

that  internationally  comparable  data  on  the  sector  and  the  gender  distribution  of  its 

workers,  does  not  appear  to  be  publicly  available.  Eurostat  does  collect  statistics  on 

cultural employment, and indeed, releases a methodological note on how those statistics 
are constructed. 307 Despite this, recent data at a more detailed level, on artistic crafts 
specifically, does not appear to be accessible. 

The  World  Crafts  Council,  based  in  Ireland,  indicates  that  while  in  many  cultural  and 

creative  sectors  women  are  in  a  minority,  this  is  not  the  case  for  the  artistic  crafts 

sector. Crafts are often seen as the more feminine, softer side of design. Design 

is characterised by high proportions of men, especially in leadership roles. This situation 

is  reversed  in  the  crafts  sector,  where  some  75%  of  decision-making  and  leadership 
roles  are  held  by  women. 308  The  issue  now  is  to  try  to  balance  the  representation  of 
genders in this field. In the absence of data, other indicators further reflect the gendered 

nature of the field; the European Artistic Craft Days, held in 2018, 69% of visitors were 
women. The average age was 49 years and 22% of visitors came with children. 309  

The  crafts  sector  is  seen  as  quite  a  feminine  sector  in  general,  and  not  taken  as 

seriously as design or visual arts due to an existing association that crafts belong 
to a less highbrow sector and are “less artistic”. 310 Different types of artistic crafts exist, 
and  within  the  sector,  certain  crafts  are  also  seen  as  more  feminine,  while  some  are 
seen  as  more  masculine. 311  The  gendering  of  different  types  of  crafts  is  rooted  in  the 
origins of those sectors: crafts involving fabrics, types of sowing, knitting, crochet, 
pottery and ceramics, and others are generally seen as more feminine. 312 The crafts are 
often produced locally, and have connection with cultural traditions. Craft workers are 

often not considered to the same degree as other cultural and creative workers, and are 
often less valued as a creative or cultural form. 313 While the sector as a whole has high 
proportions of women, it is still subject to gender gaps in the form of less appreciation 

and  societal  value  of  the  works  produced,  which  ties  to  less  pay,  and  given  the 

perception  of  the  sector  as  not  quite  being  art,  there  is  a  struggle  to  access  the  art 

market in this sector as well. 

The  reasons  for  this  high  level  of  woman  representation  in  this  sector  may  be  the 

accessibility of materials, or precisely the fact that this is an area wherein less men are 

active, allowing room for more women. One motivation for this gendered association is 

rooted  in  the  historical  position  of  women  in  a  patriarchal,  Western  society,  who 

were used to working with certain types of materials. It was a matter of profession and 

306 European Policy Brief (2016), Towards a Craft Revival: Recalibrating Social, Cultural, Economic and 
Technological Dynamics, conducted by RICHES “RENEWAL, INNOVATION & CHANGE: HERITAGE AND EUROPEAN 
SOCIETY”. 
307 Eurostat, (2018), Guide to Eurostat culture statistics, Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union 
308 Information from interviews. 
309 World Craft Council Europe, and The Instittut National des Métitiers d’Art – inma, (2018), European Aristic 
Crafts Days 2018, available at: https://wcc-europe.org/european-artistic-craft-days/ . 
310 Tyson, A., (2016), In resisting gendered hierarchies of practice in the art world, [online], 
http://dangerouswomenproject.org/2016/07/20/art-vs-crafts/ . 
311 Information from interviews. 
312 Tyson, A., (2016), In resisting gendered hierarchies of practice in the art world, [online], 
http://dangerouswomenproject.org/2016/07/20/art-vs-crafts/ . 
313 Hughes, C., 92012), Gender, craft labour and the creative sector, International Journal of Cultural Policy, Vol. 
18, No. 4, September 2012, 439–454 . 

80 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
economic income for women throughout history, and in some periods, such as Victorian 

England, working with fabrics and making needlepoint were the types of crafts deemed 

acceptable  for  women  of  standing.  This  in  turn  has  contributed  to  the  gendered 

perception  of  working  with  fabrics,  other  (domestic)  materials,  and  using  techniques 
such as knitting, needling, weaving, and crocheting for example. 314  

Though  crafts  are  not  limited  to  such  materials  and  techniques,  and  also  includes  for 

instance,  technical  crafts,  woodworking  and  furniture  design,  welding  and  jewellery 
making, some of these types of crafts are typically seen as more masculine. 315 Again, 
literature posits that there may be a historical legacy at work here, where crafts such 

as  woodworking  and  metallurgy  required  strength  and  were  not  suitable  to  the  “soft 
hands” of women. 316 

In  more  modern  society,  the  drivers  for  the  perception  of  the  crafts  sector  are 

comparable to some of the drivers encountered in the design sector. The expectations 

which  the  sector  and  society  as  a  whole  have  towards  women’s  capacities  regarding 

harder  areas  of  design  are  part  of  what  makes  the  design  sector  quite  gendered  and 

less accessible to women. The softer areas of crafts are also not taken as seriously by 

the  creative  community  due  in  part  to  their  domestic  origins,  both  in  terms  of  the 
location in which they are made and materials used. 317 

The medium used plays a role in how the crafts sector is produced. While crafts in many 

ways  share  commonalities  with  visual  art,  the  fact  that  a  depiction  is  captured  using 

fabric as opposed to say, paint, changes the appreciation which people hold for it. The 
materials themselves seem gendered in the crafts sector. 318 

I n it ia t i ve s a nd  p ra c t ic es 

Initiatives which have been set up in the crafts sector focus on celebrating woman artists 

and  promoting  them  and  the  value  of  their  work.  Initiatives  include  trainings  to  help 

craftsmen  and  women  to  promote  themselves  and  sell  their  work  better  (given  that 

visibility is an issue for both men and women in the sector). The online platform Mad’In 

Europe  also  promotes  and  celebrates  crafts  women  from  all  over  Europe,  promoting 

visibility and the narrative behind creative pieces. 

The  World  Crafts  Council  seeks  to  increase  the  awareness  and  appreciation  for  the 

artistic  crafts,  their history, and their  value to contemporary  society. In  this way,  the 

council  seeks  to  address  the  gender  gap  where  the  sector  is  seen  as  less  valued  in 
society and as a “softer” less serious form of art and expression. 319 Initiatives such as 
the  European  Artistic  Crafts  Days  can  help  to  promote  the  artistic  crafts,  and  indeed 

such initiatives which seek to emphasise and promote the crafts sector were the main 

types of measures and practices identified in this study. 

314 Pook, L., (2018), Why the art world is finally waking up to the power of female craft skills, [online], 
https://www.stylist.co.uk/life/womens-textiles-crafts-female-skills-sexism-not-seen-as-art-anni-albers-
tate/233457 . 
315 Niiranen, S., and Hilmola, A., (2016), Female Technology Education Teachers’ Experiences of Finnish Craft 
Education, Design and Technology Education: An International Journal 21.2. 
316 Alamari, B., (2015), What Happens When Women Dominate Traditional Craft Industries: The Omani Case, 
SAGE Open, April-June 2015: 1–8. 
317 Information from expert interview. 
318 Niiranen, S., and Hilmola, A., (2016), Female Technology Education Teachers’ Experiences of Finnish Craft 
Education, Design and Technology Education: An International Journal 21.2. 
319 The World Craft Council, ( no date), WCC Europe, [online], available at: 
https://www.wccinternational.org/europe  

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
4.10 

Cultural education 

Cultural  education  is  a  field  which  cuts  across  all  other  cultural  and  creative  sectors. 

Distinctions  can  be  made  between  education  given  in  the  visual  arts,  dance,  music, 

drama, and cultural heritage  education  for example.  Moreover,  cultural  education can 

imply education inside and outside of schools. A clear definition of “cultural education” 

is  therefore  difficult  to  establish.  However,  for  the  purpose  of  this  analysis,  cultural 

education can be described as an activity where pupils or participants are taught about 

culture  by  being  actively  involved  and/or  making  something  themselves.  They  learn 

from watching and listening to cultural expressions, practice culture and creative arts, 

from  visiting  culture,  and  from  reading  about  and  reflecting  on culture  an  art  in their 

own work and that of others. Pupils and participants develop cultural competences and 

talents through cultural education. They learn about culture as a phenomenon and as a 

means  of  expression;  they  develop  cultural  skills  and  an  open  attitude  towards 
culture. 320 

S ta te  o f a ffa i rs  a n d  dr iv e rs  

Data from Eurostat in 2016 and 2017 shows an overrepresentation of women in primary 

and  secondary  education  in  all  countries  across  the  European  Union,  while  men  are 

better represented at post-secondary and tertiary education levels. In the Netherlands 

for  example,  statistics  from  the  education  agency,  DUO,  indicate  that  in  secondary 

education  (voortgezet  onderwijs  in  Dutch)  women  outnumber  men  by  about  2  to  1 
across  all  the  arts  and  culture  subjects. 321  This  finding  was  also  echoed  by  experts 
interviewed, implying that cultural education is an area dominated by women instead of 

men.  

However, as with other CCSs, the proportion of women in teaching roles declines as the 

level  of  teaching  ascends.  Women  are  over-representated  in  primary  and  secondary 

education within CCSs as well as other disciplines. According to Eurostate data, in 2015, 
women accounted for 72.4% of teachers 322. In 2014, 84.7% of primary school teachers 
and 64%  of secondary  school teacher were  women 323. Men however, tend  to be  more 
represented within tertiary level education, including in courses on culture and the arts. 

Moreover,  starting  in  the  1960s,  there  was  an  enormous  increase  in  women  teaching 
and  studying  in  art  schools  in  the  United  States  and  Europe. 324  Today  the  majority  of 
pupils  enrolled  in  university  are  women.  There  appears  to  be  a  somewhat  gendered 

distribution in terms of subject-matter taught as well. Women tend to be more active in 

teaching the softer subjects (languages, art, etc.), while men tend to be more active in 

the  harder  subjects  (maths,  the  natural  sciences,  etc.).  This  is  linked  to  the  societal 
appreciation  and  valuation  of  these  different  types  of fields  and  occupations. 325 
Cultural and creative sectors are often valued as less produtive and less stable career 

choices for students.  

A study commissioned by Microsoft and conducted by the London School of Economics 

investigated  the  interest  of  girls  in  STEM  (Science,  Technology,  Engineering  and 

Mathematics) fields. This study found that one of the key issues at work is the fact that 

320 LKCA, ( no date), Cultuureducatie, available at: https://www.lkca.nl/artikelen/cultuureducatie . 
321 Dienst Uitvoering Onderwijs, (2019), 03. Lesgevend personeel in het vo (in personen), available at: 
https://duo.nl/open_onderwijsdata/databestanden/vo/onderwijspersoneel/vo-personeel3.jsp . 
322 Eurostat, (2017), Teachers in the EU, available at: https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/web/products-eurostat-
news/-/EDN-20171004-1?inheritRedirect=true . 
323 Eurostat, (2016), Women teachers largely over-represented in primary education in the EUWomen teachers 
largely over-represented in primary education in the EU, available at: 
https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/documents/2995521/7672738/3-04102016-BP-EN.pdf/9f0d2d04-211a-487d-
87c3-0a5f7d6b22ce . 
324  Khan Academy, (2019), A Brief History of Women in Art, available at: 
https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/art-history-basics/tools-understanding-art/a/a-brief-history-of-
women-in-art. 
325 Information from expert interview. 

