Implementing Gender Equality Plans in Southeast Europe: Context, Institutional Practice, and Transformation

The introduction of Gender Equality Plans (GEPs) as an eligibility criterion for Horizon Europe has, in many cases, acted as a catalyst for advancing structural change towards gender equality in research and innovation (R&I). However, their implementation remains uneven across national and institutional contexts, particularly in Southeast Europe, where distinct historical trajectories, governance traditions, and institutional capacities shape opportunities for change. Higher education and research systems have evolved through different political, organisational and cultural pathways, resulting in diverse responses to common European policy initiatives. Consequently, the design, implementation, monitoring and institutionalisation of GEPs remain deeply embedded in national and institutional contexts.

However, institutions are not static. Critical junctures, such as the Horizon Europe GEP eligibility requirement, alongside broader societal debates, leadership changes and organisational developments, can create opportunities for institutional actors to challenge established practices. Nonetheless, institutional change in higher education and research is rarely abrupt or linear. Instead, it tends to occur incrementally through processes whereby new gender equality rules, structures and practices are added onto existing institutional arrangements rather than replacing them entirely.

This thematic issue examines how GEPs are designed, implemented, evaluated, and sustained within Research Performing Organisations (RPOs) and Research Funding Organisations (RFOs) across Southeast Europe. Bringing together empirical studies from Albania, Croatia, Greece, Romania, and regional collaborations, the contributions draw on institutional theory, feminist institutionalism, and critical perspectives on neoliberal governance to explore how organisations navigate legal, normative, and other institutional pressures, resulting in processes of layering, conversion, adaptation, and resistance. The articles will examine mentoring, participatory evaluation, stakeholder engagement, communities of practice, and the relational dimensions of institutional change, including care, solidarity, and feminist counter-resistance. Collectively, they demonstrate that sustainable GEP implementation depends not only on formal policy adoption but also on organisational learning, contextual adaptation, collaborative governance and sustained institutional commitment. By foregrounding the experiences of Southeast Europe, this thematic issue advances debates on gender equality governance and institutional transformation while offering theoretical insights and practical lessons for policymakers, funding organisations and higher education institutions.

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