To lay the foundation for gender equality plans (GEPs) in research organisations, MINDtheGEPs has gathered various types of data to understand and address the multiple intersecting barriers. The initial step involved analyzing the strengths and weaknesses of each national context. This report, initially shared as part of the project titled Gender Imbalances at the Macro-Level: A Comparative Analysis of Partners' Legal and Policy Contexts, assessed research and higher education legislation and policies (particularly in terms of recruitment, promotion, and access to research funds), the gender equality approaches adopted in each country to meet EU directives, as well as labour market and welfare policies (especially those supporting the "dual earner-dual carer" model, breaking away from the traditional "unconditional worker" assumption). The collected material provides an overview of the differences in national settings where our partner organisations and researchers operate. These settings shape a set of opportunities and constraints that are not gender-neutral and inevitably influence the actions and achievements of organisations and male and female researchers in their pursuit of more inclusive and innovative science in a "happier" equilibria with other spheres of their lives.