In Perspektywy Women in Tech we inspire, connect and support women in technologies, science and innovation. We encourage them to choose education in the STEM area. We help them enter the job market and build spectacular careers – in industry, science or by developing their own tech startup. This way we support the emergence of a generation of self-aware women leaders who will change the tech world. That is why the Summit features zones related to our programs. These include: Women in Science! and Girls as Engineers.
Why “Women in Science”? Because women make up only 23% of habilitated doctors and 10% of professors in Poland in the field of technical and exact sciences. We want to change that!
"Women in Science!" is a joint venture of female scientists from Polish technical and medical universities initiated by the Perspektywy Educational Foundation in cooperation with the Young Science Foundation and the Agreement of Doctoral Students of Technical Universities. We operate through a network of Proxies at universities. We consolidate the communities of women in exact and technical sciences, organize meetings on the role of women in science, and jointly encourage female students to take an interest in a research career - presenting its advantages, disadvantages and challenges. We show female role-models in the STEM area. We care about the image of women in science in the media.
We are aware that in order to change the number of women in Polish science, we need to act already at the stage of choosing the educational path by high school graduates. That is why for over 17 years we have been encouraging them to choose higher education in STEM. The campaign Girls as Engineers! and Girls in STEM! is a pioneering and at the same time the largest project promoting technical, engineering and science courses among young women in Poland and Central and Eastern Europe. The idea of the project was born in 2006. Since then, the popularity of technical universities among secondary school students has increased significantly.
Girls as Engineers! and its "younger sister" - Girls in STEM! initiated by the Conference of Rectors of Polish Technical Universities and the Perspektywy Educational Foundation, set themselves the most important goal of breaking stereotypes in thinking and encouraging secondary school students to undertake technical and science studies. Science and technology need women. Especially now, when the culture of innovation is becoming increasingly important and this is the direction in which Europe and Poland are heading. Innovation is necessary to build a society and economy based on knowledge and focused on global competitiveness. The participation of women in this process is one of the key conditions for its success. Graduates of technical and science fields must contribute to the creation of new solutions in the area of science and technology, because their potential and creativity are important for the country's innovativeness. Both programs are based on the activities of ambassadors (students, PhD students), who show what the world of science looks like first-hand. They talk about the challenges that await women in technical and science fields and at higher stages of scientific development. They also offer support to other women who decide to follow this path.
At the SUmmit 2024, in the joint zone Girls as Engineers!/Women in Science, you could meet ambassadors of both campaigns, talk to them, learn more about them during panel discussions and hear their presentations on scientific topics.
The zone was visited by Barbara Nowacka, Minister of Education, who is the patron of the Women go Science program and an enthusiast of the ddn campaign. She talked to the Ambassadors and wished them further success:
In a world where technological innovation and scientific progress are key to social and economic development, we cannot afford to ignore the talents of half of the population. Women play a fundamental role in shaping the future of our civilization and their contribution to science is invaluable.
Investing in the education and development of women in science is investing in our shared future. Gender equality in science contributes to a greater diversity of perspectives, which leads to more innovative and comprehensive solutions to the challenges facing humanity. We all benefit from a society that values and supports women's achievements in science.
