Lynda Hardman, Principal Researcher and Strategist at CWI and Professor of Multimedia Discourse Interaction at Utrecht University, was honoured for her long-standing commitment to equity, diversity and inclusion within the Dutch and European computer science community. “It is encouraging to see that the culture within IPN members has really changed in the last decade”, Hardman says. “Diversity is now a topic that concerns departmental management teams – not just activist individuals like myself."
Long-term commitment to EDI
According to IPN, Hardman has been “a transformative force for equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) within IPN, championing women in science both nationally and across Europe”. The organization praises her for recognizing that the underrepresentation of women in computer science not only limits talent, but also means that “values and perspectives are systematically excluded from the technologies shaping our society”.
Over the years, Hardman has played a central role in strengthening attention to equity, diversity and inclusion within IPN. She helped establish gender representation requirements in IPN’s founding statutes and founded the IPN EDI working group, which has become an important driver of change within the Dutch ICT community. She also worked directly with department heads across the IPN network to ensure that each institution appointed an EDI representative.
Encouraging women in computer science
IPN also highlights her efforts to encourage more women to pursue research careers in computer science. Together with others, she co-authored the booklet Why would I want to do a PhD in Computer Science?, aimed at inspiring female Master’s students to consider a PhD trajectory.
Impact beyond the Netherlands
Her influence extended beyond the Netherlands. As an ambassador for IPN within Informatics Europe, Hardman helped strengthen the Dutch computing community’s presence at European level. She served as President of Informatics Europe from 2016 to 2017 and helped ensure that all Dutch computer science departments became members.
There too, she pushed for structural change, founding the WIRE working group and co-authoring More Women in Informatics Research & Education. According to IPN, 5,000 copies of that booklet were distributed to more than 200 computer science departments across Europe.
Structural change
In the award citation, IPN describes Hardman’s work as “an enduring legacy of structural change that helps IPN grow and represent the full breadth of society it serves”. It is that sustained contribution, over more than a decade, that led to her receiving the IPN Service Award.
About IPN
ICT-Research Platform Netherlands brings together scientists in the academic ICT domain and serves as the leading authority on future needs, opportunities, and research priorities within ICT science. The platform strengthens academic research and education in ICT by fostering a national community and developing policies that advance the field.
