Exploring Gender, Technology, and Climate Innovation: My EU-SPRI Research Exchange at Politecnico di Milano
Written by An Yu Chen
An Yu Chen is an Early Career scholar researching the linkages between science and technology in emerging green technologies at the IMP Innovation, Strategy & Sustainability group within Alliance Manchester Business School at The University of Manchester. She approaches this topic through three major disciplines: science-of-science studies, innovation studies and sustainability transitions. Her doctoral work investigates how scientific knowledge flows across disciplines to underpin the development of green technologies.
During her EU‑SPRI‑funded circulation at the Entrepreneurship, Finance & Innovation (EFI) group at Politecnico di Milano, she was able to further develop the conceptual framework underpinning her PhD. There, she examined how the scientific knowledge base supports sustainable innovation, enriching her analysis and enabling more nuanced insights into green technology emergence.
In this piece, An Yu shares her experience working in a different academic environment and reflects on how the circulation award helped enlarge her existing networks, deepening collaborations within both Manchester’s IMP group and Polimi’s EFI colleagues.
Fig.1:The Politecnico di Milano was established in 1863
A PhD journey offers many opportunities, but few are as transformative as stepping into a new academic environment. I recently had the privilege of undertaking a month-long research exchange at Politecnico di Milano in Italy, funded by the EU-SPRI PhD Circulation Award. This experience became a catalyst for my intellectual growth, collaboration and personal development.
As a final-year PhD researcher, I had long thought about pursuing a research exchange. I wanted to understand how PhD life unfolds in different parts of the world, and I hoped that new perspectives would enrich my thesis. Thanks to the support of Professor Stefano Baruffaldi, my supervisors Cornelia Lawson and Silvia Massini, and the guidance of Mabel Sanchez Barrioluengo, I secured EU-SPRI funding for this exchange.
The award itself reflected a commitment not only to the advancement of my research but also to fostering personal growth through international mobility.
Shaping My Research Focus
Throughout my stay at Politecnico di Milano, I worked on refining a paper that explores the perspective of gender and its indirect influence on interactions between technology inventors and academic authors. Weekly discussions under Professor Baruffaldi’s mentorship helped me sharpen my arguments and clarify my writing.
Initially, my research aimed to cover gender disparity in science and technology, homophily (the preference for associating with one’s own gender), and their impact on innovation outcomes. I chose green technology as my research setting, recognising that gendered personality traits could lead to diverse innovation pathways. However, I soon realised that I was attempting to address too many complex issues in a single paper. Through dialogue and reflection, we successfully disentangled these ideas to build a more focused, coherent argument.
Learning from Experts and Broadening Horizons
A major highlight of my exchange was gaining practical skills in constructing disruptiveness and novelty indicators which are the key tools for my PhD work. Thanks to the insightful guidance from Daniel Souza and Thomas Feliciani, I deepened my understanding of how scientific indicators can reveal whether novel approaches in research drive technological advancement.
I also attended the META Workshop – Machine Learning in Climate Change Mitigation Scenarios. This event introduced me to cutting-edge discussions in technoscience, focusing on the philosophical, ethical, and societal implications of emerging technologies. I enhanced my proficiency in random forest algorithms and learned techniques for designing robust data architectures in machine learning.
Green technologies are vital for addressing climate change. The workshop broadened my methodological toolkit and deepened my understanding of how innovation contributes to climate mitigation.
The Power of Academic Community
My time at the Entrepreneurship, Finance and Innovation (EFI) group was deeply rewarding. From day one, I was welcomed into a vibrant, open environment where spontaneous discussions and collaborative thinking thrived. The EFI Research Seminar gave me a platform to present my work, sparking engaging debates and helping me see my research through new lenses.
Fig.3: The ceiling of the PhD office has plants, and there are staff who come in to water them
The open office design at Politecnico, with glass walls and shared spaces, fostered a unique energy. It encouraged focus and made interactions with colleagues easy and natural. These daily exchanges during coffee breaks and lunches helped me build confidence in sharing and refining my ideas.
Cultural Exchange and Personal Growth
Living in Milan also gave me the opportunity to immerse myself in Italian culture. From navigating the metro system to savouring the local cuisine, I found parallels with my own life and learned to appreciate the subtle cultural differences. I believe these experiences contributed significantly to my PhD journey, offering lessons in empathy, adaptability and global citizenship.
This exchange strengthened my research, expanded my academic network and enriched both my personal and professional development. I am deeply grateful to Eu-SPRI for supporting this transformative opportunity. For any PhD student considering research mobility, I wholeheartedly recommend applying for the Eu-SPRI Circulation Award. The intellectual, professional and personal benefits are profound and enduring.