Caprile, MariaBettachy, MinaDuhaček, DašaMirazić, MilicaPalmén, RachelKussy, Angelina2025-10-072025-10-072022Caprile M, Bettachy M, Duhaček D, Mirazić M, Palmén R, Kussy A. Structural change towards gender equality: learning from bottom-up and top-down experiences of GEP implementation in universities. In: Wroblewski A, Palmén R, editors. Overcoming the challenge of structural change in research organisations: a reflexive approach to gender equality. Leeds: Emerald Publishing Limited; c2022. p. 161-79. DOI: 10.1108/978-1-80262-119-8202210109781802621228http://hdl.handle.net/10230/71422Universities are large, complex and highly hierarchical organisations with deeply engrained gendered values, norms and practices. This chapter reflects on the experiences of two universities in initiating structural change towards gender equality as supported by the TARGET project. A common aspect thereby is the lack of a national policy in higher education and research providing specific support for implementing gender equality policies. The process of audit, design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the first gender equality plan (GEP) in each of these universities was conceived as a first step in a long journey, providing a framework for engaging different institutional actors and fostering reflexive, evidence-based policy making. The analysis deals with reflexivity and resistance and seeks to draw lessons from bottom-up and top-down experiences of GEP implementation. It is the result of shared reflection between the GEP ‘implementers’ in the two universities and the team who provided support and acted as ‘critical friends’.application/pdfengCopyright © 2022 Maria Caprile, Mina Bettachy, Daša Duhaček, Milica Mirazić, Rachel Palmén and Angelina Kussy. Published under exclusive licence by Emerald Publishing Limited. This work is published under the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0) licence. Anyone may reproduce, distribute, translate and create derivative works of this book (for both commercial and non-commercial purposes), subject to full attribution to the original publication and authors. The full terms of this licence may be seen at http://creativecommons.org/licences/by/4.0/legalcode 26th April 2021, signed by Angela Wroblewski and Rachel Palmén.info:eu-repo/semantics/bookParthttp://dx.doi.org/10.1108/9781802621198UniversityGender equality planTop-downBottom-upCommunity of practiceReflexivityinfo:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess