What an incredible turnout at the UK WEN Annual Networking event!
We started off with strong opening remarks from Clare Lombardelli (Bank of England) and Imran Rasul (UCL / RES) on why gender equality in economics matters – and how early gaps, everyday frictions and belonging shape who stays in the profession.
Next, we moved onto a thought‑provoking keynote from Diane Coyle (University of Cambridge) on why diversity changes what economists do, not just who does it, with a reminder that progress is real but slowing, especially in macro, finance and technical fields.
We also had really valuable panel discussions with Victoria Clarke, Donna Leong, Martina Bozadzhieva and Sofia Izquierdo Sanchez, chaired by Clare Lombardelli, on role models, imposter syndrome, confidence and the importance of structured processes to tackle bias. Followed by a second panel chaired by Anna Leach, with insights from Nathanaël Benjamin, Loukas Balafoutas, Dawn Holland and Lizzy Burden on DEI, academia, alternative pathways and inclusive workplace practices.
Finally, we ended the event with closing remarks from Jo Swaffield: 30% is not enough. Getting closer to parity means working across the whole pipeline – and not losing talented women along the way.
We would like to thank the Bank of England for hosting us and to all the attendees for their thoughts and questions.
Reflections and key takeaways
This year’s discussions highlighted several recurring themes about gender representation in the economics profession. The UK WEN Steering Group has summarised some of the key reflections and areas for continued attention below.
- Economics remains structurally male‑dominated. Female representation is stuck at one‑third at degree level, and representation falls further for more senior academic roles. Women are particularly under-represented in highly technical sub-disciplines. The lack of diversity makes the discipline itself mono-cultural, and over-emphasis on math at undergraduate admission requires a re-think.
- Improving gender representation in economics requires sustained intervention at every stage of the pipeline. While senior representation has improved, participation continues to narrow at successive career stages, highlighting the need for early access, visible role models, and institutional accountability to ensure talent is not lost along the way.
- Women need to see that economics offer diverse career pathways, which can lead to their own definition of ‘success’. There is a need to showcase the diversity of pathways which experienced professional economists have followed, to inform those earlier in their careers. We also need ‘achievable’ role models – role models at many career levels, not just the top 1%.
- The challenge of balancing career and childcare is a problem that also has roots in the home. Women need to be supported by wider society to have better sharing of childcare and domestic chores within the home.
- We need institution-wide, long-term commitment to gender equality in recruitment and progression. Workplace culture shapes women’s lived experiences which determines whether they choose to stay in the profession. There is a need to build institution-wide buy-in for DEI initiatives as a means to retain and develop talent.
- We need a better understanding of the impact of AI on the pipeline and gender representation in economics and the wider economy.
We’re thinking about how to build these takeaways into our work and will continue to share updates (join our mailing list to stay in the loop). We also encourage our members and sponsors to consider how they can do the same in their own organisations, and look forward to discussing progress at our future events.
Recordings
Welcome, opening remarks and update from UK WEN
Panel discussion: What can leaders do to expand the pipeline of diverse talent in economics?
Panel discussion: Working together in transforming the profession
Keynote speech by Diane Coyle followed by Q&A
Photographs
Event Details
Date: Thursday 26 February 2026
Time: 9:00-13:00 (registration from 8:30am)
Venue: Bank of England, Threadneedle Street, London, EC2R 8AH
Programme
8:30 – 9:00 Arrival and registration. Refreshments avaliable.
9:00 – 9:15 Welcome and opening remarks
- Clare Lombardelli, Deputy Governor for Monetary Policy, Bank of England
- Imran Rasul, Professor of Economics, UCL & RES President
9:15 – 9:25 Update on UK Women in Economics Network (UK WEN)
- Misa Tanaka, Chair of UK WEN and Head of Research, Bank of England
9:25 – 9:55 Keynote speech: “Economics is what economists do: why a diverse talent pipeline matters”
- Diane Coyle, Bennett Professor of Public Policy and Research Director, University of Cambridge and RES President Elect
- Q&A chaired by Almudena Sevilla, Professor of Economic and Social Policy, LSE and Ambassador, UK WEN
9:55 – 10:20 Coffee break
10:20 – 11:05 Panel discussion: “What can leaders do to expand the pipeline of diverse talent in economics?”
- Victoria Clarke, UK Chief Economist and Managing Director, Santander Corporate & Investment Banking
- Donna Leong, Director of Analysis and Chief Economist, Department for Energy Security and Net Zero
- Martina Bozadzhieva, Managing Director of Macro & Investor Services, Oxford Economics
- Sofia Izquierdo Sanchez, Senior Lecturer in Economics, University of Manchester
- Chaired by Clare Lombardelli, Deputy Governor for Monetary Policy, Bank of England
11:05 – 11:50 Panel discussion: “Working together in transforming the profession”
- Nathanaël Benjamin, Executive Director for Financial Stability Strategy and Risk, Bank of England
- Loukas Balafoutas, Professor of Economics & Head of the Economics Department, University of Exeter
- Dawn Holland, Director of Economic Research, Moody’s Analytics
- Lizzy Burden, Daybreak Europe anchor, Bloomberg TV
- Chaired by Anna Leach, Chief Economist, Institute of Directors
11:50 – 12:00 Closing remarks by Jo Swaffield, Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Southampton, and Chair, RES Women’s Committee
12:00 – 13:00 Networking lunch hosted by Clare Lombardelli