82 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
man and woman students keep making different career choices. Students adapt to fit in 

with social expectations, and gender stereotypes and gender roles form a part of these 

expectations. These expectations and stereotypes, and the lack of (female) role models 
continue  to  direct  girls’  career  choices  away  from  STEM  fields. 326  This  points  to  the 
importance  of  societal  perceptions  and  appreciation  of  certain  fields  and  sectors  over 

others, and how this contributes to gendering certain sectors and occupations. Looking 

at  Germany  for  example,  there  is  a  different  attitude  towards  culture  and  creative 

subjects.  These  disciplines  are  much  more  accepted  in  society  and  acknowledged  as 
important. 327 

There are a number of factors that are driving the current state of affairs. Firstly, there 

are divisions in different types of culture, with “high” culture being for the middle and 

upper classes, and “pop” culture being seen as something enjoyed more by lower socio-

economic  classes.  In  fields  of  high  culture,  such  as  classical  visual  and  performance 

arts, architecture and high-end design, the representation of women tends to be lower 
then in pop culture or modern arts and culture. 328 Combined with the phenomenon that 
men are more represented in teaching positions at higher educational levels, and women 

at  lower  educational  levels,  leads  to  a  trend  in  more  men  teaching  the  cultural  and 

creative  arts  at  later  stages  in  education,  and  more  likely  to  be  teaching  in  “high”  or 

classical cultural and creative areas than women. 

When it comes to picking studies and educational tracks, youths opting for cultural 

or creative sectors can meet some resistance from parents, especially boys and 

young men. This in turn is especially more prevalent in lower socio-economic classes, 

whereby from this strata of the population, especially few men go into the cultural and 

creative sector. The societal appreciation is lower for this area of subjects and as such, 

parents  tend  to  be  less  enthusiastic  about  their  children,  especially  boys  (who  are 

generally expected to have more of a tendency towards beta subjects), going into this 
area. 329 This societal expectation regarding areas for boys compared to girls, combined 
with  the  appreciation  of  the  CCSs,  play  a  role  in  the  educational  courses  selected  by 

boys  and  girls.  It  also  helps  to  expain  why  there  are  more  girls  in  the  educational 

trajectories for many of the sectors covered. Other factors come into play once students 

start working, leading to the tendency to have less women in higher positions, and on 

average receiving less pay. 

Concerning the student’s choice of study or training, socio-economic background plays 

a role as well here. For example, a 2013 study by the University of Copenhagen, showed 

that students from working-class backgrounds in Denmark were more likely to choose 

subjects with clear career progression and a good income. Middle-class children, on the 

other hand, were more influenced by the perceived prestige of a degree. Combining this 

with the fact that higher  education in Denmark  is free  for citizens of the EU/EEA, and 

that financial help is readily available for disadvantaged students, this suggests that the 
issue is not financially motivated, but may be a result of cultural background. 330  
From  both  sides  however,  from  harder  and  softer  sectors  in  the  CCS,  there  are  signs 

that  the  balance  between  girls  and  boys  is  slowly  shifting  in  some  areas  of  cultural 

326 Microsoft News Centre Europe, (2017), Why don’t European girls like science or technology?, 
available at: https://news.microsoft.com/europe/features/dont-european-girls-like-science-technology/  
. 
327 Information from expert interview. 
328 Information from expert interview. 
329 Information from expert interview. 
330 Thomsen, J. P., Munk, M. D., Eiberg-Madsen, M., & Hansen, G. I. (2013). The educational strategies of 
Danish university students from professional and working-class backgrounds. Comparative Education Review, 
57(3), 457-480. Available at: https://news.ku.dk/all_news/2013/2013.9/young-people-choose-education-
based-on-parents-background/ . 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
education. For example, in the game design industry and courses such as theater design 

(set-building)  there  is  a  more  mixed  group  of  men  and  women  students.  The  game 

industry  allows  for  a  combination  of  hard  elements  such  as  programming  and 

technological  aspects,  with  softer  elements  such  as  character  and  narrative  design, 

environmental  aesthetics  and  development.  Another  example  of  this  balance  shift  is 

seen in some councils and boards, such as a council for directors for cultural and creative 

centres, where the older directors were all men, while the young directors of museums 
and such, tended to be women. 331 

I n it ia t i ve s a nd  p ra c t ic es 

Over a period of 3 years (2015-2018) the Research Council of Norway ran the BALANSE 

programme  at  the  Faculty  of  Fine  Arts  at  UiT  -  The  Arctic  University  of  Norway  “to 

promote  gender  balance  at  the  senior  level  in  Norwegian  research  through  new 

knowledge, learning and innovative measures”. The programme supports projects that 

work  to  improve  Gender  balance  in  senior  positions  and  research  management  in  the 

Norwegian  Higher Education  (HE) sector through  the  provision of  funding.  During this 

time the project helped to develop several equality strategies such as rewarding people 

through prizes and promotion, publishing articles, organising seminars for leaders, and 

giving  formal  acknowledgements  to  women  in  the  field.  The  end  of  the  project  was 
marked by the international conference 'Music and Gender in Balance' in April 2018. 332 

In  addition,  projects  have  been  set  up  to  promote  uptake  of  and  interest  in  STEAM 

subjects  (science,  technology,  engineering,  arts  and  mathematics)  amongst  students 

across  the  globe.  Within  the  EU  for  example,  the  Erasmus+  project  "Innovation 

starts with action" aims to increase student motivation and participation through:  

•  Art-in-museum activities,  
•  Use of Lego robots, 
•  Combining activities in STEAM subjects.  

The  project  ran  from  2016  till  2018  in  six  countries:  Turkey,  Italy,  North  Macedonia, 
Romania,  United  Kingdom  and  Spain. 333  These  STEAM  projects  have  the  benefits  of 
fields,  where  women  are 
encouraging  girls 

to  explore  STEM 

in  particular 

underrepresented and where there is an overall shortage of workers. It also helps teach 

pupils how varied arts can be and how they’re an integral part of products that involve 

engineering, technology, and mathematics, which are subjects generally more appealing 
to boys. 334 

As indicated above, society does not value and appreciate the CCS as highly as industrial 

sectors. Therefore, to strive for a better gender balance across sectors and occupations, 

a change in attitude towards CCS needs to happen. More long term programmes, which 

last  for  example  7  years  and  can  be  renewed,  are  more  inclined  to  help  tackle  the 

underlying issue of insufficient (gender) diversity in the CCS. There is a need for more 

male role models teaching children, this can only be done by changing the stigma that 
surrounds teaching. 335 

331 Information from expert interview. 
332 Blix, H., & Mittner, L. (2019). Kjønn og skjønn i kunstfagene: et balanseprosjekt. Tromsø: UiT Norges 
arktiske universitet, Musikkonservatoriet. (In Norwegian). English summary: 
https://en.uit.no/prosjekter/prosjekt?p_document_id=549136 
333 Erasmus+, (2018), STEAM learning: European projects combining science and art, available 
at:https://www.schooleducationgateway.eu/en/pub/latest/practices/steam-learning-science-art.htm 
334 The Room241, (2017), The Benefits of Teaching STEAM Lessons, available at: https://education.cu-
portland.edu/blog/classroom-resources/benefits-of-teaching-steam/ . 
335The Conversation, (2018), We need to support more men to become primary teachers, available at:  
; https://theconversation.com/we-need-to-support-more-men-to-become-primary-teachers-86775 

84 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
 
4.11 

Radio sector 

S ta te  o f a ffa i rs  a n d  dr iv e rs 

The  current  situation  for  women  working  in  the  radio  sector  can  be  assessed  through 

different  aspects,  similar  to  those  in  other  cultural  sectors,  including  (but  not  limited 

to): 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

overall presence of women in radio; 

access to the labour market within radio sector; 

access to decision-making and leadership roles;  

access to resources and the gender pay gap; 

gender stereotypes; 

sexual harassment issues; 

as  well  as  sector-specific  aspects  (similar  to  television  and  other  content 

providing  sectors)  of  the  position  of  women  within  content  and  presentation, 

both quantitatively and qualitatively (particularly related to stereotypes and pay 

gaps). 

In Europe the overall presence of women in radio in 1995 accounted for 16%, in 2000 

for  19%,  in  2005  for  21%,  in  2010  for  26%  and  in  2015  for  25%.  All  in  all,  this 
constitutes  a  9%  increase  in  twenty  years 336.  While  this  general  picture  shows  an 
improvement  of  the  situation  for  women  in  radio,  a  detailed  analysis  shows  a  more 

nuanced position and developments regarding the radio sector. 

For example, in terms of labour market and media presence, 41% of radio newscasts 

(and 57% of television) in Europe are presented by women. Larger fluctuations 

were  documented  in  the  period  2000  to  2005,  while  the  2000  and  2015  are  exactly 

alike. The radio sector is also the strongest regarding female news reporters in Europe. 

Here,  female  news  reporters  represent  41%  of  all  reporters  (the  least  female  news 

reporters  are  present  in  print  news,  at  35%).  However,  the  trend  is  negative  also  in 

radio, as in the period between 2005 and 2015, women’s share as reporters has dropped 

by  4%  (the  same  drop  was  noticed  also  in  television).  Meanwhile,  female  presenters 
and reporters in stories on radio in Europe in 2015 accounted for 40%. 337 

Considering  the  percentage  of  women  at  all  levels  of  decision-making  in  radio 

organisations,  data  for  Europe  gathered  in  all  member  countries  in  2012  shows  there 

were 10% of women acting as Chief Executive Officer, 0% as Chief Operating Officer, 

4%  as  Other  Operational  Managers,  30%  as  Heads  of  Directorate/Unit,  and  37%  as 

Heads  of  Department.  Combining  all  levels  together,  women  accounted  for  33%  of 
decision-making positions in radio organisations. 338 

As most of the print media tend to be private companies, while ‘Radio’ or ‘TV and Radio’ 

includes a significant share of public service broadcasters, it could be expected that less 

women would appear in senior positions in newspapers (29 %) than in radio (33 %) or 

in organisations described as ‘TV + Radio’ (32 %). However, even here, women are still 

considerably under-represented at higher levels of position, as CEOs or COOs, with only 

33% in radio and 32% in ‘TV and radio’. In addition, some radio organisations are finding 

it increasingly difficult to attract men (even though women’s share is also in radio sector 

considerably lower at managerial level), as they notice “an opposite tendency” that less 

336 Global Media Monitoring Project 2015. Macharia, p. 32. 
337 Global Media Monitoring Project 2015. Macharia, p. 49. 
338  European Institute for Gender Equality, p. 29 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
and  less  men  chose  to  work  in  radio,  due  to  lower  salaries  in  this  particular  media 
sector 339, confirming the traditional gender pay gap issues. 

Regarding women’s  presence  in the media  stories themselves,  the  gender gap  is  (like 

in  print  and  television)  narrowest  in  stories  on  science  and  health,  the  major  topic  of 

lowest  importance on the news agenda  occupying  only  8% of  the  overall news space, 

showing a significant gender gap in terms of importance and societal roles, with a report 

by the G lobal Media Monitoring Project stating that ‘women make up 35% of the people 

in  news  under  this  topic,  in  contrast  to  only  16%  in  political  news  stories.  The  gap  is 

widest  in  news  about  politics  and  government  in  which  women  are  only  16%  of  the 

people in the stories. In fact, women are three percentage points less visible in political 

news now than five years ago.’  

