Homeward Bound (organization)

Homeward Bound is an organisation based in Australia that holds leadership programs for women in science. Founded in 2015, the leadership program aims to increase the representation of women in leadership roles in science fields.

Homeward Bound
Founded2015 (2015) in Tasmania, Australia
Founders
Websitehomewardboundprojects.com.au

Homeward Bound participants go through a twelve month training program that is focused around the topic of climate change and concluded with a three-week expedition to Antarctica. The first Homeward Bound expedition in 2016 attracted media attention as it was the largest ever all-woman expedition to Antarctica, with 76 participating scientists. Expeditions organised in the following years have had more participants.

Program

Australian marine ecologist Jessica Melbourne-Thomas and entrepreneur Fabian Dattner founded Homeward Bound in 2015 out of discussions regarding the challenges encountered by women in science.[1][2][3] Until the mid-20th century, women were discouraged from exploring Antarctica. Only in 1969 did the first American team of women researchers reach the continent.[2][4]

The goal of Homeward Bound is to increase the representation of women in leadership roles in science fields. To that end, it plans to organise expeditions to Antarctica for a decade and establish a network of a thousand women capable of taking these roles and shaping policy.[1][2] The program has participants go through twelve months of leadership training based around the topic of climate change. It is concluded with a three-week expedition to Antarctica, where participants observe the effects of climate change on Antarctica.[5][6][7]

A main sponsor of the program is the Spanish energy firm Acciona.[8]

Gentoo penguins on the Antarctic Peninsula

History

In 2016, Homeward Bound made its inaugural Antarctic expedition with seventy-six scientists of varying fields, then reported to be the largest all-woman expedition to Antarctica.[5][9] Lack of government support prevented them from sailing out of Tasmania, where the program was founded, so the launch was set in Ushuaia, Argentina.[1] They departed on 2 December and spent twenty days at sea, exploring the Antarctic Peninsula and landing at various American and Argentinian research stations.[4][10]

Homeward Bound made its next two expeditions in 2018. A second group of seventy-eight participants embarked in February[11] and a third group of eighty participants did so in December.[12] A fourth group of one hundred participants made the expedition in November 2019.[13] Each of the three expeditions was reported to be the largest all-woman expedition to Antarctica at its time.[14][15][16] In 2019, participants were selected for a fifth expedition in 2020,[17] however this was later changed to an online program due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[18]

In October 2020, a coalition of 289 scientists and conservation experts associated with Homeward Bound called for the creation of a new marine protected area around the western Antarctic Peninsula. The commentary was published in Nature just as governments convened for the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources.[19]

In 2021, a sixth program of 100 participants was reported to leave in early 2022.[20]

See also

References
  1. "Largest all-woman expedition heads to Antarctica". BBC. 1 December 2016. Retrieved 11 December 2020.
  2. Bagri, Neha Thirani (13 December 2016). "The largest all-female expedition to Antarctica, aiming to combat sexism in the sciences, has set sail". Quartz. Archived from the original on 9 December 2020. Retrieved 11 December 2020.
  3. Barbiroglio, Emanuela (June 2020). "For a bolder climate action: women go to the Antarctic". The Beam. No. 11. Retrieved 11 December 2020.
  4. Scott, Katy (22 June 2017). "How women in science are setting themselves up to save our planet". CNN. Retrieved 11 December 2020.
  5. Amatulli, Jenna (3 December 2016). "Largest Ever All-Female Expedition Sets Sail For Antarctica". The Huffington Post. Retrieved 11 December 2020.
  6. "Challenge of being a female scientist shared among Antarctica tour members". EFE. 22 January 2019. Retrieved 11 December 2020.
  7. Martin, Jen (10 February 2020). "Challenging the climate of bias". Pursuit. University of Melbourne. Retrieved 24 December 2020.
  8. "Homeward Bound banks on global network of women working for the planet". EFE. 20 January 2019. Retrieved 6 January 2022.
  9. Rellihan, Kathleen (16 January 2020). "Women Who Changed the World in the Last Century". Newsweek. Retrieved 11 December 2020.
  10. "Fantastic voyage: scientists return from exhilarating Antarctic adventure". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. 15 January 2017. Retrieved 11 December 2020.
  11. Ball, Shelley (21 February 2018). "How the Homeward Bound expedition program is empowering women in science". Canadian Geographic. Retrieved 11 December 2020.
  12. Anderson, Duncan (1 January 2019). "La Tica Polar: Costa Rican scientist pursues her Antarctic dreams". The Tico Times. Retrieved 13 December 2020.
  13. "Leadership program in Antarctica a life-changing experience, says Laurentian University professor". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. 3 January 2020. Retrieved 11 December 2020.
  14. Hamylton, Sarah; Balez, Rachelle (23 May 2018). "How a trip to Antarctica became a real-life experiment in decision-making". The Conversation. Retrieved 19 December 2020. This is the story of "Rothera-gate", a leadership development experience on the largest all-female expedition to Antarctica.
  15. "Largest all-women expedition arrives in Antarctica". Women's Agenda. 9 January 2019. Retrieved 24 December 2020.
  16. Lydersen, Kari; Miner, Kalgoorlie (5 December 2019). "Gold Fields geochemist on Antarctic expedition". The West Australian. Retrieved 25 December 2020. Dr Pass, who is currently in Antarctica, was among 100 women in the science, technology, engineering, maths and medical fields selected to take part in the biggest ever all-women expedition to the continent.
  17. Healey, Derek (24 August 2019). "Dundee scientist to follow in footsteps of Discovery Expedition for prestigious leadership programme". The Courier. Retrieved 26 December 2020.
  18. "#HB5VirtualVoyage". Homeward Bound. 26 October 2020. Archived from the original on 5 December 2020. Retrieved 22 February 2021.
  19. Garrison, Cassandra (19 October 2020). "All-female scientific coalition calls for protection of Antarctic Peninsula". Reuters. Retrieved 11 December 2020.
  20. Shalom, François (14 January 2021). "Stephanie Fernandez is Homeward Bound". McGill Reporter. Retrieved 22 February 2021.
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