Chemistry chief to fight for gender-equal council

The Royal Society of Chemistry’s incoming president wants to shake up its governing council with a gender equality challenge when she takes over in July.

Lesley Yellowlees, vice-principal and head of the University of Edinburgh’s College of Science and Engineering, says she would like to “celebrate diversity” during her presidency. “The RSC has a council of about 17 people and only some five of those are women. So maybe I should say that by the end of that time I want it to be 50:50—to set myself a challenge,” she says.