Together against violence and discrimination

Together against violence and discrimination

From November 25, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, to December 10, International Human Rights Day, the annual “16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence” campaign takes place. Violence includes not only physical harm, but also sexual and gender-based harassment and discrimination.

Sexual and gender-based harassment are unwanted behaviors that undermine a person’s dignity based solely on their gender.

They can be nonverbal or verbal behaviors and may or may not include touching. These behaviors thus form part of a continuum ranging from judgmental comments about a person’s appearance, to abuse of power and actions that can be attributed to the sexual sphere. A vulgar joke, “leering”, unwanted invitations, a “casual” touch, ambiguous innuendo, or misogynistic anecdotes—all of these are forms of sexual and gender-based harassment. Sexist jokes in lectures, derogatory comments about fellow students’ outfits, stalking on campus, or questions about a student’s private life in exam situations – all of this goes too far. Actions that all parties have voluntarily agreed to without fear of retribution are not sexual or gender-based harassment.

However, it is important to note that tolerating an action is not the same as agreeing to it.

What can we do?

If somebody come to you: Always take their stories and reports seriously; do not question them; refer them to places they can turn to for help; give them tips so that they feel confident about setting boundaries.
If you observe something: Intervene, offer help, point out that what is happening is not okay.
If you know something happened: Talk to someone you trust; seek support from the Working Group for Equal Treatment and/or the Carinthian Center for Protection against Violence; offer to accompany those affected to places where they can get help.
In the case of digital violence: Report content, inform moderators, etc.

University Stuff can:

Be role models: Intervene in cases of violence, clearly identify abusive behaviour, impose sanctions where necessary
Signal support and change the setting: e.g., adapt moderation methods, organise physical separation
Inform superiors or seek advice, e.g. AKG, works council, or external points of contact

Further information:

https://www.gleichbehandlungsanwaltschaft.gv.at/english.html

https://www.gewaltschutzzentrum.at/en/general-advice-and-support/

https://unisafe-toolkit.eu/

Have you taken care of all your appointments?

Have you taken care of all your appointments?

Many parents took vacation during the fall break week. This was not only noticeable among the staff, but also in the courses, where seats remained empty. Many of them were probably engaged in caregiving activities during this time.

Care work includes all activities that are necessary for everyday life, such as raising children, housework, nursing, and emotional and organizational care (mental load). The separation between unpaid care work and paid work is not natural, but has developed historically. Despite its central importance, care work is still socially and economically devalued today and is distributed unequally between the sexes, to the detriment of women.

How does this manifest itself in Austria?

According to Statistics Austria, as soon as children under the age of 15 live in the household, part-time work among women and full-time work among men increases in Austria. Man full-time/woman part-time is the most common combination of labor force participation among heterosexual couples. Only 3.38% of childcare allowance is paid to fathers. Social stereotypes and fear of negative consequences at work are obstacles to greater participation by fathers.

How does this manifest itself among the employees of Alpen-Adria-Universität?

As of April 2024, 13 women and 3 men at AAU are on parental leave. 21 women and 3 men continue to work part-time after parental leave. Studies show that equal sharing of childcare responsibilities also leads to greater equality in working life and reduces the risk of poverty in old age for women.

What is the situation among students?

According to the 2023 Student Social Survey, 8% of students across Austria live in a household with at least one child under the age of 25, and 2.6% with at least one infant under the age of 3. Students with children can spend an average of 10 hours less per week on their studies—and even less with infants (21.1 hours). In addition to the high cost of childcare and nursing care, there is also a significantly higher level of employment. 0.9% of all students are single parents – the majority of whom are mothers. Of these, 51% struggle with financial problems (compared to 29% of all students).

You can listen to episode 04 of the podcast here: Balancing work and family life – a systemic issue

In this episode, we talk about the systemic issue of balancing work and family life. Lux Pratter interviewed Barbara Schuster, deputy chief economist at the Momentum Institute, who focuses on wealth distribution, labor economics, and feminist economics. Kirstin Mertlitsch, head of the University Center for Women’s* and Gender Studies and Diversity at the University of Klagenfurt/Celovec, talks about changes in gender roles and their explosive social impact, and why the topic of “gender” is so important to right-wing and conservative forces. In addition, Bronwen Arbeiter-Weyrer, head of family services at Alpen Adria University, talks about the measures and services available at the university to promote the compatibility of studies, career, teaching, and family. The podcast is only available in German.

We also invite AAU members to the following exchange formats:

Wiedereinstieg@AAU – returning to work after parental leave
When: Thursday, November 20, 2025, from 3:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. Further information & registration: pe4you.aau.at
Balancing professional mobility and family life
When: Wednesday, January 14, 2026, from 2:00 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. // Where: online // Registration via pe4you.aau.at

What can we do individually to improve the situation?

We can all:

Make different forms of care work visible and value them more highly.
Contribute to a work-life balance-friendly culture, for example by holding meetings during working hours and exchanging emails on working days.
Question attributions and role expectations: AAU supports paternity leave, for example.

Employees can:

Enable flexible formats and examination methods in teaching
Offer childcare services for conferences or meetings, see, for example, the services offered by Family Services
Enable working from home, more flexible working hours, and hybrid meetings

Further information on the statistics:

https://www.statistik.at/statistiken/bevoelkerung-und-soziales/gender-statistiken

https://www.statistik.at/statistiken/bevoelkerung-und-soziales/sozialleistungen/familienleistungen

https://www.sozialerhebung.at/index.php/de/

With the campaign “Youniversity: Celebrating diversity. Living respect.” the Equal Opportunities Working Group (AKG) of the University of Klagenfurt will focus on various diversity topics throughout the next two semesters. You can find more information on the campaign website.