However,  even  within  such  negative  context,  in  terms  of  both  number  and  type  of 

opportunities in employment as well as representation of women’s gender and age, radio 

comes  out  most  positively/least  negatively.  This  is  linked  to  the  lesser  emphasis  on 
physical appearance in these media than in film, television and commercials. 340 At the 
same time, the working environment, working conditions and tasks in radio sector are 

similar to other sectors, as ethnographies of female journalists as particular job sector 

in  radio  identified  similar  issues  as  other  sectors:  discrimination  in  the  assignment  of 

reporting tasks, gender pay gap, sexual harassment and sexism from male news sources 

and, difficulties balancing work and family life as particular challenges experienced by 
some female journalists. 341 

There is no systematic research and analysis conducted regarding the situation 

for  women  working  in  radio  sector  as  well  as  their  representation  in  radio 

content  in  most  of  the  European  countries  and  on  the  EU-wide  level.  Some 

countries  conduct  research  on  specific  aspects  such  as  women’s  presence  in  radio 

content  or  within  radio  voices,  radio  guests,  or  managerial  positions.  Based  on  the 

analysis  of  the  existing  data  and  reviewed  research,  some  general  trends  and 

conclusions can be deducted that are similar to the findings from the research in Ireland; 

here the following issues were emphasized:  
• 

there  is a “continuing  under-representation  of  women  including as  senior  decision 

makers and reporters, presenters & journalists”. 
The organisational culture of media remains largely masculine 342 
The  existence  of  a  glass  ceiling  for  women  in  middle  and  senior  management 
levels. 343 
The continued existence of gender pay gaps (that often increase with age). 344 
The  prevalence  of  family  unfriendly  working  practices  such  as  inflexible  working 
hours or penalising women for taking time out to raise children. 345  
The culture  of high  stress,  bullying and harassment,  unacceptable workloads, and 

• 
• 

• 
• 

• 

anti-social working hours which pressure working parents (generally the women as 
the primary care giver) into part-time, temporary or freelance positions. 346 

339 Ibid, p. 29. 
340 Dean, p. 5-6 
341 Ibid, p. 45. 
342 EIGE, 2012. 
343 Byerly, 2011. 
344 The National Union of Journalists in the UK and Ireland in 2009 reported a pay gap of 17% between male and 
female journalists. International Federation of Journalists, 2009, p. 9.  
345 International Federation of Journalists, 2009, p. 5 
346 This is in turn putting them in even more vulnerable positions in terms of job security, promotion, legal status 
and ability to share the same rights as contracted colleagues. International Federation of Journalists, 2009, p. 6. 
Walsh, K., Suiter, J. & O’Connor, O., p. 30. 

86 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
Specific  available  data  from  individual  countries  confirm  these  findings.  For  example, 

an  Irish  national  media  monitoring  project,  monitoring  women’s  participation  rates  in 

news  programmes  on  commercial  and  public  radio,  found  that  women’s  participation 
rate was 32.9% compared with 67.1% for men 347. Women made up 45.6% of ‘ordinary 
person’s’  on  the  radio  and  16.7%  in  of  ‘celebrity  or  VIP’  category.  Female  politicians 

participated in a 26:74 ratio, and female experts were on air in a ratio of 22:78. Similar 

disparities  were  found  also  in  relation  to  the  overall  breakdown  of  voices  (male  and 

female)  and  the  proportion  of  time  each  is  heard.  The  situation  was  also  significantly 

worse in commercial radio broadcasting compared to public radio broadcasting. These 

statistics  suggest  that  like  other  jurisdictions  and  other  media,  women  are  under-
represented in both commercial and public service radio broadcasting in Ireland. 348  

The available data from Croatia meanwhile shows a relatively equal number of women 

workers  in  radio  sector  compared  to  male  workers  (44.4%)  both  in  2017  and  2018. 

Similar shares were found also when analysing the number of women directly engaged 

in  production  of  radio  programmes,  and  the  percentage  of  full-time  employment 

compared to part-time. No significant difference was observed between 2017 and 2018. 

However  a  long-term  and  more  detailed  would  be  needed  to  provide  a  more  in-depth 

picture of the situation of women working in radio sector in Croatia. 

Meanwhile, the data for France for the same period, 2017 and 2018, shows that even 

such a short period could show significant changes: the presence of women on radio is 
s  compared  to  2017  (37%),  which  represents  a  “worrying  underperformance.” 349  In 
2018, women also continue to be less represented on television and radio (combined) 

than  men  (39%  vs.  61%).  The  regulatory  bodies  even  note  that  this  proportion  is 
slightly down from the previous year. 350 

In  Austria,  data  is  available  only  for  public  broadcasters,  however  this  also  gives  an 

important impression due to the continuing significance and strength of Austrian public 

broadcaster ORF in their media landscape. Data from the Austrian ORF from 2011, which 
includes television and radio, shows 41.8% of their employees were women. 351 “In the 
radio  division,  there  were  57%  of  women  employed  part-time  while  43%  men  were 

employed part-time. Women in full-time employment accounted for 43% while men for 
57%. 352 This data shows an important difference in women vs. men position in terms of 
full-time  or  part-time  employment,  with  men  gaining  more full-time  jobs, and  women 

more part-time. In addition, at the managing board level, the proportion of women in 
2011  was  actually  0  percent;  in  2012  it  has  increased  20  percent 353,  however  it  still 
confirms an existence of glass ceiling and lack of managerial opportunities for women. 

Similar findings can be observed for Portugal: although the mission of gender equality 

can  be  found  stated  in  several  PSM  strategic  documents,  gender  balance  in  the 

management body is still not a reality in Portuguese PSM as key radio organisation in 

the country. A legal apparatus framework that strongly recommends a gender equality 

policy. RTP has two more management boards: one is the General Independent Council 

(CGI), with 6 members (4 men and 2 women) and the Fiscal Council, with 4 members 

(3 men and 1 woman, but with the condition of “surrogate”). And as for the newsroom, 

347 Suiter 2013. 
348 Walsh, K., Suiter, J. & O’Connor, O., p. 29.  
349 Conseil superieur de l'audiovisuel, p. 4. 
350 Conseil superieur de l'audiovisuel, p. 12. 
351 Austrian Broadcasting Corporation ORF, p. 10. 
352 Ibid, p. 14. 
353 Ibid, p. 11.  

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
against the generic trend in Portugal, it is still dominated by men: 250 journalists are 
men and 188 are women. 354 

Similar male-dominant culture can be found in Sweden media in general and radio sector 

in particular, as Swedish news is characterized by “gender silence”. 15 years ago it was 

69 percent of men who came to speak in the press, radio and television, and in 2015, 

the proportion is the same. The positive aspect within such a situation is that the radio 

is  the  Swedish  media  type  that  has  the  highest  proportion  women  in  the  news  with 
37%. 355 However, on the other side, radio had also the lowest percentage of women as 
news subjects compared to other media types. 356 

Data from the United Kingdom shows similar general picture in broadcasting:  men still 

make up a greater proportion of senior (63%) and mid/junior management roles (54%). 

However,  the  reality  is  “more  nuanced  when  the  gender  profiles  of  different  job  roles 

are  considered”.  Technical  and  engineering  roles  are  here,  as  in  other  countries  and 

many other sectors, more likely to be filled by men at 84%. In contrast, women account 
for more roles in marketing (69%), support/admin (67%) and sales (61%). 357 

The  general  situation  of  women  working  in  radio  sector  in  Europe  as  a  whole  and  in 

particular  analysed  countries  thus  confirms  issues  described  and  identified  in  many 

other cultural sectors,  particularly  underrepresentation  in  senior managerial  roles and 

unfriendly  working 

conditions,  while  adding 

issues 

specific 

to 

content: 

underrepresentation  of  women  in  content,  as  journalists  and  newscasts,  as  well  as 

guests and voices in radio programmes. 

I n it ia t i ve s a nd  p ra c t ic es 

The analysis of situation in Europe as a whole and individual countries as specific cases 

provides also certain examples which are seeking to remove before-mentioned gaps for 

women. Some are national, some regional, some EU-wide, some are specific for certain 

media  (public service  radio or  public  service broadcasting) and for certain roles  (such 

as  journalists),  and  some  are  governmental  or  non  governmental.  Here  are  some  of 

such attempts to provide ‘best practices’. 

In United Kingdom, the BBC as public media service stands alone in having set a clear 

target  for  an  equal  gender  split  in  its  senior  management,  which  it  aims  to  reach  by 

2020. By then, it has also pledged to close its gender pay gap, which is the lowest of 

the  main  three  broadcasters.  It  has  published  the  recommendations  to  address  the 

barriers  it  had  identified  in  “Making  the  BBC  a  great  workplace  for  women”.  These 

include mixed gender shortlists, advertising short term roles as “location flexible” where 

possible,  a  greater  emphasis  on  hiring  for  potential  and  behaviours,  gender  neutral 

adverts and female representation on all interview panels. The BBC’s Sandy Chalmers 

Women in Radio Mentoring and Development Programme is now in its second year. It 

offers  20  women  a  year,  in  all  areas  of  radio  production  in  the  middle  grades,  an 

opportunity to have a senior level mentor and radio-specific formal career development 

training.  The  BBC  has  also  launched  the  Hilda  Matheson  Women  into  Leadership 

programme, a development programme based outside of London for women who want 
to develop their careers at the BBC. 358 

354 Baptista, C. & Silva, M. T., p. 20. 
355 Edström, M., Jacobsson, J., p. 22 
356 Ibid, p. 25-26. 
357 Ofcom, p. 8. 
358 Ofcom, p. 17. 

88 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
At  European  level,  the  European  Federation  of  Journalists  (EFJ),  together  with 

the IFJ (non-governmental level) published a handbook on good practice in gender 

equality  (2012).  At  the  level  of  the  Member  State,  there  are  a  large  number  of 

professional unions that include women councils (for example: DK, DE, IE, ES, LT, AT, 

FI,  UK).  The  Austrian  Journalists’  Union  includes  a  women’s  council  and  offers  both 

information  regarding  women’s  situations  and  rights,  as  well  as  local  and  national 

contact. The Danish Union of Journalists at one point had a gender-equality council, but 

this  was  dissolved  in  order  to  make  gender  equality  a  structural  joint  responsibility 

within  the  organisation  —  when  this  happened  the  position  of  gender-equality 

coordinator  was  established.  In  addition,  there  is  in  existence  the  Estonian  Women 

Journalists and Editors Union in Estonia; the Work Life and Equality Committee prepares 

issues for the board of the Journalists’ Union in Finland; the Gender Committee of the 

Panhellenic  Federation  of  Journalists’  Unions  (PFJU)  in  Greece;  and  other  examples. 

However they are mostly connected to specific professions (journalists) and unions, and 
not to radio sector as such. 359 

The most comprehensive list of actions and proposals regarding the improvement of the 

position of women working in radio sector can probably found in the document Hearing 

Women’s  Voices  from  Ireland.  This  proposes  a  number  of  recommendations  for 

achieving  equal  gender  representation  at  both  programming  level  and  at  the  station 

level.   

