In the context of the International Women’s Day 2025, the PREPSHIELD Project is proud to dedicate a series of articles to all the female researchers which carreers are inspiring for all.
We interviewed Ms Monica Trentin, Postdoctoral Researcher at the University of Eastern Piedmont.
Career and challenges
Could you share your journey to becoming a researcher? What inspired you to pursue this path, what challenges have you faced as a woman in your field, and what is the most valuable lesson you’ve learned from these experiences?
Ms Trentin: When I first approached the field of disasters and emergencies during my master’s degree in Governance of Emergency at the Università degli Studi di Verona, Italy, I envisioned myself as an official who, during a disaster or any other crisis, would rush to the field to coordinate the emergency response. I believed that the ideal place for me to work would be the Civil Protection Department or a governmental or non-governmental organization involved in emergency logistics. However, a few months after graduating, in March 2020, I had the opportunity to start a three-month fellowship at CRIMEDIM, the Center for Research and Training in Disaster Medicine, Humanitarian Aid, and Global Health. As my fellowship was extended over the following months, my perspective on myself, my future, and my career began to shift, and I realized that research was something I was not only passionate about but also inclined toward, and something I felt I could pursue effectively. I came to understand that, instead of working directly in emergency response on the field, I could conduct research to improve that response; I realized that the path I had initially envisioned was not the only way to help communities prepare for or recover from disasters. To summarize, I didn’t actively choose to become a researcher, but I’m glad I had this opportunity. In the future, I would love to teach at the university level and contribute to training the next generation of students. Now, five years later, I am still part of CRIMEDIM, and in the meantime, I have earned a PhD in Global Health, Humanitarian Aid, and Disaster Medicine; my doctoral research explored the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on migrant women through an intersectional lens. A few months ago, I started working as a postdoctoral researcher at CRIMEDIM, where I am primarily engaged in the PREPSHIELD project.
Being a woman in this field comes with its challenges, as it does in many others, especially as a young woman. I have encountered situations where male researchers treated me as an assistant, a very junior student, or tried to undermine me. In one instance, at a conference, a male professor addressed only my male colleague, speaking to him and making eye contact, completely ignoring me, even though the topic was relevant to both of us. In another conference where I was a speaker, the male professor moderating the session introduced himself to the other male speakers but not to me. I have witnessed many instances of mansplaining and paternalism. Sometimes, there aren’t any obvious gestures, but you simply know that certain things wouldn’t be said or asked of a male colleague.
Role in the project
Q.: What do you do within the PREPSHIELD project? How have your studies and expertise enabled you to fulfil this role?
Ms Trentin: I am part of the Coordination team at CRIMEDIM (Università del Piemonte Orientale), which is the Coordinator Partner of the project. Together with Prof. Luca Ragazzoni, the Principal Investigator, and Dr. Monica Linty, our project manager, we coordinate the project across its various aspects. My primary role is as a researcher, but some of my activities also involve managerial tasks. Additionally, I coordinate the team of researchers working on the PREPSHIELD project within the Center.
The project is related to several of the topics I explored during my studies. For example, PREPSHIELD aims to engage vulnerable groups in pandemic management, and during my PhD, I focused on vulnerable populations, specifically migrant women during the COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, my experience coordinating a funded research project as part of my PhD, as well as coordinating CRIMEDIM’s training courses in disaster medicine for medical students, has provided me with good organizational and coordination skills, which are certainly valuable for the PREPSHIELD project as well.
Europe
Q.: At European level, do you think the research sector has become more open to women? What could be done to achieve greater equality between men and women in this field?
Ms Trentin: There has been some progress, partly because society is evolving (or at least I hope it is), but also due to the existence of numerous funding opportunities that promote gender equality. These initiatives often require women to be appointed as coordinators or ensure that women constitute a certain percentage of the research team. However, these changes are often gradual and may need to be actively enforced.
Initiatives like these do provide women with valuable opportunities to enter the research field. However, it is equally important to monitor the opportunities they have once they are within it. For instance, when examining the percentage of women listed as first or last authors in scientific publications over time, it is evident that much progress is still required. Additionally, there are other significant issues such as workplace harassment, salary disparities, pregnancy-related pressures, to name just a few.
I believe that no initiative will be truly effective unless it drives a shift in culture and society, and this transformation can only begin with education from the earliest years of life.
Q.: As an expert, what do you see as Europe’s most significant challenge in your field?
Ms Trentin: The failure to come together and act as a unified force in addressing many of the challenges of our time, including the migration crisis, conflicts, climate change, and the lack of preparedness to face various types of disasters, despite the lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Q.: Finally, what advice would you give to future generations of women who want to become researchers?
Don’t let society decide who you should be or what dreams you should chase just because it decided that a boy gets a chemistry set and a girl gets a doll. Be curious and open-minded, always willing to question things (and yourself!), but stay true to your values. Work hard, never stop learning, and, even though it sounds cliché, always be yourself, you won’t regret it. And don’t be too hard on yourself when things don’t go as planned. Above all, embrace who you are and never let anyone make you feel less than.
Be aware that my awesome female colleagues and allies and I are doing our best to fight for a more equitable and inclusive society for all. We hope the world becomes increasingly welcoming for the researchers of the future!
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