Perspektywy Women in Tech 2024 - the biggest event in Europe for Tech&IT women - has already become history and we hope you will keep it in your fondest memories for a long time. For two days (June 12-13), Warsaw's EXPO XXI was visited by almost 14,000 people from 104 countries worldwide! Among them were engineers, programmers, specialists, scientists, entrepreneurs, activists, leaders and startuppers, students, men and all people supporting diversity in the STEM, Tech & IT industry.
The impressive success of Summit 2024 is best illustrated by the numbers:
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Almost 14 000 participants!!! Yes, this is not a mistake, we were visited by almost FOURTEEN THOUSAND participants!
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5000 - this is how many student grants we awarded to enable free participation in the Summit.
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104 - so many different countries were represented by our guests.
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700 speakers, trainers & mentors conducting lectures, presentations and workshops
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63 technology, career and soft-skill workshops,
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26 side events and 11 pre-events
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590 mentoring sessions.
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5 stages,
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1 Pride Parade!
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and countless positive energy!
The success of the Perspektywy Women in Tech Summit 2024 is also well illustrated by words such as those spoken from the stage during the Grand Opening Gala (June 12, 11:00), attended by, among others: Krzysztof Gawkowski, Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Poland, Minister of Digitization; Barbara Nowacka, Minister of Education; Mark Brzezinski, US Ambassador to Poland; Anna Clunes, British Ambassador to Poland; Katarzyna Kotula, Minister of Equality; Dr. Maciej Gdula, Undersecretary of State at the Ministry of Science and Higher Education.
During the Grand Opening of the Summit you could hear, for example:
Bianka Siwińska, CEO of Perspektywy, originator of the Summit:
“This conference is about us, our people, and our uniqueness. About what makes us irreplaceable. About our greatness. About art, beauty, and goodness that we can create. We, humans, small, fragile, and mortal, stand between the infinite Cosmos and the infinite quantum world. We are trying to understand things much bigger than ourselves. And this uniqueness, this beauty, we want to celebrate with you today and tomorrow.
At Summit 2024 we discuss technologies. The technologies we create must reflect the best of humanity, our beauty, our intelligence, and our ethical values, and help us achieve our greatness.
Summit is here to support women - to make them more visible and heard. Together, we women are the driving force behind science, innovation, and ethical technologies. We are here to fix the world of technology, we are the power”.
Krzysztof Gawkowski, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Digitization:
Perspektywy Women in Tech Summit is not only a conference on digitization, technology, and science, but above all, it is a celebration of the strength, talent, and professionalism of women. Poland's dynamic development in all sectors would not be possible without the contribution of women. We do not want the slogan of equality to be just a slogan. We strive for true equality, also in the world of technology. Therefore, Bianka Siwińska, a big thank you for your actions and I am asking everyone for a standing ovation!
Barbara Nowacka, Minister of Education:
I believe that Poland has the best future in IT and STEM of all European countries. The fact that we are the best is proven by great teachers who have open minds and are determined to prove that Poland is the best country to live in and to build a future in new technologies and business.
We strive for Poland to be a pioneer in science education and a leader in new technologies. We have great teachers in Poland - passionate, wise, and open-minded students, we are determined to become leaders in the world of technology. Honestly, neither men nor women alone can achieve this, but together, we can build it.
Katarzyna Kotula, Minister of Equality:
This is an important and necessary event bringing together thousands of women from the world of science. You are the future! And women themselves are not only the future, as has been said many times, but above all, they are the present and the change that is already happening. However, the most important thing for me, as a mother of a girl, is that here you can hear stories that provide hope for many little girls.
Maciej Gdula, Undersecretary of State at the Ministry of Science and Higher Education:
I am honored to stand on this podium today in front of so many wonderful women who are scientists, entrepreneurs, and experts in the field of STEM. I am convinced that our presence here is a bold step towards significant changes in modern technologies. Together we can help this change.
The presence of women in science is a relatively new phenomenon. The percentage of women who have completed higher education has been steadily increasing in recent decades. In today's context, women in almost all economically developed countries are more likely than men to have higher education. However, after achieving higher education, women still gravitate towards fields that take them away from science and technology. That is why we will work to equalize the proportions because diversity of gender, nationality, culture, and sexual orientation is a condition for building modern higher education. Hence, the Summit is a great inspiration and stimulus for us to take this type of pro-equality activities.
Anna Clunes, British Ambassador to Poland:
The world of new technologies is driven by people who are not afraid to think outside the box and take risks. Many of these people are women. It was great to meet so many ambitious Polish women developing their companies in Great Britain.
Mark Brzezinski, U.S. Ambassador to Poland:
Women's full participation in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics is essential to the development of strong, dynamic, and sustainable democracies. This is an important element in building a better future for all humanity.
The importance of the event can also be indicated by the status of special guests, who in 2024 included: Prof. Margot Gerritsen, data science icon from Stanford University, founder of the global Women in Data Science movement; Gitanjali Rao, inventor, STEM popularizer, TIME magazine's KID OF THE YEAR; Prof. Andrzej Dragan, an outstanding theoretical physicist and charismatic popularizer of science; Clara Nellist, a particle physicist at CERN; Prof. Christiane Floyd, a legend of computer science, creator of the foundations of open source, and the first-ever female professor of computer science in Germany; Dr. Sławosz Uznański, project astronaut at the European Space Agency; Prof. Aleksandra Przegalińska, AI expert; Tomasz Rożek, science journalist, founder of Nauka. I like it!; Paula Januszkiewicz, a cybersecurity expert.
This year, for the first time in the history of the Summit, the Science Stage was launched with a special Meet Quantum program carried out with the Ministry of Digitization and experts from NASK, PCSS, AGH, IQM Quantum Computers, and the University of Warsaw. The Science part was officially opened by Deputy Prime Minister Krzysztof Gawkowski, Minister of Digitization; Dr. Agnieszka Jankowska, chairwoman of the Council for Digitization operating at the Ministry of Digitization, Pamela Krzypkowska, Ministry of Digitization, and Dr. Bianka Siwińska from Perspektywy. Upon entering the Science Hall, all Summit participants could experience something unique: at the Summit, for the first time in Poland, they could see a quantum computer with their own eyes and understand its operation.
The hottest technological and research topics were discussed on the Science Stage: quantum programming, new artificial intelligence, human-machine interactions, women in science and scientific institutions such as CERN, the future of data science, space technologies, etc.
There was also a separate Science Club Zone in the Science Hall, in which 18 science clubs took part. Thanks to this, over 120 exhibitors in this zone (students) had the opportunity to, among others: exchange experiences with experts in technology fields; consult your projects with representatives of institutions and businesses; and listen to fascinating speeches on the science and startup scene.
As usual, the Summit was a place to gain knowledge, inspiration, and motivation. At the conference, it was possible to acquire new competencies, including thanks to Tech&Soft Skills workshops and in a special Mentoring Zone, where 1:1 consultations took place with excellent mentors. Representatives of the TechSoup Polska organization probably best said that the Summit is a place of learning not only for technology experts: “Learning technology allows us to increase our influence and become better advocates of positive changes. We don't have to be IT experts to benefit from technology and put it to good use. Prospects Women in Tech Summit is an amazing experience that shows how much impact women in technology have on our (non)everyday lives. Let's inspire each other and learn technology to make positive changes!”
WE WANT THE SUMMIT 2025 TO BE EVEN BETTER! We look forward to seeing you at the Summit on 11 and 12 June 2025!