At a programme level, it requires an individual at programme level to take responsibility 

for monitoring the gender  dimensions  of  the  programme  in  terms  of  hearing women’s 

voices,  women  as  news  subjects  and  ensuring  that  particular  topics  do  not  become 

gendered. Specific programme level recommendations include:  
•  Appoint an individual (at programme level) with responsibility for monitoring gender 

breakdown.  

•  Undertake gender reviews as part of the daily and weekly programme reviews.  
•  Meet  a  minimum  ratio  of  30:70  gender  inputs  and  ultimately  working  towards  a 

target ratio of 40:60 gender inputs specifically in relation to guests and experts.  

At  a  Station  Level,  the  station  needs  to  “identify  more  potential  female  experts  and 

guests  that  can  be  added  to  their  station  level  database”.  Specific  Station  level 

recommendations include:  
•  Add more female contacts/experts to the overall station contact database.  
•  Update the contact details/mobile number for female contacts.  
•  Monitor  gender  breakdown  (in  terms  of  women’s  voices,  women  as  news  subjects 

and the gendering to topics).  

•  Set minimum standards and targets in relation to gender roles across the station.  
• 
Provide training for potential female guests/experts, to improving the pool of female 
guests. 360  

359 European Institute for Gender Equality, p. 45. 
360 Walsh, K., Suiter, J. & O’Connor, O., p. 67-68 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
5  Tackling gender gaps through initiatives 

and practices 

The  preceding  sections  on  the  different  sub-sectors  within  the  cultural  and  creative 

sectors  also  describe  what  sorts  of  initiatives  have  been  undertaken  to  reduce  the 

gender  gaps  in  those  sectors.  This  chapter  describes  a  selection  of  practices  in  more 

detail to give a more comprehensive idea of how and why certain practices have been 

set  up  across  the  cultural  and  creative  sectors.  The  aim  here  has  been  to  develop  a 

selection of practices across the sub-sectors, which target different types of gender 

gaps and their drivers. Before introducing the selected practices, an overall analysis 

of  the  types of  initiatives  which have  been  implemented  to address  gender  gaps  in 

CCS is presented. These other initiatives were encountered throughout the research and 

serve to give a more overall idea of what types of actions have been taken to date. 

5.1 

Initiatives in the CCS to address gender gaps 

Some of the key drivers and gaps which initiatives seek to address include the lack of 

appreciation  for  woman  creations  and  creative  outputs,  gender  stereotypes  and 

gendered  occupations  in  the  sectors,  (the  expectation  of)  motherhood,  the  working 

practices  in  the  sector  (informal  work,  project  based  work,  erratic  working  hours, 

pressure to network and self-promote) which are particularly difficult to combine with 

childcare responsibilities, and finally, a lack of visibility and awareness of gender issues 

in the CCSs. 

Different  types  of  initiatives  have  been  implemented  the  world  over.  A  common 

approach is to set up practices which celebrate the contributions of women, be it in 

the artistic crafts sector by celebrating only women creators, or in museums with artistic 

exhibitions which present and promote creative pieces made by women. The “Equality, 

Art  and  Feminism  in  Modern  Romania”  is  such  an  example,  as  is  the  Italian 

“#8marzoalmuseo”  (March  8  at  the  Museum)  social-media  campaign  to awareness  of 

women  artists  by  celebrating  their  contribution  to  the  country’s  arts  and  cultural 

heritage.  Mad’In  Europe  is  a  private  initiative  set  up  to  promote  female  visual  artists 

across the world, specifically women working in artistic crafts. 

Awards and events which celebrate women and their contributions are useful to help 

show men and women in the sector that women are not only present, but can also thrive 

in  the  CCSs.  Examples  include  the  Freelands  Award  in  the  UK  for  local  and  regional 

female  artists,  or  the  the  iphiGenia  Gender  Design  Award,  presented  by  the 

International Design Network. 

Platforms  and  awareness  raising  initiatives  also  abound,  which  seek  to  heighten 

the visibility of the gender gaps in the cultural and creative sectors. Types of initiatives 

vary in this category, from promoting women, (such as The Bench in the dance sector, 

or  the  SheSaidSo  initiative  in  the  music  sector),  to  structural  visibility  initiatives 

such as the French national observatory on women in culture, or the Architects Council 

of Europe (ACE) and their annual sector reports. Both these systematic reports monitor 

and present information  on the positions and representation of women in the sectors, 

and in the case of the ACE, present information on the gender pay gap. In many sectors, 

also  outside  of  the  cultural  and  creative  sectors,  the  issue  of  a  lack  of  woman 

representation is not acknowledged as a serious issue. The United Kingdom has set up 

a  Government  Equalities  Office  policy  on  pay  gap  reporting  which  spans  all  economic 

90 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
sectors in the country in order to highlight the continued existence of gender pay gaps. 

Other structural initiatives to promote awareness of the gender inequality issues include 

the development of the formal “Charter for gender equality within orchestras and opera 

houses” in France. Also in France is the H/F Mouvement, which has throughout the years 

developed  a  series  of  actions  to  advance  gender  equality  in  the  cultural  sector  by 

organizing debates and public meetings, especially in the context of cultural events and 

professional  meetings,  participating  in  symposia,  lobbying  and  making  appointments 

with  professional  bodies,  establishing  resource  centres  that  work  on  statistical 

monitoring,  launching  study  programs,  collecting  data,  etc.  and  lastly  writing  forum 
contributions  on  the  subject. 361  The  initiative  of  the  H/F  movement,  the  "H/F  equality 
season"  has  been  taking  place  -  via  regional  committees  -  to  raise  awareness  of  this 

issue among the performing arts, especially within the theatre sector.   

Besides such structural reporting on gender issues, social media campaigns are also 

used to create awareness of gender gaps. The #5WomenArtists, for example is a social 

media  campaign  launched  by  the  National  Museum  of  Women  in  Arts  in  New  York. 

Another successful campaign, which led to national legislation being developed, was the 

#WakingtheFeminists, in the Irish theatre sector. This was modelled to some degree on 

the  #MeToo  movement,  which  of  course  targeted  sexual  harassment  and  sexism 

generally  in  the  film  industry.  Another  example  of  social  campaigns  being  used  to 

awareness in these sectors is the movement Guerilla Girls, active since the 1980s, and 

their  billboard  campaign  “Do  women  have  to  be  naked  to  get  into  the  Met?”,  which 

emphasised  how  few  female  artists  had  their  work  represented,  with  women  usually 

only being present as subjects of art instead. 

Working  practices  in  the  sector  are  also  being  tackled  through  initiatives.  The 

recruitment  and  hiring  of  new  employees  can  be  a  subconciously  gendered  process 

amongst other things, where individuals in charge select and hire individuals who seem 

like them.  Trying  to conciously  reduce  the gap  in terms  of the number of  women and 

men is one avenue of practice. Initiatives seek to balance the presence of men and 

women  in  their  sectors.  The  Keychange  Initiative  which  targets  the  line-ups  of 

musicians at festivals is an example and is described in more detail below. The Inclusive 

Museum Research  Network is  a  global  initiative,  which  enables  members  to  publish 

articles  through  different  channels,  to  allow  for  more  accessible  trajectories  for 

publishing academic research. In the cultural education sector the Norwegian Research 

Council  in  turn  started  the  BALANSE  programme  at  the  Arctic  University  of  Norway’s 

Faculty of Fine Arts to promote gender balance in senior levels of Norwegian research.  

Additionally,  the  Romanian  Association  for  Women  in  Art  (ARFA)  for  several  years 

initiated monthly performances and exhibitions in music, dance, poetry and visual arts 

that focussed on cultural and promoting creativity with attention on showcasing women 
and young people. 362 

A specific feature  of  the sector  is  that  work  is often  project-based, and  relies  on self-

promotion  to  a  large  degree.  Self-promotion  and  progressing  in  the  field  relies  on 

networking,  and  women  on  average  have  less  access  to  such  networks.  As  such, 

networking  projects  and  initiatives  are  also  commonly  observed  practices  in  the 

sectors.  In  literature  and  publishing,  artistic  crafts,  and  the  architecture  and  design 

sectors these practices are implemented to help women establish networks and useful 

professional contacts. Furthermore,  interacting  with other women  in  the field helps to 

generate more of a role model effect, where women see fellow women in their sector, 

361 https://www.mouvement-hf.org/  
362 http://cimec.ro/Muzica/Repertoriu/Curent/ForumArtARH.htm 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
and can share experience and take inspiration from one another; such interactions help 

to normalise the fact that women are active in these sectors, thereby gradually working 

to alter the gendered stereotypes of what types of roles are common for women to hold 

in these sectors. One such example is the ReSITE conference for women in architecture, 

and the international Gender Design Network.  

Other sectoral working practices and habits include the lack of stability and fluctuating 

working hours. Here, childcare policies and labour market policies can help support men 

and women in the sector, though notably women, as they take on more of the childcare 

responsibilities. Examples of initiatives which try to support women in their work 

include  Supporting  Women  and  Parents  in  Opera  (SWAP’ra),  a  UK  based  initiative, 

(which  is  described  in  more  detail  below),  or  the  ACE’s  Working  Group  Women  in 

Architecture, which seeks to develop practices in the field to facilitate a gender balance 

between men and women. 

5.2  Music sector: Keychange 

Name of Initiative 

Keychange (EU) 

Objective or mission of the initiative 

Keychange  is  a  pioneering  international  initiative  which  is  attempting  to  empower 

women to transform the future of music. Keychange is led by PRS Foundation, supported 

by  the  Creative  Europe  programme  of  the  European  Union,  in  partnership  with 

Musikcentrum  Sweden,  Reeperbahn  Festival,  Iceland  Airwaves,  BIME,  Tallinn  Music 

Week,  Way  Out  West,  Liverpool  SoundCity  and  Mutek.  It  began  as  a  European  talent 

development programme for emerging artists and innovators led by the PRS Foundation. 

The main goal of Keychange is encouraging festivals to achieve a 50:50 gender balance 

by 2022. The 50:50 pledge was proposed by Keychange festival partners who  wanted 

to show they are serious in their commitment to gender equality in addition to offering 

showcasing opportunities to female talent. Since then festivals from all over the world 

have signed up to the pledge making Keychange a movement for positive change. The 

Keychange programme launched at the end of 2017 so this pledge was established as a 

5-year-framework  for  change.  Keychange  is  the  first  collective  approach  to  tackling 

gender equality at festivals, which is starting with specific, measured steps, shaped by 

the festivals themselves which give everyone a chance of making tangible progress and 

creating realistic long term change. 

