Activities
The Cluster of Excellence CLICCS is committed to providing equal opportunities in order to promote an inclusive culture that values diversity. CLICCS also regards the diversity of its members and staff as a source of strength, one that helps it to develop its full potential and innovative ideas.
We welcome excellent scholars of all genders, nationalities, religions and sexual orientations.
We combine the three central aspects gender, diversity, and family under the umbrella of equal opportunity. See also: Equal Opportunity Unit at the Universität Hamburg
Gender
At CLICCS, we promote equal opportunities for all genders. Homophobia and transphobia have no place at the cluster. Our goal is to provide a safe working environment for everyone. Further, we take prompt action against all forms of sexual harassment. If you have any questions or need advice, contact a member of the Gender & Diversity Committee.
In addition, we offer a series of workshops and other event formats specially developed for our female scientists and for girls who want to pursue a career in science.
See also Gender at Universität Hamburg
For Women Scientists
Rules of the game in academia
On the path to a scientific career, knowledge must be acquired that is not explicitly communicated anywhere and for which there are no sources to be looked up. Exclusion mechanisms are often subliminal. Understanding decision making in the systemic and organizational context and the unwritten rules of micropolitical action can promote one's own strategic competence – also under the aspect of diversity.
Navigating the shark tank. Power games and micropolitical competence in academia
Some processes involving power games are perceived as unproductive, frustrating or even annoying. However, experience also tells us that difficult situations can be mastered by analyzing the dynamics of key situations and of the players‘ interests involved, by skillful communication and, generally, by a power-conscious approach.
How to be proactive: mental training for your personal and professional success
Women in academia face particular challenges in the course of their careers. On the one hand, there is the high pressure to perform, lots of expectations and the hierarchical structures at universities. In addition women have to struggle more with self-criticism and their demand for perfection than their male colleagues. How do we manage to motivate ourselves again in such situations, to make new plans and to implement them? Methods of mental strengthening and coaching can be a simple start to regaining our sovereignty after setbacks or in difficult circumstances.
How to perform confidently and communicate effectively
In the study and doctoral phases, it is very important to make progress, especially in terms of qualifications, diligence and performance. This applies to men and women alike. But later, when it comes to making a career - whether at university or in a company - this is not enough anymore. Now it's about becoming visible - and most men are more successful in this field than women are. They communicate in a fundamentally different way. This workshop gives the participants the ability to present their own competence in the best possible way.
Girl's Day
Held once a year, Girls’ Day is intended to motivate girls and women to pursue technical and scientific professions. The CLICCS School of integrated Climate and Earth Systeme Sciences (SICCS) participates annually in the event.
How do you become a climate researcher?
The event is jointly organized by the Cluster of Excellence CLICCS and the Center for Earth System Research and Sustainability CEN at Universität Hamburg.
At CEN, researchers from such disparate disciplines as e.g. meteorology and peace research are working to find out how we humans can adapt to climate change and what our future will look like.
On Girls’ Day, a member of Universität Hamburg’s Cluster of Excellence CLICCS will tell you who is actually conducting climate research. Afterwards, an expert from the Cluster will share some insights into her work and tell you what she actually does as a climate researcher.
Finally, a tour of the wind tunnel at Universität Hamburg’s Department of Earth Sciences awaits you. There you will have the opportunity to observe and feel wind currents firsthand.
Pro Exzellenzia
Together with Pro Exzellenzia, a program that has been successfully preparing women for management positions for over ten years, we offer a range of workshops especially for women.
Good negotiations are half the battle – negotiation strategies in the academic world
There are numerous negotiation situations in an academic career – whether as a research assistant, doctoral candidate, in the post-doc phase, when acquiring third-party funding or when taking up a professorship. But these situations aren’t always as clear-cut as when negotiating for a professorship. So what are the concrete negotiation situations? How much leeway is there? And what tips and tricks can help you go into negotiations confidently and well prepared? We’ve invited experts who will give you the answers to these questions. Dr. Stefanie Schönbach-Fuleda, an academic coach and trainer, will show you which negotiation strategies are most successful and what you should avoid doing at all costs. In turn, academics will share with you personal negotiation experiences from their careers.
