Welcome to the website of the Society of Women in Natural Sciences at ETH Zürich! WiNS was founded by Prof. Katherine Elvira, Dr. Daniela Paunescu-Bluhm (both ICB) and Dr. Jessica Schulz (IPW) in 2014 as the female association of the Department of Chemistry and Applied Biosciences (D-CHAB). We were joined by the Department of Biology (D-BIOL) in 2021 and the Department of Physics (D-PHYS) and Materials (D-MATL) in 2023. We represent all female members of the four departments and our mission is to support Women in Natural Sciences via engagement in career and personal development events, networking and leadership. Another core value of ours is to provide a platform to highlight all the female talent existing within industry & academia at all career stages.

WiNS Politics

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Associations and Initiatives Striving for Equal Opportunities

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An Overview of Help Points

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News

The WiNS Mentoring Program is back for 2024!

Our program covers from 1st year BSc students all the way up to postdocs. If you'd like to be a mentor, all you need is to be at least a 3rd-year BSc student. It will be a 1-to-1 system and the pairing will be done based on the introductory event and a feedback form. Interested in becoming a mentor starting October 2024? Sign up now!

WiNS was awarded the 3rd place of the AVETH Diversity Award!

Congratulations to Valentina Gasser, our former vice president in 2022, for winning in the individual category, and Katharina Kolatzki, our D-PHYS Events head, for her 2nd runner-up position!

The younger generation fighting sexual harassment at Swiss universities

Public awareness campaigns have not stemmed sexual harassment at Swiss universities. A new generation of women is taking matters into their own hands. SWI swissinfo.ch met three of them.

Article about WiNS in VCS' Exsikkator

WiNS has recently contributed an article to the Chemistry Students' Association at ETHZ (VCS), promoting our latest initiatives, including the new Mentoring Program, among undergraduate and graduate students. Check it out here!

Article about WiNS in Chimia

WiNS celebrates its 10th anniversary! To mark this milestone, we've authored a retrospective and forward-looking article in the latest issue of Chimia on advancing SDGs in Chemistry in Switzerland. Special thanks to Prof. Dr. Jovana Milic, our former president and guest editor, for highlighting quality education and gender equality.

Special Issue Helvetica: Women in Science

As part of the IUPAC Global Women's Breakfast 2023, Helvetica Chimica Acta is highlighting the work of female scientists across chemical sciences. Take a look at the compilation - the next printed issue will follow in February 2024!

Open Letter about the 'Leaky Pipeline' in the Natural Sciences

This open letter contains the collective response of AVETH and other ETH-affiliated organizations (listed in the signatures) to the recent interview, first published in a news outlet on 06.05.2023, regarding the results of a study on the “causes of the leaky pipeline” in academia led by Prof. Margit Osterloh and Prof. Katja Rost at the University of Zurich. Check it out here!

Open Letter To The ETH Board 2023
Open Letter To The ETH Board 2024
Get to know the "Women in Natural Sciences" (WiNS) – Interview at D-CHAB

Women have often had a hard time in the natural sciences, but times are changing. Associations like the Society for Women in Natural Sciences at D-​CHAB and D-​BIOL are contributing significantly to this change. Their recipe for success is to include all genders, raise awareness, strengthen networks, and have fun doing it. On today's International Day of Women and Girls in Science, Seraphine Zhang and Valentina Gasser talk about personal experiences, upcoming challenges, and big plans for WiNS.

Throwback: Event Gallery 2023

We thank all our motivated and generous partners supporting us to strive towards an inclusive environment for all at ETH Zürich.

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