Specific gender gaps in the sector addressed by the initiative address 

The  Keychange  programme  highlights 

that  women  are 

still 

significantly 

underrepresented  in  the  music  industry,  on  stage  and  behind  the  scenes.  Keychange 

also demonstrates the positive impact of targeted investment in woman talent and the 

demand  for  change  amongst  the  current  generation  of  artists  and  music  industry 

professionals  forging  a career  in music.  By  crowdsourcing  ideas  and suggestions  from 

Keychange partners and participants, Keychange launched its manifesto in 2018 at the 

European  Parliament,  which  was  developed  based  on  the  achievements,  ideas  and 

suggestions of Keychange partners and participants which include 60 emerging female 

artists and innovators and 7 festivals from Europe and Canada who have collaborated 

with  the  initiative.  The  manifesto  presents  several  recommendations  for  the  music 

industry, national governments, European Parliament and European Commission. These 

recommendations call for collective action and relate to challenges in the following core 

areas: 

92 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
•  Working conditions & lack of senior role models: Addressing recruitment, 
remuneration,  career  development  and  sexual  harassment  policies  in  a  male 

dominated workforce. 

• 

Investment: Making more funds available, from the industry and public sector 

at  national  and  European  level,  for  targeted  programmes  which  empower 

underrepresented artists and industry professionals. 

•  Research: Commissioning an independent analysis of the current gender gap, 
including  an  economic  impact  study  of  companies  with  increased  women 

participation  and  efficacy  studies  of  programmes  and  activities  to  improve 

gender balance. 

•  Education:  Promoting  role  models  and  career  campaigns  in  schools  which 
tackle  gender  stereotypes  and  diversify  career  options  for  young  men  and 

women. 

Contribution to improving the situation of female artists in the sector 

Keychange partners are encouraging more festivals to join the gender equality pledge 

to create sustainable change in live music and to show that it is possible for festivals to 

successfully achieve this balance.  

Main achievements or accomplishments of this initiative 

Current Keychange partners are encouraging more festivals to join the gender equality 

pledge in order to create sustainable change in live music and to show that it is possible 

for  festivals  to  successfully  achieve  this  balance.  Currently,  the  following  milestones 

have been reached: 

• 

• 

• 

• 
• 
• 

60  female  artist  and  innovators  advancing  their  careers  through  cross  border 

collaborations and showcases; 

130+  festivals  from  23  countries  are  committed  to  the  50-50  gender  balance 

pledge for 2022; 

7  festival  partners  leading  the  movement  for  progress,  development  and 

innovation; 

50+ events and panel discussions raise awareness and trigger debate; 

40+ showcases result in new business and European fans; 

10 Ambassadors and inspiration Award winners from 6 countries. 

5.3  Music  sector:  The  Arts  Council  and  the  Music  Agency  promote 

more equal orchestral repertoire 

Name of Initiative 

The  Arts  Council  and  the  Music  Agency  promote  more  equal  orchestral 

repertoire (Sweden)  

Objective or mission of the initiative 

The Swedish Arts Council and the Music Agency were commissioned by the Government 
to  work  towards  making  the  repertoire  among  Swedish  orchestras  more  equal. 363 The 
work  took  place  in  dialogue  with  relevant  actors  at  local,  regional  and  national 

level. Regional  cultural  administrations,  music  businesses  and  national  actors  such  as 

copyright  organizations,  free  actors,  institutions  and  compositional  education  have 

participated in round table discussions at the Arts Council. The conversation has taken 

place in collaboration with the Music Agency and has focused on exchanging experience 

and discussions on challenges for a more equal repertoire. 

363 https://www.kulturradet.se/nyheter/2016/Kulturradet-och-Musikverket-framjar-en-mer-jamstalld-
orkesterrepertoar/ 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
Actions carried out under the initiative 

The action promoted discussions on one of the ongoing challenges in the music business 

namely the lack of woman representation in Swedish orchestral repertoire. By involving 

different  stakeholders,  they  identified  challenges  and  need  for  actions  on  different 

levels,  as  well  as  new  ways  and  models  for  change.  Among  the  issues  raised  in  the 

conversation  with  the  national  actors  were  long-term  thinking,  leadership,  the 

deliberate planning and budgeting for gender equality, the need for sounding repertoire 

bank, the visibility of women and the dare and energy to prioritize differently. 

Specific gender gaps in the sector addressed by the initiative address 

General  focus  of  the  discussions  between  The  Swedish  Arts  Council  and  the  Music 

Agency  is  gender  equality,  specifically  balancing  the  numbers  of  female  and  male 

composers included in an orchestral repertoire. They participants in the discussion tried 

to come up with solutions to grant men and women equal opportunities in having their 

composition  become  a  part  of  an  orchestral  repertoire.  The  future  action  should  help 

reduce the gap between the genders in the orchestra sector.  

Contribution to improving the situation of woman artists in the sector 

The conclusions of the regional round table discussion included: 
•  The need to increase knowledge in the field at all levels. 
• 
•  Start acting, re-prioritize, and raise the issue. 
• 

Leave the comfort zones, dare to challenge.  

It  is  the  management  of  the  organizations  that  have  the  opportunity  to  re-

prioritize and change. 

•  The regional cultural plans contain all the necessary goals; the assignments are 

formulated. 

•  Raise the issue more clearly in informal networks between the orchestras. 
•  The  question  must  be  highlighted  in  a  comprehensive  way  within  music 
education at all levels, from cultural and music schools to university education. 

The Swedish orchestra industry has shown great interest in the issue.  

Main achievements or accomplishments of this initiative 

(Please see above) 

5.4 

Performing Arts, Theatre: #WakingTheFeminists 

Name of Initiative 

#WakingTheFeminists (Ireland)  

Objective or mission of the initiative 

The campaign was aimed at publicly funded theatre organisations, and the aim was that 

those organisations would have:  

•  A sustained policy for inclusion with action plan and measurable results; 
• 
• 

Equal championing and advancement of women artists; 
Economic parity for all working in the theatre. 

In  order  to  achieve  the  objectives,  #WakingTheFeminists  formulated  a  list  of 

recommendations for these organisations: 

• 

Introduce  policies  at  Board  level  to  ensure  gender  equality  across  the 

organisation – including a formal plan on how these policies will trickle through 

all departments of the organisation, from the Board to artistic programming to 

94 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
marketing  to  technical  and  production  departments  to  contract  workers  of  all 

kinds and so on. 

•  Use this opportunity for change to also introduce diversity policies as per above. 
•  Commit formally to the introduction of gender-balanced Board membership, and 

embed that commitment into the company constitution. 

• 

Publish  gender  statistics  for  the  past  10  years,  in  collaboration  with  the 

#WakingTheFeminists research team. 

•  Set best practice in relation to levels and equality of pay by committing to equity 
of  treatment  in  contracts  and  pay  rates  in  all  areas  of  the  organisation. 

Introduce public transparency of pay scales. 

•  Re-evaluate  traditional  pay  scales  in  the  organisation  as  they  appear  along 
gender lines, and review traditional assumptions particularly, but not solely, in 

relation to design departments. 

•  Re-evaluate  the  varied  implications  of  parenthood  –  for  women  in  particular, 
but not solely – in relation to both the organisation’s staff and contract workers, 

leading to practical initiatives giving greater support to parents. 

•  Ensure a robust sexual harassment and dignity at work policy is in place for all 
staff and contract workers, and is actively communicated. Introduce training for 

key staff members in this area, across the organisation, with a person trained 

and responsible in every department. 

•  Commit to good quality unconscious bias training for key staff and Board, with 
a person trained and responsible for monitoring gender balance and diversity in 

every department. 

Actions carried out under the initiative 

On top of the formulation of recommendations and the online discussion and attention 

the  initiative  got,  two  public  meetings  were  organized  that  fuelled  further  attention. 

Members  of  the  #WakingTheFeminists  movement  were  appointed  in  the  Abbey  Board 

and  in  the  Arts  Council,  ensuring  that  the  agenda  stays  at  the  heart  of  both  of  these 

organisations.  An  important  action  was  the  study  that  was  commissioned  by 

#WakingTheFeminists, and  funded by The Arts Council,  to gather  statistics  on gender 
balance in the sector over the last 10 years. 364 

The  campaign  is  aimed  at  publicly  funded  theatre  organisations.  It  is  a  grassroots 

initiative, which arose in the fall of 2015 when Abbey Theatre, Ireland’s national theatre, 

launched its programme to mark the 1916 rising. The fact that one out of the ten plays 

programmed  were written  by a  woman and three out of ten  were directed by women, 

led to an online discussion about gender parity in the Irish theatre sector. Two weeks 

later, a group of theatre professionals now known as #WakingTheFeminists held a public 

meeting at  the  Abbey  Theatre.  Following  that  meeting,  a small  group of  theatre 

professionals agreed to dedicate their time for a year to use the energy that had been 

generated to further the objectives of the campaign. 

Specific gender gaps in the sector addressed by the initiative address 

These objectives are connected to the drivers (details in the chapter on performing arts 

above): even though women are visible in the sector (contributing to the wide spread 

believe that the sector is liberal and equal), numbers show that labour market and equal 

pay issues are strongly present in the sector.  

Contribution to improving the situation of female artists in the sector 

364 https://www.dropbox.com/s/enznau2g2eousaa/WTF_Gender_Counts_2017_2ndEd_WEB.pdf?dl=0 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
Although  #WakingTheFeminists  has  not  been  formally  evaluated,  it  is  clear  this 

grassroots  initiative  has  been  influential, mainly  in Ireland  but also beyond. It can be 

argued  its  objectives  have  been  met  at  a  good  level.  Here,  we  list  the  achievements 

that can be attributed to the campaign.  

#WakingTheFeminists  was  very  successful  in  attracting  attention,  both  within  Ireland 

as internationally. It received national and international recognition through awards like 

an Irish  Times  Irish  Theatre  Award,  and  the  first  international Lilly  Award.  The  Lilly 

Awards honour the achievements of women in American theatre and never before has 

one  been  awarded  to  anyone  outside  the  US; neither  has  one  ever  been  given  to  an 

organisation. The judges described the 'Waking the Feminists' movement as "a visceral 

explosion"  that  "mirrored"  women's  struggles  in  the  US to  have  their  stories  told  and 

heard. The  publication  of  the  above  mentioned  study  into  gender  balance  in  Irish 

theatre, provided baseline statistics. This can be helpful for the community to measure 

the changes coming from the campaign over the coming years. 

As a result of #WakingTheFeminists and the discussion it launched, the Minister of Arts 

asked  all  National  Cultural  Institutions to  have  gender  policies  in  place  by  2018,  to 

ensure that those who shape our national cultural identity must make sure women are 
fairly represented. On the 9th July 2018, Minister of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht 
launched Gender Equality in Practice in Irish Theatre: the gender equality policies of ten 

publicly  funded  theatres.  Gender  Equality  in  Practice  in  Irish  Theatre  began  after 

#WakingTheFeminists  drew  international  attention  to  the  gender  inequality  that  then 
existed within Irish theatre. 365  

Initiators  indicate that  gender now  forms part of the conversation  in  the Irish  theatre 

community,  organisations  are  challenged  and  questions  when  it  comes  to  gender 

balance.  Moreover,  there  is  a  deeper  consideration  of  gender  in  relation  to  creative 

choices that are made. Moreover, activists in other sectors (media, film, television) have 

been inspired and energised by the success of #WakingTheFeminists. Persons involved 

mention that practical issues such as child care, as well as access and opportunity are 

challenges that still require attention. The objective is to monitor results over the years.  