Coach me! Career booster for female scientists
Career paths in science are associated with special challenges. Female scientists are in a constant state of tension between independent research and dependent temporary employment, publication and performance pressure, the acquisition of third-party funding and teaching obligations. For many young female scientists, talking about the challenges and problems of everyday professional life still carries a stigma. Yet coaching can be an important tool for reflecting on everyday work issues and questions of professional positioning, finding one's own role in the science system, sharpening one's own profile, and pursuing one's own career path in a goal-oriented manner. The renowned trainers provided insights into the thematic blocks of micro-politics, productivity and mental training and the participants received not only theoretical basics but also concrete tips and tricks for application in everyday life.
Movie Screening “Women in science – from inequalities to leadership?”
Movie PICTURE A SCIENTIST
Picture a Scientist chronicles the groundswell of researchers who are writing a new chapter for women scientists. Biologist Nancy Hopkins, chemist Raychelle Burks, and geologist Jane Willenbring lead viewers on a journey deep into their own experiences in the sciences, ranging from brutal harassment to years of subtle slights. Along the way, from cramped laboratories to spectacular field stations, we encounter scientific luminaries - including social scientists, neuroscientists, and psychologists - who provide new perspectives on how to make science itself more diverse, equitable, and open to all.
Movie THE LEADERSHIP
The world is crying out for a new model of leadership, but what is it? One woman
thinks she has the answer. Australian CEO and leadership expert, Fabian Dattner, leads an international group of 76 female scientists on an Antarctic voyage designed to transform them "into the sort of leaders they want to be."Her hope is that once these women are primed to lead in science, they will be able to make meaningful change around the world. But on board, as the women's deeply personal stories of workplace gender biases and more are revealed, Dattner's own leadership style and philosophy is severely tested. Set against the planet’s last untouched wilderness, THE LEADERSHIP delivers an unexpected and original reflection on what it takes to be a good leader, while unearthing the systemic obstacles to women’s advancement in science and beyond.
Diversity
At CLICCS, all students, educators and staff are valued for their individuality, regardless of their gender, skin color, religion, etc. They are all entitled to learn and work together in a discrimination-free environment. If you have any questions or need advice, contact a member of the Gender & Diversity Committee.
See also Diversity at Universität Hamburg
Diversity Days
The Diversity Days take place once a year at Universität Hamburg: during this time, the goals are to highlight and celebrate diversity at the university, and to address the opportunities and challenges of a diverse university across member groups.
In addition, there is a varied program of events ranging from lectures and workshops to discussions, film evenings and campus tours that deal with numerous dimensions of diversity at the university. We participate in the Diversity Days via several panels.
International Arrivals – Presentation and Podium Discussion
Internationalization forms an integral part of Universität Hamburg’s profile. Every year, it welcomes new researchers from all over the globe, who all face similar questions: What do I need to know in terms of legal regulations and my rights? Where can I find support at the university? How can I get in touch with other internationals, and what are the general networking options? How can I best get settled into the German academic system?
The panel “International Arrivals” will address these and other questions. Staff from Human Resources will give short presentations on the relevant legal requirements, and on supporting infrastructures available on campus. The audience will have the chance to ask questions. A subsequent podium discussion will complement the introductory talks. Three scholars and researchers from different academic backgrounds and status groups will share their experiences as internationals at Universität Hamburg. By providing a forum for incoming researchers, the podium hopes to facilitate a productive exchange on both the potentials and pitfalls – and to generate input on how to further optimize the acclimation process for international researchers.
Critical Whiteness in the Working Context – Workshop
In this workshop, we will look at the scope for action that a white position offers for critiquing racism in the context of our work. We will address difficulties and challenges as well as opportunities and possibilities. Interested parties from all fields are welcome: being able to compare different work contexts and their respective possibilities will enrich our exchange.
Speakers: Institut für diskriminierungskritische Bildung
Unisex Toilets
Since January 2021 we have had unisex toilets at the School of Integrated Climate and Earth System Sciences (SICSS) at Grindelberg 5+7. By taking this step, we wanted to make a statement against discrimination. Those who feel they are neither clearly male nor female shouldn’t have to choose; our restrooms are for everyone. There is also a practical side effect: since everyone can use the same toilets, queues are less likely to form at events. We intend to install further unisex toilets in the future.
