This report outlines the set of key prerequisites (i.e., ‘must haves’ and ‘nice to haves’) for an effective award/certification system for gender equality in higher education research and innovation. It is based on the critical review of key debates and considerations for the architecture of a Europe-wide scheme drawing from opinions of 74 stakeholders across Europe and beyond, complemented by discussions from two online expert workshops with Consortium partners. Furthermore, this set of prerequisites is translated into suggestions for building a dynamic architecture of a Europe-wide scheme in gender equality. This report will be a key input for the co-creation workshops in the subsequent CASPER tasks and activities in WP5. This report is structured as follows: section 2 sets the scene presenting the key issues regarding the architecture of a Europe-wide scheme on gender equality. It is followed by section 3 which provides a brief outline of the fieldwork and a summary of the internal CASPER Consortium workshops where the agenda and process followed is described. Next, in section 4 the fieldwork evidence is brought together with workshop discussions to outline the key prerequisites for a Europe-wide effective award/certification system, distinguishing between ‘must-haves’ and ‘nice-to-haves’ (which will be utilised in the subsequent stages and WPs of the CASPER project). Section 5 suggests a dynamic architecture approach for a Europe-wide scheme based on a reflective synthesis of stakeholders’ recommendations and on the outputs of two internal CASPER workshops, followed by a brief concluding summary.

This project has received funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 872113.