Main achievements or accomplishments of this initiative 

(Please see above) 

5.5 

Peforming Arts, Opera: Supporting Women and Parents in Opera 
(SWAP’ra) 

Name of Initiative 

Supporting Women and Parents in Opera (SWAP’ra) (UK) 

Objective or mission of the initiative 

SWAP’ra aims to effect positive change by redressing the gender disparity in the opera 

industry.  SWAP’ra  will  act  as  a  ‘guiding  body’  and  offer  practical  solutions  to  issues 

faced  by  women  working  in  opera,  encouraging  companies  and  individuals  to  work 

towards developing a more inclusive and cooperative industry. 

Actions carried out under the initiative 

It has two strands: gender equality issues and parenthood. The latter is more practical, 

focussing  on for  instance sending out the  rehearsal  schedule  earlier, allowing  parents 

365 https://www.gatetheatre.ie/gender-equality-in-practice/ 

96 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
to  arrange  for  child  care  facilities.  It  also  focusses  on  addressing  taboos  such  as 

pumping  breast  milk and acknowledging  responsibilities for, for  instance, a sick child. 

The gender equality strand focuses on organisations changing their policies. 

The  initiative  is aimed  both at  the  senior level of  organisations as the  engagement of 

artists. As such the initiative has a two angle approach, aiming to create a connection 

the grassroots level with the organisational level.  

Specific gender gaps in the sector addressed by the initiative address 

On top of a general focus on gender equality (notably the underrepresentation of women 

in  the  sector),  this  initiative  focuses  specifically  on  issues  related  to  combining 

parenthood  with  a  career  in  opera.  The  flexibility  required  in  terms  of  last  minute 

changes  in  rehearsing  schedule,  is  a  practical  problem  for  many  parents.  Moreover, 

initiators notice a taboo on the way parenthood affects singers- who feel they are taken 

less seriously when they have to make choices for the benefit of their families. 

Contribution to improving the situation of female artists in the sector 

Advocacy  

- 

Featuring  interviews, blogs and  news  items about or with  inspirational women 

in order to celebrate female role models. 

Running  regular  female-led  Q&As  and  chaired  discussions  to  continue  the 

discourse. 

Introducing advance rehearsal scheduling to enable easier childcare planning. 

A  ‘Coaching  Crèche’  where  parents  share  childcare  during  coaching  and 

- 

- 

- 

rehearsals. 

Mentoring 

- 

SWAP’ra  will  establish  mentoring  schemes  where  experienced  conductors, 

directors, designers, singers, agents, stage managers and others in the industry 

can offer support and advice to colleagues at the early stages of their careers. 

The  scheme  will  particularly  encourage  men  currently  in  senior  positions  to 

reach  out  to  women  in  the  hope  that  it  eventually  becomes  commonplace  for 

every artist to share their craft with the next generation. 

Performance  

- 

Providing performance opportunities for women to showcase wealth of operatic 

talent across the board and to encourage the major opera companies to actively 

pursue  a  more  mindful  approach  to  employment  when  it  comes  to  the  gender 

balance of their artistic seasons.  

Support 

- 

- 

Building a supportive community by sharing women’s stories and achievements 

online in the form of interviews, blogs and posts on social media.  

Establishing an annual grant in support of new parents who would like to return 

to work after having a child or children.  

Main achievements or accomplishments of this initiative 

The  initiative  has  only  started  very  recently  (in  2018).  It  is  therefore  too  soon  to 

evaluate achievements. It is UK based and led voluntarily by a group of female opera 

singers  and  directors.  It  is  funded  solely  by  some  benefits  of  the  inaugural  concert 

organised  in  July  2018, though the  initiators are  looking  to  expand this with core and 

project funding.  

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
5.6 

Architecture  and  design:  the  International  Gender  Design 
Network (iGDN) 

Name of Initiative 

International Gender Design Network (iGDN) (International) 

Objective or mission of the initiative 

The  objective  of  this  initiative  is  to  put  the  issue  of  gender  and  design  on  the 

international agenda within the sector. Design is a pervasive thing in society. However, 

in  the  design  field  women  are  still  heavily  underrepresented.  This  network,  set  up  in 

2013, was set up to celebrate and promote female designers across the globe. Women 

and interested parties are brought together in an informal, global network. 

Actions carried out under the initiative 

The network pursues its objectives by hosting events and platforms which bring together 

(women)  designers,  both  regionally  and  internationally.  Furthermore,  the  network 

engages  in  activities  including:  information  provision  and  research  dissemination, 

discussion  of  current  issues  in  the  design  field,  and  reporting  on  the  public  gender 

debate and contributing insights from the design field.  

The iGDN has also developed a gender and design related database, which it maintains. 

The network also carries out studies, such as on equality and diversity, examining the 

situation  of  female  designers,  as  well  as  studies  on  gender  design  and  cultural  life, 

gendered  products,  and  design  juries  (specifically  the  percentage  of  female  designer 
juries). 366 

An important initiative by the iGDN is the Iphigenia Gender Design Award. This design 

award has three categories:  

• 

• 

• 

The  iphiGenia  Gender  Design  Award Evolution  –  is  awarded  to  companies  or 

initiatives  which  “explicitly  support  the  cause  of  gender-sensitive  design  and 

whose  work  unites  an  all-embracing,  convincing  approach  to  this  issue  with 

excellence in design and execution”.  

The iphiGenia  Gender  Design  Award  Revolution  –  which  recognises  individual 

products  “showing  a  credible  and  innovative  fusion  of  gender-sensitivity  and 

intelligent design”. 

The  iphiGenia  Gender  Design  Award  Volition  –  for  young  female  design 
talents. 367 The award seeks to go further than usual, gendered clichés when it 
comes to celebrating female and male design works. 

The  initiative  is  aimed  at  individuals  working  in  or  with  the  design  sector.  Within  this 

target  group,  women  designers  are  a  special  group  of  focus,  as  the  network  seeks  to 

celebrate,  promote,  and  make  visible  the  heavily  imbalanced  gender  situation  in  the 

design sector. 

Specific gender gaps in the sector addressed by the initiative address 

The main gender gap in this sector relates to gender stereotypes regarding the role of 

women and of men in the design sector. The drivers here are the sectoral and societal 

expectations held on the one hand, concerning what women are capable of in terms of 

366 International Gender Design Network, (2019), Activity Profile, [online], http://genderdesign.org/about-
igdn/activity-profile/ .  
367 iphiGenia, (no date), iphiGenia Gender Design Award, [online], available at: 
http://www.iphigenia.genderdesign.org/about.html . 

98 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
design, and on the other hand, the social expectations held towards the sector and the 

typical worker in that sector. These two sets of expectations lead to stereotypes when 

it comes to the role of designer. 

This stereotyping  extends  to  the creative outputs  by  men and  women,  which  are also 

heavily  gendered.  Men  are  typically  expected  to  engage  in  more  functional,  valuable, 

and harder areas of design. Women in turn are expected to work with softer materials, 

produce  less  aesthetically  valuable,  or  functional  pieces.  Kitsch  or  more  domestically 

created  products  are  often  seen  as  more  feminine,  while  useful,  innovative,  and 

technical designs are seen as more masculine. This in turn also affects the pay gap of 

women  and  their  potential  to  move  into  more  senior,  decision-making  or  creative 

leadership roles (other forms of gender gaps).  

There are very few role models for women designers, who broaden the stereotype of a 

designer  and  establish  the  message  to  the  sector  that  women  can  be  successful  and 

respected  designers  as  well.  Networks  are  key  in  this,  but  women  tend  to  have  less 

access to networks compared to men. The gender pay gap and lack of access to decision-

making roles are also indirectly addressed by working to remove the gender stereotypes 

in the sector. 

Contribution to improving the situation of female artists in the sector 

By promoting women designers and making them visible, helping women designers to 

connect with one another globally, thereby developing a network, the iGDN tries to work 

against the gendered stereotypes in the design sector. Women designers are celebrated 

and  promoted,  and  the  issues  facing  women  in  the  sector  are  discussed  as  well.  The 

network  offers  a  voice  in  sectoral  discussion  in  this  issue.  In  this  sense  the  network 

seeks to make the gender stereotypes more visible in the sector, and to work against 

them  by  showing  the  sector  that  women  can  also  produce  aesthetically  valuable, 

innovative, technical, or functional design products. 

Main achievements or accomplishments of this initiative 

The  initiative  started  in  2013,  and  does  not  appear  to  have  been  formally  evaluated. 

That  said,  the  iGDN  are  awarded  annually.  Furthermore,  a  series  of  workshops  have 

been and are continued to be organised at universities on Gender & Design. The network 

has also organised conferences and is developing reports on Gender in Cities, besides 

other reports on gender related issues. 

Finally, the network has organised a series of travelling exhibitions with accompanying 

conferences in Hong Kong, Hamburg, Berlin, and Hannover. Getting more men from the 

design sector to support and interact with the network could be a boost. Visibility of the 

gender inequality issue remains and issue in the architecture and design sector at large. 

While the network does engage in activities on this front by contributing a critical voice 

to  public  discussion  on  this  issue,  this  area  of  activity  could  perhaps  be  further 

expanded. 

 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
5.7 

Architecture and design: MoMoWo Project 

Name of Initiative 

MoMoWo Project (EU) 

Objective or mission of the initiative 

MoMoWo’s  general  aim  is  to  highlight  the  diverse  contributions  of  women  in  design 

professions. By highlighting these accomplishments, MoMoWo aims to promote cultural 
and professional equality and strive toward a gender balanced society. 368 

MoMoWo  focuses  on  contemporary  works  by  European  women  in  the  fields  of 

architecture,  civil  engineering,  interior  design,  landscape  design,  and  urban  planning. 

These fields  were, and  in some case, are currently perceived as  masculine  dominated 

professions. This project tackles this attitude, by exposing notable and important works 

by  female  designers  both  past  and  present.  By  highlighting  the  value  that  works  by 

women have brought to the world of design, MoMoWo hopes to empower and strengthen 

future generations of creative women. 

The stated objectives of this initiative are: 

• 

• 

To reinforce the cultural and creative sectors ability to work together, and focus 

on  under-represented  groups  of  women  in  the  following  fields:  culture, 

architecture,  and  design  (decorative  arts,  interior,  industrial,  and  graphic 

designs). 

Promote  mobility  of  women  architects  and  designers  and  related  scholars, 

curators,  historians,  students,  restorers,  and  those  in  the  tourist  profession. 

Stimulating  the  circulation  of  their  works  in  the  European  Union  and  beyond, 

with  the  goal  of  increasing  awareness,  knowledge,  and  interest  in  European 

cultural heritage created by women. 

Actions carried out under the initiative 

Through  its  activities  programme,  MoMoWo  aims  to  broaden  the  knowledge  on 

contemporary  design,  education  and  professional  policies,  to  raise  awareness  for 

women’s  contribution  to  design.  This  awareness  is  an  extraordinary  opportunity  of 

cultural, social and economic development for the whole of European civil society, thus 

contributing  in  strengthening  the  competitiveness  of  the  cultural  and  creative  sector 

with a view to promoting smart, sustainable and inclusive growth. 

MoMoWo  activities  and  events  serve  a  common  European  dialogue  and  support  the 

trans-national  flow  of  cultural  and  artistic  works,  promoting  cross-border  mobility  of 

professionals working in the cultural sector. 

