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"From February 11, 2026, International Day of Women and Girls in Science, until around March 8, 2026, International Women's Rights Day, the Institut Pasteur will engage in a month of unprecedented mobilisation and action dedicated to women. This highlight aims to enhance the appeal of research careers for women, to better recognise their contribution to major scientific discoveries, and to affirm the need to conduct ambitious research to fully understand women's health, a scientific field that has been neglected for too long

For several years now, younger generations have been gradually turning away from scientific studies and careers. This shift is particularly noticeable among young women, who, compared to young men, are less likely to pursue certain scientific disciplines such as mathematics at school or university, and are therefore less likely to consider a professional future in research in this field. Furthermore, women are still significantly under-represented in management and supervisory positions in research professions. The causes of this trend are multiple, complex and deeply rooted in cultural, social and institutional determinants. At the Institut Pasteur, we are convinced that one of them is the lack of visibility and recognition given to the great female figures who have contributed to the history of science. It is in this spirit that we worked with Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo to have the names of five female Pasteurian pioneers included among the 72 names selected to be engraved on the first floor of the Eiffel Tower: Odile Croissant, Pauline Ramart, Hélène Sparrow, Thérèse Tréfouël and Ágnes Ullmann. This inscription is a powerful symbolic recognition of their exceptional scientific careers. It is also a meaningful collective success that helps to strengthen the place of women in science and society, and to promote the Institut Pasteur far beyond its walls.

This year, International Women's Day will focus on the theme: ‘Women's health and women in health’. This theme resonates particularly strongly with the institute's current priorities. It is at the heart of the fourth priority of the Pasteur 2030 strategic plan, which aims to better understand the impact of sex on physiology, response to infections and susceptibility to disease. Brilliant young female researchers at the institute are currently conducting major work in this field, including Han Li on postpartum breast cancer, Camille Berthelot on endometriosis, and Molly Ingersoll on the influence of sex on immunity. This month of action will be an opportunity to highlight this research and the women behind it, notably through a major symposium organised by the Diversité, Equity and Inclusion Department (DEI), in collaboration with the SPAIS (Department for Scientific Programming and Incentive Actions), on March 17. At the same time, the second edition of the ‘Mother-Child Dyad’ course will be held, a training programme that illustrates the crucial importance of maternal health in the development of infant health.

Beyond the place of women in science and recognition of specific women's health issues, this month will also be devoted to the issue of professional equality: career development, working conditions, but also prevention and combating discrimination and sexual and sexist violence. These issues are the subject of strong and ongoing mobilisation at the Institut Pasteur, under the impetus and coordination of the DEI department.

Numerous events will punctuate this month dedicated to women's health and women in health. I invite you all to participate, so that together we can promote the science, values and commitment of the Pasteurian community to more equitable, inclusive and forward-looking research."

Yasmine Belkaid

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Inscribing the legacy of the Institut Pasteur's female pioneers: laying a bridge from the past to the future of science
 

• Some 135 years after it was built, the Eiffel Tower is set to be engraved with a series of new names, including five female Institut Pasteur scientists.  

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For the first time since it was erected more than a century ago, a new chapter in the history of the Eiffel Tower is being written. This new chapter will shine a light on the historical part played by women in science, including five pioneering researchers from the Institut Pasteur.

On January 26, the anniversary of the day on which construction of the famous Iron Lady began, the names of 72 women scientists engraved on the frieze around the first floor of the tower were unveiled.  

The project, which began in March 2025, is supported by Paris City Council, the Eiffel Tower Operating Company (SETE) and the "Women & Science" association. The aim is to pay tribute to the achievements of outstanding women in the field of science. Five female Institut Pasteur scientists who made an impact on the history of science are included among the names added to the historical frieze dating from 1889, alongside the 72 male scientists already featured: 
 

•    Odile Croissant - this pioneer in virus detection using electron microscopy established the link between papillomavirus and genital cancer   

•    Pauline Ramart - a chemist, feminist and member of the Resistance. She came from a very humble background and in 1935 became the second female full professor at the Sorbonne   

•    Hélène Sparrow - this "microbe hunter" developed the typhoid vaccine and took in refugees during the Second World War  

•    Thérèse Tréfouël - with her husband Jacques, she discovered the therapeutic properties of sulfonamides, revolutionizing the treatment of infections   

•    Ágnes Ullmann - an internationally renowned molecular biologist who worked closely with Jacques Monod. Her research on genetic regulation was crucial for vaccine development 
 
 

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"By honoring these women, we are celebrating figures to whom science owes so much, while also inspiring whole new generations of scientists. With this initiative, the Eiffel Tower is embracing its role in promoting the best of humanity, reflecting the spirit in which it was built." Jean-François Martins, President of the Eiffel Tower Operating Company (SETE) 

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February 9 to March 17: a month of activities to find out more about women and girls in science, women's health and gender equality

Get your diaries out!

