Women Physicists in the European Union : how Brussels is moving toward gender equality

The policies of the European Union towards gender equality in science occupation will be discussed along three aspects: 1. Current statistics recently published by the EU will be illustrated with some comparison with similar US statistics. The latest recommendations of the Helsinki group will be presented, together with the conclusions of the Women in Science meetings organized by the EU. 2. The implementation of these recommendations will be illustrated by this speaker's experience both as independent expert for Physics Research Programs for the European Commission for the last 10 years, as well as from the point of view of having been European Coordinator of three Research Networks in Theoretical Physics from 1992 until 2006: the impact of this on young women students will be described. 3. National policies enforced through the Equal Opportunity Committees will be illustrated, with the specific case of the Affirmative Actions of Italian INFN Equal Opportunity Committe and their impact on hiring and promotion of women physicists.