MoMoWo has been developed with a dynamic perspective. The activities are part of an 

ongoing process, which proceeds despite the European financing deadline. This project 

focuses  on  the  improvement  of  individual  expertise,  encouraging  networking,  and 

increasing  audience  diversification.  In  this  way  the  project  envisions  its  future 

sustainability.  MoMoWo  is  intended  to  continue  as  a  European  platform,  designed  to 

cast women architects and designers on the professional environment. 

The sustainability of MoMoWo can be supported also by: 

368 http://www.momowo.eu/momowo-project/  

100 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 
• 

The  women  professionals  involved  and  represented  in:  Database,  Workshops 

and public interviews, Photographic Reportage, Open-Day, Travelling Exhibition, 

Final Symposium, Cultural-touristic itineraries; 

The  museums,  private  and  public  archives,  research  centres,  and  design 

companies  who  wish  to  provide  their  data and  materials  to  implement  project 

activities (Database, Travelling Exhibition, Publications, …); 

The  universities  involved  in  the  International  Design  Competition,  in  the  Final 

Symposium and in Workshops; 

The  tourism  organizations  and  local  authorities  accepting  to  promote  the 

Cultural-touristic itineraries Guide Book; 

The 

institutions,  design  companies,  professional  associations,  women 

associations or creative players involved or represented in the website agenda, 

Public interviews, Photographic Reportages, Guided 

Tours, Final Symposium. 

The  Database  will  be  carried  out  by  the  project  partners  (universities  and 

research centres) as part of their regular research activity. 

Specific gender gaps in the sector addressed by the initiative address 

MoMoWo  hopes  to  reach  innovative  practices,  design  firms,  networks,  and  fellow 

designers  in  order  to  influence  the  integration  of  more  women  designers  into  this 

masculine dominated professional sphere. 

The world of construction and design is historically a man's prerogative. The history of 

these professions is a clear and crucial representation of a working environment in which 

the female gender has been underrepresented and found difficulty establishing herself. 

Contribution to improving the situation of female artists in the sector 

Far from being a mere historical survey, MoMoWo focuses on understanding why women 

still find it difficult to find equality in the professional design world. Through its activities 

programme, MoMoWo  aspires  to build an  international  heritage  and network  of know-

how and skills in order to inspire women into new vocations. 

Presenting women’s creative designs to a broad audience will provide wider professional 

recognition to present and future generations.  This will increase women’s productivity 

and professional achievements. 

Main achievements or accomplishments of this initiative 

(Please see above) 

5.8 

Cultural heritage and related professions: French Observatory on 
Gender Equality 

Name of Initiative 

The  Observatory  on  Equality  between  Women  and  Men  in  Culture  and 

Communication  (Observatoire  de  l'égalité  entre  femmes  et  hommes  dans  la 

culture et la communication) (France) 

Objective or mission of the initiative 

The  mission  of  the  Observatory's  annual  publication,  published  each  year  on  the 

occasion  of  the  International  Women's  Rights  Day,  is  to  increase  awareness  for  the 

situation  women  by  providing  objective  measurement  of  their  harder  access  to 

employment, management positions, creative and production resources and reputation. 

The  observatory  has  been  part  of  the  French  ministry  of  culture  since  2013.  The 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
observatory  report  itself  is not a  goal or target  but  rather  provides  a tool to measure 
targets set by governing bodies for example. 369 

Actions carried out under the initiative 

The  data  presented  in  the  observatory  report  covers  the  diversity  of  the  sectors  that 

make  up  the  field  of  culture  and  communication:  heritage,  artistic  creation,  cinema, 

audio-visual,  books,  and  press.  Firstly,  the  Observatory  reports  on  the  situation 

regarding gender equality within the Ministry and its operators. Secondly, the situation 

with regards to gender equality in each sector is described in depth in multiple tables. 

The  report  also  comes  with  a  short  introduction  reporting  on  the  legal  context  and 

regulatory framework and an analysis of the figures in the tables.  

The observatory measures, for example, the share of women in the cultural and artistic 

field and its development. This concerns women in management positions, but also the 

share  of  women  in  film,  theatre  production,  TV,  etc.  For  data  on  the  management 

positions the report also provides some info on the difference in pay between men and 

women. 

The  Observatory  strives  to  cover  all  professions  and  cultural  sectors.  It  is  meant  to 

provide  decision  makers  in  both  the  public  and  private  sector  with  quantitative  facts 

and figures to show the need for action on gender equality in cultural sectors. 

Specific gender gaps in the sector addressed by the initiative address 

The exclusion of women’s contributions to the creation of heritage is partly due to the 

fact that in all societies, women’s activities have been traditionally identified with, and 

relegated  to,  the  private  or  domestic  sphere,  while  the  public  sphere,  seen  as  more 

relevant,  important  and  prestigious,  has  historically  been  men’s  monopoly.  Negative, 

rare  or  inexistent  portrayal  of  women  through  a  nation’s  heritage  will  lead  to  a 

reinforcement  of  the  contemporary  inequalities  suffered  by  them  (unequal  perception 

of  their  value,  contribution  to  and  usefulness  for  society).  Gender  gaps  addressed 

therefore include gender stereotypes, women in management positions, and the gender 

pay gap. 

Main achievements or accomplishments of this initiative 

The Observatory provides much needed quantitative figures on the situation of gender 

equality  in  the cultural and creative  sectors  over time. These figures  make  it  possible 

for  policy  makers  and  managers  to  set  certain  quantifiable  targets  to  achieve  greater 

equality  between  males  and  females  in  the  sector.  The  figures  also  allow  to  hold  the 

policy  makers  and  managers  accountable  if  they  don’t  reach  targets  and  to  actively 

increase efforts on the topic. It is hard to provide evidence of a link between this annual 

publication and the direct effect on changes in gender equality. However, these figures 

and the development of the issue it visualises, have been crucial in showing the situation 

in the sectors in France. Without this report, monitoring of the situation would be next 

to impossible.  

The  lack  of  women's  recognition  through  artistic  competitions,  prizes  and  distinctions 

still  too  often  proves  that  there  is  an  undervaluing  of  women  and  that  some  parts  of 

cultural life seem to remain deaf to the injunction of equality. The report is coordinated 

and  carried  out  by  the  Department  of  Studies,  Foresight  and  Statistics  (deps)  of  the 

Ministry of Culture, it is the result of extensive collection and synthesis work with many 

369 Ministère de la Culture, (2019), Observatoire de l'égalité femmes-hommes, [online], available at: 
http://www.culture.gouv.fr/Thematiques/Egalite-et-diversite/Documentation/Observatoire-de-l-egalite-femmes-
hommes . 

102 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
institutions  and  organizations.  Regular  contributors  are:  Audiens,  Afdas,  the  sacd, 

Sacem,  csa,  Observatoire  des  métiers  et  de  la  presse,  Agessa,  Maison  artists,  Inrap, 

public audiovisual companies, Centre national du cinéma et de l'image animée, and the 

Centre of national song, variety and jazz. 

 
 
 
 
 
 
6  Conclusion and recommendations  

6.1 

Concluding remarks 

The objective of this research has been to conduct an exploration of the available data 

and literature on gender gaps in the cultural and creative sectors in Europe. Due to the 

diversity  of  the  sub-sectors  involved  in  these  sectors  and  the  differences  in  size  and 

predominance  of  these  various  sectors  in  different  Member  States,  systematic  and 

internationally comparable information across countries is rarely available. As 

such  this  study  provides  a  first  exploration  as  to  what  is  available,  and  draws  this 

information together. 

In  March  2020,  the  Gender  Equality  Strategy  2020-2025  of  the  European 

Commission  has  been  published,  which  highlights  the  need  to  take  further  actions  to 

create gender equality in Europe. 

Several overarching trends in gender gaps were identified which were apparent 

across the cultural and creative sectors.  

Concerning  gender  stereotyping  and  access  to  decision-making  or  creative  leadership 

roles, the following trends were observed across most CCSs: 

•  Men  tend  to  be  more  prevalent  in  more  prestigious,  decision-making,  and 

creative leadership positions. 

•  Men  tend  to  be  in  charge  of  more  commercially  important  or  famous  cultural 
institutions  (even  in  sectors  where  women  outnumber  men  in  absolute 

numbers). 

•  Women  tend  to  be  the  muses  or  vessels  for  bringing  forth  creative  visions  of 

men, as opposed to creative leads themselves. 

•  Across sectors there tend to be more women in the educational trajectories for 
their sector  of choice than  men.  However,  in most cases,  there are ultimately 

less women present in employment in those sectors, and as age increases, the 

proportion of women present in a sector declines. 

Concerning the access to resources for women, including the gender pay gap, and the 

access to the artistic labour market, other overall trends became apparent. The gender 

pay gap also exists in the cultural and creative sectors, which is to some degree 

closely  tied  to  the  fact  that  women,  on  average,  have  less  access  to  higher  or  more 

senior  positions.  Furthermore,  the  creative  outputs  produced  by  women  tend  be 

less  valued  and  appreciated  compared  to  men  across  the  cultural  and  creative 

industries.  This means that besides the  gap  in pay, women also  receive  less payment 

and acclaim for their creative pieces and contributions. These factors and the fact that 

women are subject to gender stereotyping, gendered occupations, and less likely 

to  grow  vertically  in  their  occupation,  the  access  to  the  full  artistic  labour 

market tends to be more limited for women in the CCSs.  

The final gender gap examined here, sexual harassment, unfortunately appears to be a 

fairly  pervasive  if barely visible  form of gender  inequality across many of  the cultural 

and  creative  sectors.  This  is  an  issue  which  would  benefit  from  more  systematic, 

international data collection in as far as possible. 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Sectoral differences do play a role here as well and add more nuance to some of these 

aforementioned  trends.  The  visual  and  performing  arts  for  example,  manifest  their 

gender  gaps  differently  than  architecture  and  design  for  instance.  Literature  and 

publishing,  along  with  artistic  crafts and  cultural  education  at  first  glance  seem  fairly 

balanced  in  terms  of gender  representation.  However,  in  the  case of the first and the 

last while there are many women present in these sectors, it is still men who hold more 

of the higher roles and positions. The artistic crafts by contrast is seen as a softer, more 

feminine  sector,  and  while  dominated  by  women  across  the  occupational  levels,  this 

sector as a whole is not taken as seriously. 

The drivers behind these gender gaps are somewhat interrelated.  

First and foremost, most of the gender gaps originate from gendered stereotypes. 

Gender stereotypes are cultural and societal constructs which all individuals in society 

become ingrained with to do some degree. Gendered expectations for men and women 

are  propagated  by  society  form  a  young  age.  A  particularly  prevalent  and  dominant 

social  expectation concerns  motherhood  and  the fact  that women are still assumed 

to  take  on  the  lion’s  share  of  home  care  responsibilities.  Combined  with  the 

working practices in the cultural and creative sectors, and the expectations and norms 

within these sectors, certain gendered occupations and roles arise. Given that women 

have  certain  capacities  and  attributes,  they  are  thought  to  be  better  in  certain 

professions and occupations. The reality of the cultural and creative sectors are that the 

informal  way  of  working,  importance  of  networking,  self-promotion,  project-

based and instable employment, as well as the travel usually involved and high 

competition, helps to give way to gendered trends in employment.  