From February 9, a couple of days before the International Day of Women and Girls in Science, to March 17, just over a week after International Women's Day, several events and activities will be taking place on campus and featuring on the Institut Pasteur website to showcase the many ways in which the Institut Pasteur is actively committed to women in science and gender equality in the workplace. Make sure you take the opportunity to get involved in the many events and initiatives organized by several teams, building on the Institut Pasteur's strong legacy.

Every week until March 20, check out the latest issue of the newsletter for your guide to what's on!
 

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Upcoming events on campus

✦ In February
 

•    Pasteurian Women exhibition in the atrium of the François Jacob building 

The CeRIS and the Pasteur Museum are pleased to invite you to the Pasteurian Women exhibition, featuring a selection of archive photographs of women who played a role in the history of the Institut Pasteur. You will also see two glass display cases dedicated to the life of Marie Pasteur, a key figure in the founding of the Institut Pasteur who was also instrumental in sharing and promoting Louis Pasteur's scientific research.

The exhibition is open to visitors in the atrium of the François Jacob building for two months from February 9.

Don't miss: save the date of Tuesday February 17, at 1.30pm, when a talk will be held within the historical exhibition on the topic of female scientists.
 

•    Seminar and workshop organized by DEI and the Palais de la Découverte on February 11 – "The clitoris: the story behind an organ"

The DEI community is pleased to invite you to the upcoming DEI seminar, which will take place on February 11 from 12.30 to 1.30pm, in room 01C on the ground floor of the François Jacob building.

The topic will be "The clitoris: the story behind an organ," and the event will be led by Elodie Touzé, a scientific outreach officer at the Palais de la Découverte.

The seminar and workshop will delve into the turbulent history of the clitoris... Identified, elucidated, denigrated and forgotten, it is now making a comeback on the scientific stage. With models, moldings, anatomical drawings and 3D prints, this participatory workshop illustrates the anatomical diversity of the clitoris and presents what is a real textbook case of interactions between science and society. "The clitoris: the story behind an organ," or how a gender-specific story impacts the production and dissemination of scientific information.

This is an in-person event. 
The event is free but prior registration is required for organizational purposes.

Sign up
 

✦ In March

 

•    March 9: screening of the documentary Et l'homme créa la secrétaire

The network of assistants at the Institut Pasteur is pleased to invite you to a screening of the documentary Et l'homme créa la secrétaire ("And man created the secretary"), which explores the little-known history of what has become an emblematic profession. Through archives and testimonials, the film looks at the feminization of the role of secretary, the stereotypes surrounding it and the quest for recognition of those who hold this central position in the workplace.

The screening will be held on March 9, from 3 to 5pm in the Émile Duclaux lecture hall, and will include a discussion session led jointly by the Assist IP Network, Aurore Degoutin, president of the French Federation of Administrative Professions and Morgane Grand from the Department for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI).

Click here to join the Assist IP Network

•    March 17: invitation to the symposium "Women's Health, Women in Health"  

Scientific Priority 3, "Origins of Diseases," together with the Department for Scientific Programming and Incentive Actions (SPAIS) and the Department for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI), are pleased to invite you to the symposium "Women's Health, Women in Health" on March 17, 2026 at the Institut Pasteur, in connection with equality month and International Women's Day.

The event will include presentations from scientists and physicians from the Institut Pasteur, the Institut Curie, the Institut Cochin, the French Society for Cardiology and the "Women's Cancers" University Hospital Institute.
 

See the list of confirmed speakers so far: 

Provisional program

The event is free but prior registration is required: 

Applications to present a poster can be submitted until February 18 (midnight Paris time): 

The symposium is the result of a joint initiative that reflects a shared commitment to advancing research via a cross-disciplinary approach combining research laboratories, medicine and the societal impacts of public health.

Any questions? 
Please contact Elodie Dandelot by email at:elodie.dandelot@pasteur.fr


Organizing team: 
Cécile Apert, Sylvie Gratepanche, Han Li, Lucie Peduto, Mallory Perrin-Wolff and Cécile Vacher
 

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Online activity on the Institut Pasteur website and social media

The Institut Pasteur website, pasteur.fr, and social media pages will also be used to promote the initiative in February and March, in support of science, women and health. 
 

Check out the following features:

• Starting on 11 February, CeRIS will be publishing weekly profiles of women from Pasteur Institute through their careers and scientific work, based on historical research by Sandra Legout and echoing the exhibition taking place in the atrium of the François Jacob Centre. You can also discover CeRIS's favourite videos starting on 5 March. Other events will be on the programme with CeRIS. To find out more, follow the BIP during the month dedicated to women.
   
• Once a week throughout the month, vote on the museum's Instagram account to discover portraits of women who have shaped the Pasteur Institute. Through their scientific research and work, they have shaped the Pasteur Institute of today.
   
• Profiles of current women scientists on pasteur.fr
   
• A series of videos: questions asked by members of the public during vox pops together with answers from women in the lab 

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A dedicated space on ePasteur

All the latest news about the month focusing on women, science and women's health will soon be available in a dedicated space on the ePasteur intranet, including calendars, deadlines, major events, testimonials, key figures and resources.