How is social background linked to success at university?

A person’s social background is measured, among other things, on the level of education of their family. A person’s parents’ level of education has a significant influence on their social mobility and opportunities for advancement. It also influences the material and social resources available to them. At the University of Klagenfurt, a particularly large number of people are the first in their family to study, meaning they are so-called ‘first-generation students’. Although this is a positive development, the influence of a person’s social background does not end with access to higher education. Classist barriers continue to exist throughout the course of study, making it more difficult to study. To draw attention to this, this month we will take a closer look at the topics of classism and social background in higher education and highlight possible courses of action that will enable us to deal with them in a conscious and inclusive manner.

The structural barriers that first-generation students in particular (but not only) face during their studies include, for example, differences in resources due to their background. These include a lack of financial support or contact persons and role models from their environment who can relate to their university experiences and support them in this regard. This makes it more likely that first-generation students will have to work alongside their studies. At the same time, they need more resources to network and orient themselves socially at university and have to make a bigger effort to understand university-specific terminology and processes.

In this context, they often lack identification with the university and a sense of belonging to the university community. These experiences can be reinforced by everyday forms of classism, such as idealised academic habitus and language use.

What does Habitus mean?

Habitus (according to Bourdieu) refers to behaviours that are learned and reproduced in the context of one’s own social environment.

In the university context, a specific habitus is expected. The reactions of teaching staff when this expectation is not met can give students a feeling of ‘otherness’. The expected habitus in an academic context includes, for example, speaking without an accent or dialect. Dialects, i.e. regional language varieties, and sociolects, i.e. language varieties of socially defined groups, are often devalued. These forms of classism are – in contrast to structurally visible barriers – often subconscious and can contribute to the shaming of those affected.

The individuals affected are often expected to overcome or resolve the structures and disadvantages mentioned above themselves. However, there is also a need and opportunity for the university to take action – both on an individual and everyday level, as well as on a structural level – in order to provide support.

One existing support programme for first-generation students is the BeFirst! mentoring programme. As part of the programme, peers accompany students from their final year of school until the end of their first year of study at university and provide support, particularly with orientation at the university. The programme therefore follows the principle of ‘helping people to help themselves’.

There are a number of ways in which all members of the university community can counteract classist structures in everyday university life:

Everyone can:

consider our own social background and the associated advantages or disadvantages, for example by asking the following questions:
- What kind of support did I receive from my environment during my studies? How can I pass this on?
- How many books were there in my home when I was growing up?
- Does the university feel like a place where I belong? What does it take for it to become such a place for me and others?
learn to appreciate the diversity of behaviours and language variants and insist less on a standard language.

Teaching staff can:

reflect on their own educational biography, raise awareness and highlight the diverse educational backgrounds of academics.
encourage students to have confidence in their own skills and abilities.
when assessing or evaluating, consciously listen to the content of what is being said rather than the language used by a person.
work with open access materials and make them available.

With the campaign “Youniversity: Celebrating diversity. Living respect.” the Equal Opportunities Working Group (AKG) of the University of Klagenfurt will focus on various diversity topics throughout the next two semesters. You can find more information on the campaign website.

Did you know? There are more than two genders and sexes!

As June is Pride Month, we would like to take a closer look at the topic of gender diversity this month. Gender is thought, discussed, experienced and lived beyond the rigid concept of binarity. Non-binarity is a topic in every scientific discipline that deals with gender. For example, in medicine: biologically, gender can be determined by external sexual characteristics, reproductive organs, chromosomes and hormones. However, from a scientific perspective, this cannot always be categorised in binary terms.

The term gender diversity includes gender identity and gender expression. Both do not necessarily have to correspond to binary, cis-heteronormative categories; a person’s gender identity, for example, does not always correspond to the gender assigned at birth. Gender expression (i.e. how a person chooses to present themselves to the outside world, e.g. through their appearance or behaviour) also does not directly indicate their gender identity.

What does cis-heteronormativity mean?

Cis-heteronormativity refers to the social norm that assumes one form of sexuality (heterosexuality) and two binary genders (cis-women and cis-men). These norms also go hand in hand with privileges.

What role does this play in everyday university life?

Gender identities are often incorrectly assigned in everyday (university) life. All-gender toilets play a major role here; these make everyday life easier for people who are often assigned a gender that does not match. Self-chosen names and pronouns are also important in a university context. The desire to name oneself is often met with incomprehension and unacceptance. In everyday university life, however, there are hardly any situations where this is not possible. Students now also have the option of changing their name in the campus system so that the desired name is displayed on course attendance lists, for example.

There are also a whole range of options for an inclusive university that can be easily incorporated into our everyday lives.

Everyone can:

recognise gender diversity – it has always existed
communicate our chosen pronouns and ask others about theirs, also in order to normalise communication about pronouns
use people’s chosen form of address and support each other with this
not address a person using their deadname*

*a deadname is the name given to a person at birth which does not fit their gender identity anymore.

Teaching staff can:

incorporate the desired pronouns and names of a person in introduction rounds
ensure that the desired forms of address are used in discussions
communicate scientific facts on the topic and intervene in cases of discrimination

Further information:

Barker, Meg-John & Jules Scheele. (2019.) Gender: A Graphic Guide. Icon books.

LGBTQIA+ Glossary. Resource Center for Sexual & Gender Diversity. University of California, Santa Barbara. https://rcsgd.sa.ucsb.edu/resources/lgbtqia-informational-resources/lgbtqia-glossary?letter=1

With the campaign “Youniversity: Celebrating diversity. Living respect.” the Equal Opportunities Working Group (AKG) of the University of Klagenfurt will focus on various diversity topics throughout the next two semesters. You can find more information on the campaign website.