Beyond Policy: The Odyssey of Implementing GEPs in European Academia

Abstract

This article investigates the design and implementation of Gender Equality Plans (GEPs) across nine European universities within a university alliance, emphasising the importance of context‐specific interventions. It explores the diversity in GEPs' content, structure, and implementation, as well as the organisation of gender equality work, revealing how national policies, institutional priorities, and socio‐cultural contexts shape these processes. Key challenges include gendered academic cultures, internal resistance, structural and organisational barriers, resource limitations, national commitment disparities, and deeply ingrained societal norms affecting gender equality. Drawing on complexity theory, this article advocates for gender‐sensitive and context‐aware frameworks to navigate the non‐linear nature of institutional interventions in academia across diverse settings. Moreover, it offers insights into the implementation of GEPs within university alliances, a context underexplored in the literature. By examining the dynamics of GEP implementation across multiple institutions within a collaborative framework, the article uniquely contributes to understanding how alliances facilitate knowledge exchange, resource sharing, and collective learning, enhancing institutional capacity and fostering synergies to more effectively address gender inequalities.