March 8, 2025: report on the meeting between minister Elisabeth Borne and 9th grade students with Yasmine Belkaid, Céline Calvez, Agnès Diallo and Véronique Vella

Strengthening gender equality in the workplace and tackling all forms of discrimination and gender-based and sexual violence are key challenges that involve leading by example and raising awareness among young people as early as possible.

On Saturday March 8, at the initiative of Elisabeth Borne, a meeting was held at the French Ministry of Education, Higher Education and Research in the Hôtel de Rochechouart to discuss and share views about the challenges of gender equality in schools, in connection with International Women's Day. Yasmine Belkaid, President of the Institut Pasteur, and Mariana Mesel-Lemoine, Director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, accepted the minister's invitation to come and meet students.

A series of presentations and discussions highlighted various initiatives and measures taken to promote gender equality in schools.

The meeting was an opportunity to focus on the efforts of high school students who are members of their student council, with the presentation of the teaching kit for the “Il, elle, on” program , and also to look back at the academic conference "Teaching about sustainable development and gender equality." The event was also aimed at teachers, with a discussion on how they can promote equality in their work, especially when it comes to mathematics. The focus then turned to media literacy, especially the "Zéro Cliché" competition and the "Pionnières en Picardie" project.

At the end of the meeting, a round table to encourage feedback and personal testimonies was also held, with the involvement of Yasmine Belkaid, President of the Institut Pasteur, Céline Calvez, a member of parliament for Hauts-de Seine, and Agnès Diallo, President of IN Groupe, as well as Véronique Vella from the Comédie-Française theater company. Under the moderation of Cynthia Illouz, a journalist specializing in CSR and gender equality and founder of the media outlet The Women's Voices, each participant answered two questions: What was their childhood dream and what obstacles had they had to overcome? And what advice would they give to girls to help them achieve their dreams? The assembled audience therefore had the opportunity to hear from a scientist, a politician, a business leader and an actress as they shared their inspiring stories and advice for younger generations.

 

 

An article emphasizing the need for gender equality in science

"Enabling girls to access scientific careers is a major challenge!"

As part of the Institut Pasteur’s commitment to gender equality, Yasmine Belkaid joined with Claire Rougeulle, Director of the Institut Curie Research Center, and Bana Jabri, Director of the Imagine Institute, to publish a column in which they point out that "research remains a field in which gender equality is struggling to make inroads. This persistent disparity is not just stalling the careers of female scientists; it is also slowing down innovation and having a direct impact on the health and well-being of society as a whole."

Read the online article "Women in science: an ongoing battle" published in Ouest-France on March 8 (in French)