Family
Trying to balance a scientific career and family is often considered to be very challenging. In particular, limited-term employment contracts, the need to be (nationally or internationally) mobile, and the high pressure to publish are major obstacles to fulfilling family obligations. We regularly offer workshops on reconciling family and career.
Kids' Boxes
Sometimes you might have to bring your child with you to the university. That’s no longer a problem – we have Kids’ Boxes to help keep them occupied, available at Bundesstr. 53 and Grindelberg 5.
Just take the box into your office, and your child can play while you continue working on your own PC. If you’d like to use one of the boxes, please contact our Gender & Diversity Program Coordinator, Sebastian Zubrzycki (+49 40 42838 8895).
Parent-Child Room
If you have problems arranging childcare, the parent-child room (at Grindelberg 7, Room 1007) can be a short-term solution; in an emergency, you can look after your child there while you work. The room offers playing and sleeping options, plus a fully equipped workplace. For further information and to book the room, contact our Gender & Diversity Program Coordinator, Sebastian Zubrzycki.
Student Assistant Hours
CLICCS provides financial resources to cover student assistant hours for staff with family commitments (5h/week for 6 months). This is intended to offer them more flexibility in balancing their research and family commitments.
For further information, contact our Gender & Diversity Program Coordinator, Sebastian Zubrzycki.
SCaP - Scientific Career and Parenthood
Information and discussion on the legal ramifications of limited-term employment contracts (under the WissZeitVG) and their effects on e.g. taking parental leave. The event is hosted by the Clusters of Excellence CLICCS, Quantum Universe and CUI: Advanced Imaging of Matter, and by the Faculty of Mathematics, Informatics and Natural Sciences – in cooperation with the Family Office of Universität Hamburg.
Mental Health
Mental well-being is one of the important issues in our society, in working life and also in academic careers. In this context, together with Desiree Dickerson PhD, we offer webinars from which you will not only learn a lot for your career, but also for your life.
Mental Health & Well-being Webinars
Perfectionism & Imposter Syndrome
We argue that our perfectionism drives us to great heights, to excel, and to maintain our edge. We rarely stop to see the costs it carries. Imposter syndrome distorts the way we see ourselves, our performance, and our capabilities. Both reflect our doubts and fears – fear of being judged, fear of failing, fear of not being good enough, fear of not belonging. They are the product of distorted thinking patterns that we can change.
Motivation & Procrastination
Procrastination is a way of easing our own discomfort. Discomfort because the task is too hard, too boring, too big, too scary. The difficulty with procrastinating is that it makes you feel better for a moment but it does nothing to fix the reason the task feels uncomfortable to begin with. It is still too big, too hard, too scary, or too boring the next time you sit down to do it. And so the cycle repeats.
The Power of Saying No
When everything feels like an opportunity, a priority, or an obligation, how do we say no? The truth is we cannot start saying no until we get clear on why we keep saying yes to everything.
Parenting and academia: managing the mental load
How do we juggle work life balance when “life” comes with such a huge mental load? When the family to-do list is three times as long as the work to-do list and it seems you are always the one that has to remember everything? The thinking part of having children is permanent and it is exhausting. How can we thrive at work while navigating the worry and guilt of managing a family at home? How do we learn to share the planning and management of our homes effectively instead of just delegating tasks? It is possible.
Managing conflict
Conflict is a part of any relationship. And is more frequent when, like in academia, stress is high and resources scarce. How we navigate conflict is what matters most.
Taming the inner critic
We all have an inner voice in our heads. It is an essential part of what makes us human and it is designed to help us navigate the world and to keep us safe. The problem is, in order to keep us safe it tends to focus on the negatives, the perceived threats, and all the possible ways that we might mess up, fall down, or embarrass ourselves.
In addition, during the Covid pandemic, we have offered very valuable webinars such as: “Navigating Uncertainty during COVID times”, “Isolation & Belonging” and “Shifting the Spotlight” to support the mental health of all status groups at SICSS.
Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) training program
The MHFA training program offered by UniWiND is an innovative educational initiative that has already trained over four million first responders worldwide. The is specifically designed to help supervisors/advisors and support staff at graduate institutions to recognize, address, and support the mental health crises of doctoral candidates and postdocs with a focus on depression, anxiety disorders, psychosis, as well as substance abuse and addiction.