Academia in the mirror: Methods and tools for promoting academic reflexivity in the university policies for Gender Equality. The case of the European Erasmus+ Project SMILE (Social Meaning Impact through LLL Universities in Europe)

The objective of aligning their policies for the promotion of gender equality and diversity with the European guidelines, starting with the adoption of a gender equality plan, is engaging higher education institutions (HEIs) in a self-reflective effort to identify their current critical issues and key areas to improve through positive actions. The availability of scientifically valid tools for self-assessment, training and the definition of a sustainable strategic action plan constitutes valuable support in this process. This paper aims to highlight the positive impact linked, in general, and in the specific case of the University of Cagliari (Italy), to the European Erasmus+ project SMILE (Social Meaning Impact through LLL Universities in Europe), by developing, testing and implementing a set of innovative tools that improve the way HEIs deal with diversity in the field of inclusive learning.