International Day of Women and Girls in Science 2019: modelling through mentorship
Celebrating International Day of Women and Girls in Science with the STEMettes in London
Here at Anglo American, we know that solving the greatest challenges facing our world will require diverse thinking and creativity, which is why an expanded pool of talent is so crucial.
When volunteers were tasked with mentoring some of London’s brightest young women they jumped at the opportunity, hoping to encourage their interests in STEM and the fields of energy development, sustainable mining technology, and environmental stewardship.
This year’s Women in Science Day celebration at Carlton House Terrace in London, home office, included speed networking between brilliant high school girls and successful female scientists, an interactive quiz, coding sessions, and a hackathon challenge to build a mining website.
The History of Women in Science Day
Since 2015 the UN, led by UNESCO and UN-Women, celebrates International Day of Women and Girls in Science on February 11th to encourage the participation of women and girls in STEM-related fields.
Women and girls play a critical role in these fields, but they’re still widely underrepresented. UNESCO estimates that even today, less than 30% of researchers worldwide are women.
Ending the Gender Gap in STEM
This year, Anglo American was featured on Bloomberg's Gender-Equality Index (GEI) for the first time and we’re proud to continue promoting equality of opportunity for girls in STEM around the world. We’re serious about reducing male dominance in the mining industry worldwide and invite you to find out more about what it’s like to work at Anglo American.
Inspiring the Next Generation of Women and Girls in STEM Fields
In January, a group of Anglo American volunteers with Ambassadors for Good, an employee volunteer project that partners with local host communities to support sustainability, worked with a group of 40 high-school STEMettes to inspire the next generation by introducing them to some women impacting the future of science. STEMettes selected 40 young women from Year 10 and 11, currently studying for their GCSEs. They came from St. Paul's Way Trust School, Ark Putney Academy, and other schools based in central London.
In January, the pair of students who won the hackathon challenge were invited back to the office to have lunch with Finance Director, Stephen Pearce, and a round table of women from the London Finance Team.
Nicola Clark who, along with Michael Kato, led the group of volunteers from Anglo American’s Group Finance & Performance Marketing departments said it best. “We want all girls to be able to make informed decisions about STEM careers and feel confident that nothing is off limits because of their gender.”
