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  • CAREER COLUMN

Speed geeking: how speed-dating techniques can tackle power imbalances at conferences

A female research group adapted the matchmaking format to make meetings more inclusive.
By
  1. Lise Lafferty

    1. Lise Lafferty is a senior research fellow at the Kirby Institute and the Centre for Social Research in Health, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.

  2. Jackie R. Thomas

    1. Jackie R. Thomas is a proud Kamilaroi Aboriginal research officer at the Kirby Institute, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.

  3. Janet Gare

    1. Janet Gare is a senior research fellow and head of the Sexual and Reproductive Health Unit at the Papua New Guinea Institute of Medical Research, Goroka, Papua New Guinea.

  4. Caroline G. Watts

    1. Caroline G. Watts is a health economist and research fellow at the Kirby Institute, University of New South Wales, and at The Daffodil Centre, a joint venture of Cancer Council NSW and the University of Sydney, Australia.

  5. Alison D. Marshall

    1. Alison D. Marshall is a lecturer at the Kirby Institute and the Centre for Social Research in Health, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.

We are five women who have experienced the inherent power dynamics that occur at conferences. We’ve witnessed examples of gender imbalance, such as all-male panels or the tokenistic woman among five men, and watched as the queue to take the audience microphone fills predominantly with male questioners.

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doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-023-01866-5

This is an article from the Nature Careers Community, a place for Nature readers to share their professional experiences and advice. Guest posts are encouraged.

Competing Interests

The authors declare no competing interests.

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