Indeed,  the  authors  arrive  at  the  conclusion  that  contrary  to  the  cool,  informal, 

accessible and  egalitarian reputation of  the  cultural and creative sectors,  there are  in 

fact  more  hidden  hierarchies  and  power  relations.  The  informality  is  a  blessing  and  a 

curse  it  seems,  as  have  been  evinced  in  previous  sections.  Sexual  harassment 

happens in the cultural and creative industries, and seems to be more prevalent in 

these sectors than in other economic sectors. 

Other drivers which contribute to the gender gaps include the lack of visibility of the 

gender gap issue, and the fact that the cultural and creative sectors are seen as cool 

and  egalitarian  and  informal  and  open.  Making  gender  gaps  visible  is  a  significant 

challenge  in  this  process,  precisely  because  the  sectors  are  informal  and  can  be  very 

heterogeneous. Besides national and sectoral monitoring, social media and awareness 

raising  campaigns  can  play  a  key  role  here.  Movements  such  as  the  #MeToo  have 

helped  by  making  individual  experiences  of  sexual  harassment  visible  and  given  the 

sheer numbers of women (and men to a lesser extent), coming forward, attention was 

garnered for more action at the educational and governmental levels.  

A series of initiatives have been undertaken across sectors to try and promote 

the  positions  of  women  in  the  CCSs.  Initiatives  are  quite  varied.  They  range  from 

trying  to  raise  awareness  of  the  underrepresentation  of  women  through  awards  and 

events  which  celebrate  women  and  their  contributions,  to  setting  up  platforms  and 

awareness raising initiatives which seek to heighten the visibility of the gender gaps in 

the  cultural  and  creative  sectors.  These  initiatives  can  take  the  form  of  structural 

visibility initiatives such as national observatories or sectoral reports, or take the shape 

of powerful social media campaigns. Initiatives which seek to balance the representation 

of men and women in occupations across sectors, or which provide networking platforms 

106 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
and  conferences  for  women  were  also  common  practices.  Labour  market  like 

instruments which seek to facilitate parents (specifically, mothers) to keep working in 

their  cultural  or  creative  sector  of  choice  were  less  common,  though  could  provide  a 

good avenue for further research as to useful practices. 

6.2 

Recommendations 

A general observation drawn from this study is that there is a lack of systematic data 

per sector across Europe. There is only intermittent and country- and sector specific 

knowledge about the reality of the working life in the sector, and about the positions of 

women  therein.  Availability  of  such  knowledge  is  crucial  for  both  creating 

awareness  about  existing  gender  issues  as  well  as  developing  appropriate 

policies and good practices.  

By extension, there is little systematic information on the gender gaps in these sectors. 

Sexual  harassment  especially  is  little  researched  for  obvious  reasons.  The  #MeToo 

movement helped to break a lot of the silence on this issue, but the evidence which has 

surfaced is mostly in the form of accusations, testimonials and anecdotal evidence. In 

the case of gender gaps, more data is available. It is also a more concrete aspect which 

(national  level  public)  organisations  can  systematically  try  to  monitor  and  remedy. 

Access to decision-making positions and creative leadership roles can also be examined, 

but  this  is  still  an  issue  on  which  systematic  data,  across  the  sectors  and  across 

countries, is lacking.  

  A recommendation would therefore be to set-up initiatives and practices to 
monitor the sector more closely. In order to design useful policies, this should 

be  a  first  step.  In  pursuit  of  this  aim,  collaboration  with  other  institutes 

active  on  this  issue  could  be  a  sensible  first  step.  Organisations  such  as 

the  European  Network  of  Observatories  in  the  Arts  and  Cultural  Education 

(ENO),  sectoral  organisations  such  as  the  ACE,  and  other  sectoral  networks, 

associations,  and  institutes  across  Europe  could  be  brought  together  to  share 

their insights and their data regarding the position of women in the CCSs. This 

could be combined with the information which is collected by other EU agencies 

such as EACEA, Eurofound, and EIGE.   

One  of  the  fundamental  drivers  of  gender  gaps  are  gender  stereotypes.  These 

vary  somewhat  per  country,  but  ultimately,  lead  to  different  degrees  of  the  same 

associations  regarding  women  and  their  roles  in  society.  These  societal  norms  and 

expectations regarding women, are pervasive across Europe, and underlie the position 

of women across sectors. This has translated to women experiencing gender pay gaps, 

discrimination  and  harassment,  lack  of  access  to  higher,  decision-making  positions 

across  sectors,  and  to  less  access  to  resources  and  the  artistic  labour  market  in  the 

case of the CCSs. The issue of gender stereotypes therefore leads to other gender gaps 

across economic sectors, including in the cultural and creative sectors. 

  To address this, a recommendation is to think in terms of two tracks: a longer 

term and short term approach:  

o  One the one hand, a long-term approach can be taken which seeks 
to adjust the social norms and values, and thereby, the expectations 

regarding women in European societies.  

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
o  On the  other hand, more short  term  and  instrumental  approaches 
can be taken which address and mitigate the positions of women 

in this sector at the moment and in the near future.  

As an example, the #MeToo movement helped to bolster the need for more widespread 

feminism, and points to the role that men have to play in a gender egalitarian society 

through initiatives such as He For She, launched by the UN and publicised by actress 

and UN Ambassador Emma Watson. He For She emphasises that gender equality is not 

an issue for women alone, but that men from all walks of life also have women in their 

lives  (mothers,  sisters,  wives,  friends,  etc.),  and  that  gender  inequality  is  a  human 

rights  issue.  This  echoes  other  UNESCO  recommendations  and  its  Gender  Equality 

Strategy, that gender equality is something for all of society to address, including men 

and boys. 

Within the long-term perspective, the aim is to promote social and cultural change 

regarding  the  perceptions  of  men  and  women  in  European  societies,  and 

regarding the value attributed to the capabilities and work produced by women. 

Social change is a long term, gradual process, but it does happen. That said, it is not 

something  which  can  be  simply  promoted  by  implementing  policy  practices;  social 

change  centres  on  gradual  shifts  in  values  and  perceptions  amongst  members  of  a 

society. Policy and initiatives can of course aid this process. For instance, practices such 

as promoting a national focus on gender gaps through annual reporting, such as in the 

UK, or the observatory on women in culture by the French government can help to make 

the  issue  visible,  and  to  maintain  policy  attention  for  the  issue.  Awareness  raising 

practices  such  as  awards  and  social  media  campaigns  can  all  help  to  promote  the 

awareness and visibility of women in the arts and cultural sectors.  

Policies  which  seek  to  balance  the  representation  of  men  and  women  in 

organisations  and  positions  can  also  be  useful  as  they  help  to  broaden  the 

perceptions which people in and out of the CCSs have regarding what are typically men’s 

and women’s occupations. Having more women in positions classically held by men can 

help promote the role model effect: women see fellow women working in certain areas 

and occupations, and realise that working in those areas fall within the realms of what 

is  acceptable.  When  more  women  then  enter  into,  in  this  case,  cultural  and  creative 

sectors, the perception of what is normal for a woman to do in this sector is expanded.  

 

In summary, a recommendation within this long term-perspective is to promote 

awareness  (which  can  be  achieved  through  a  variety  of  practices),  and  to 

commit to making gender gaps more visible within the CCSs and in society 

more broadly by reporting on the sector. Working to improve the representation 

of  women  in  different  types  of  occupations  across  the  CCSs  should  also  be 

addressed  in  this  context,  and  there  are  a  variety  of  different  initiatives  and 

practices available to help do so. 

From  a  shorter  term  perspective,  efforts  can  be  made  to  facilitate  and  support 

women  who  currently  work  in  the  sector,  or  who  will  work  in  the  sector.  More 

immediate  practices  include  awareness  raising  policies  and  initiatives  such  as  those 

where the contributions by women are celebrated. Practices named above, such as 

those  which  seek  to  balance  the  representation  of  women  across  sectors  can  also  be 

useful  in  the  short  term  perspective.  In  a  similar  vein,  to  help  women  gain  access  to 

resources  and  the  artistic  and  cultural  labour  market,  practices  which  promote  better 

hiring and recruitment of women can be implemented, as well as initiatives which bring 

together women (and where possible men) in the cultural and creative sectors. 

108 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
A  core  issue  which  women  struggle  with  in  the  cultural  and  creative  sectors  is 

motherhood, or the expectation of motherhood by employers and potential future 

employers. This point is obviously connected to the previous one on social norms and 

values:  in  our  contemporary  societies  parenthood  is  still  mostly  seen  as  relating  to 

women, instead of parents in general. This is an issue which concerns women who work 

across sectors, and seems to be particularly acute in the CCSs. Reasons being the erratic 

working hours, instable work due to the fact that work often occurs in projects, and the 

need to tour and travel to other countries and creative institutes. The lack of security, 

the  working  hours  and  pressure  to  travel  are  more  difficult  for  mothers.  A 

recommendation  would  be  to  contemplate  how  parents  can  be  facilitated  in  both 

parenthood and work. Public policy which better supports parents include childcare 

policies such as subsidies, or sectoral policies where for instance, an artist who travels 

can  take  his  or  her  children  too  and  provisions  are  set  up  for  this  in  the  receiving 

institutions. Exploring the possibilities for more tailored maternity and childcare policies 

could  be a recommendation  for  the public sector, and the  cultural and creative sector 

could  work  by  exploring  the  possibility  of  facilitating  parents  to  work.  Often  there  is 

plenty of dedication amongst mothers who wish to work, but less opportunity to actually 

do so. In allowing parents more options to combine their care responsibilities with work, 

the assumption that motherhood and working the CCS do not mix could also be gradually 

reversed.  

  Summarising  the  preceding  paragraphs,  several  types  of  practices  can  be 
implemented to better support parents working in the CCSs, and mothers 

in  particular.  Hiring  and  recruitment  practices,  as  well  as  other  sectoral 

working practices could be examined from within the sector, to facilitate women 

wishing to or already working in the CCSs. 

In  this  process,  the  European  Commission  and  its  institutions  could  play  a  very 

important  advisory  role  by  sharing  practices  and  examples  between  Member 

States. Furthermore, as systematic and in-depth data is missing for the CCS, EU policy 

makers  could  make  a  first  step  by  bringing  together  existing  institutions  in  the  CCSs 

and their data to inventory what is known and what is not. This current study provides 

a first overall exploration of gender gaps in the CCS, but is by no means large enough 

in scope to examine the data available in each European country. Therefore, some sort 

of  follow-up  investigation  would  be  useful  and  the  existing  data  brought  together. 

Beyond  this,  further  exploration  of  policy  practices  which  address  gender  gaps  in  the 

longer  and  shorter  term  could  be  initiative  in  order  to  help  countries  and  their  CCS 

sectors to address gender gaps.  

  The main recommendation towards the European Commission, would be to act 
as  a  facilitator,  to  bring  together  existing  data  and  information  which  is 

currently  collected  in  different  Member  States  and  sub-sectors  of  the  CCSs. 

Based on which information is collected and that which is not, countries, sectoral 

organisations, and authorities can come together to consider how to improve 

the  data  collection  for  the  CCSs.  In  building  better  insights  concerning  the 

state of affairs in the CCSs, EU and national authorities are in a better position 

to take tailored, relevant action to address gender gaps in these sectors. 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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110