Women in geoscience: a case history from New Zealand

Like the experience in many other countries, geoscience in New Zealand has traditionally been one of the more male-dominated areas of science in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. No woman was employed in geoscientific work in New Zealand before World War 2. In 1965, the centenary year of the New Zealand Geological Survey, there was only one woman classified as a professional scientist in that organisation, although several were employed as technicians. A gradual change over the last sixty years, particularly since 1995, means that women are now involved in most areas of geoscience (including senior management positions) although they are still a minority. This paper records the change in attitude and employment practices in the geosciences in New Zealand over the last 150 years.