Thematic Working Groups
The Thematic Working Groups (TWGs) are a cornerstone of the Women in Digital Forum, functioning as collaborative expert platforms to address critical challenges related to gender equality in the digital ecosystem. Each TWG brings together a diverse community of professionals, academics and institutional stakeholders committed to developing recommendations and innovative strategies to support women’s full participation and leadership in digital fields.
The TWGs operate under the strategic framework of the Connecting Women In Digital project and are aligned with the Forum’s overarching objectives. Their role is to facilitate structured, cross-sector dialogue and generate actionable knowledge through a series of focused and topic-specific exchanges. Every group is dedicated to a specific thematic area and is led by a Chair and Co-Chair responsible for guiding the process and ensuring alignment with project goals.
Currently, two TWGs are active within the Forum:
TWG on ICT Education Path, which addresses barriers and opportunities across all stages of formal education, primary to tertiary, to foster inclusive ICT learning environment
The Thematic Working Group on ICT Education Path (TWG1), within the framework of the Women in Digital Forum, will focus on the early stages of the digital skills pipeline, with the aim of identifying barriers and developing targeted interventions to support girls and women throughout their ICT education journey, from primary and secondary schooling to tertiary and vocational training.
TWG1 will address persistent gender disparities in ICT by exploring how social norms, institutional structures, curriculum design and teaching practices shape educational choices and outcomes. Despite the high participation of women in European higher education, they remain underrepresented in ICT-related fields. The Working Group will analyse how this gap emerges and consolidates across educational transitions and will propose evidence based recommendations to promote inclusive and gender responsive educational pathways.
The group will work to define strategies that counteract stereotypes, improve institutional environments and enhance the visibility and accessibility of ICT for female students. Particular attention will be given to critical transition points, such as the passage from primary to secondary school or from secondary to university.
The Working Group will bring together 12 to 15 experts selected from the Women in Digital Forum’s members, with a balanced composition in terms of sector, discipline, and geographical background. The Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya will serve as Chair of the group.
Expected outcomes of the TWG will include a policy brief highlighting key findings, a set of operational policy guidelines aimed at educational institutions and decision-makers and an online repository of best practices and success stories. These outputs will be disseminated across the Forum’s network and will be presented publicly at the Women in Digital Annual Summit in Brussels late this year.
TWG on Leadership Empowerment, which focuses on promoting equitable access to leadership roles for women in digital sectors, including the tech industry, research and entrepreneurship.
The Thematic Working Group on Leadership Empowerment (TWG2) will focus on strengthening women’s presence and progression into leadership positions within Europe’s digital and technological landscape. Its activities will be framed within the Women in Digital Forum and will contribute to shaping structural solutions that promote gender balanced leadership across sectors and institutions.
While women increasingly enter the digital workforce, their advancement into senior roles remains limited. Leadership in tech companies, innovation hubs and emerging fields such as artificial intelligence and deep tech continues to reflect a pronounced gender gap. TWG2 will respond to this challenge by initiating a collaborative process aimed at mapping existing barriers and co-designing practical pathways to support the professional growth and visibility of women in decision-making roles.
TWG2 will also explore strategies to foster inclusive leadership pipelines within private companies, academic institutions and public-sector organisations.
This working group will bring together a selected team of 12 to 15 professionals from across Europe, representing a range of competencies in digital policy, gender studies, executive training, entrepreneurship and organisational development. Industry leaders, academic researchers, public officials and women with direct leadership experience in the tech field will be actively involved.
The group will be chaired by Vilnius Tech and the Women In Digital Secretariat will provide operational support, coordinate communication, and facilitate the dissemination of outcomes.
The expected deliverables of the group will reflect both the diversity of experiences gathered and the strategic focus of the Forum.
Among them a policy brief outlining the main findings and recommendations for European-level policymaking, an organisational toolkit to support internal change processes, a framework for integrating leadership empowerment into digital training initiatives and a digital repository of successful practices and case studies from across the EU.
TWG2 will play a strategic role in advancing the Forum’s mission to foster inclusive digital ecosystems. Its work will generate high-level, applicable insights for institutions, employers and decision-makers committed to promoting a more balanced representation in leadership. The final results will be presented at the Women in Digital Annual Summit in Brussels, serving as a foundation for future initiatives and long-term engagement.
By placing women’s leadership at the centre of the digital transition, TWG2 will help design tools and policies that enhance innovation, equity and sustainability across Europe’s digital economy.
Membership in a TWG offers professionals a unique opportunity to contribute to high level European dialogue while enhancing their visibility within a multidisciplinary and transnational expert network.
By enabling deep thematic exploration and facilitating cooperation across sectors, the TWGs play a central role in the Forum’s mission to close gender gaps in the digital transition. They ensure that policies and initiatives are shaped by a robust foundation of research, lived experience and expert consensus. In doing so, TWGs contribute not only to knowledge production but also to policy relevance, sectoral innovation and societal inclusion.
The insights developed within the TWGs directly inform the Forum’s policy engagement, educational outreach and advocacy efforts. More than discussion platforms, they are engines for knowledge transfer and innovation driving forward a digitally inclusive future across Europe.
