Visibility and Recognition

Women have always conducted research, asked questions and made discoveries. Yet for centuries, they were systematically denied access to academic institutions around the world.

In many European countries and North America, women were only permitted to attend universities from the late 19th or early 20th century onwards – often only under specific conditions, such as attending as guest auditors without examination rights or requiring special permission from male mentors. Some women were only able to conduct research because their fathers or husbands supported them or gave them access to private laboratories. Many had to study in secret, sitting behind curtains in lecture halls or conducting experiments in improvised home laboratories.

In most cases, only white women from wealthy, middle-class or academic backgrounds had any real chance of overcoming the systemic barriers of the male-dominated scientific establishment.
For the majority, however — particularly working-class women, Black women, Jewish women, and women from colonised regions — access to science remained virtually out of reach. Intersectional discrimination excluded them from the education system, resources, and public recognition.

Even women who conducted research in extremely challenging circumstances were frequently overlooked. Many were not permitted to publish under their own names, or chose not to for fear that they would not be taken seriously. Some were nominated for prestigious awards multiple times, but never received them. Recognition often went to their male colleagues instead. Many of their achievements were either forgotten or never documented.

This legacy continues to have an impact. In 2022, women accounted for around 31% of all active researchers worldwide. Although they are formally equal in academia today, women still face structural disadvantages. Studies show that their work is cited less often, they are less likely to be appointed to leadership positions and they receive fewer awards — a pattern known as the Matilda effect. These dynamics continue to influence who is recognised in science: when children are asked to imagine a scientist, they most often picture a man.

By naming the meeting rooms at the Rahel Hirsch Centre after women scientists, we aim to recognise this history, raise the profile of women in science, and send a message for the future.
The selected scientists represent a variety of disciplines, backgrounds and life experiences, yet they all had to fight for their academic careers in the face of exclusion, discrimination or persecution.

This selection is not intended to be a complete canon. Rather, it is a collective statement by our institution, demonstrating our commitment to visibility, recognition and transformation.
By honouring these trailblazers, we hope to inspire a scientific culture in which everyone, regardless of gender, background, sexual orientation, religion or skin colour, has equal opportunities to participate and contribute.