Challenges faced by ecologists: gender-based perceptions throughout the stages of the academic career in Brazil

Ana Paula Lula Costa , Julia Rosa Matias Ciccheto, Myrna Elis Ferreira Santos, Laryssa Negri Peres, Luisa Diele-Viegas, Elvira D'Bastiani

Although women often outnumber men in the early stages of academic careers in ecology, they remain significantly underrepresented in senior positions. In Brazil, women comprise the majority of graduate students in ecological sciences but hold fewer senior academic roles, receive less research funding, and face greater obstacles to visibility and recognition. To understand the factors contributing to this disparity, we conducted a nationwide survey with 283 Brazilian ecologists, analysing gender-based differences across career stages. Using descriptive statistics, chi-squared tests, and correspondence analysis (ANACOR), we examined experiences related to gender identity, parenthood, workplace dynamics, and scientific productivity. Our findings reveal persistent structural inequalities: women, particularly in early-career stages, reported more frequent experiences of gender discrimination and sexual harassment, limited access to leadership roles, lower publication rates, and heightened concerns about personal safety during fieldwork. Women more commonly cited personal and professional constraints as factors influencing their academic permanence. Overall, both men and women identified a lack of funding as the primary barrier to scientific productivity. These results underscore the intersectional barriers to gender equity in ecology and emphasise the urgency of structural, evidence-based reforms to build more inclusive academic environments in the Global South.