Ruth James: Increasing the Sisterhood in Tech – A Call to Action to the Village

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Ruth James’s presentation from the Finding Ada Conference 2020. 

Synopsis

They say it takes a village to raise a child, well, this is my call to the global village to increase the number of women entering the technology sector. I will share some of the fundamentals I’ve learnt over my time in tech outreach to encourage more girls into tech:

  • Showcasing what it really looks like to work in tech.
  • Championing girls into tech.
  • Connecting with opportunities locally and online.
  • Building confidence in young women so they may continue to stay curious about tech.

About Ruth

At 21, I graduated with a degree in Graphic Design & Illustration (which I’ve never used). At 29, I moved from the UK to NZ – this is when I first experienced working in tech (as a receptionist!) At 37, I’d finally discovered what I wanted to do when I grew up – Tech Outreach! I originally started volunteering with not-for-profits and charities working in this space. I now work at Xero as a Tech Outreach & Engage Coordinator.

Twitter: @RuthJamesNZ
LinkedIn: /RuthJames

Why STEM? Mia Walls, software engineer at J.P. Morgan

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Why did you choose a career in STEM? There are as many answers to that question as there are women in STEM, and in this campaign we’re featuring some of the answers from women within the first five years of their careers. We’d love you to take part, so take a look at our intro post, which features a Why STEM? video from Alex Radu, and our video tips and guidelines.

Here, we hear from Mia Walls, a software engineer at J.P. Morgan, who talks about why she first became interested in STEM, and why she chose to work in technology in particular. She mentions about her worries going into a computer science course, gives some tips about how to think about how to learn to program, and also talks about how flexible tech careers are.

Why STEM? is a collaboration with our sponsor J.P. Morgan.

ALD Online 2020 Women in STEM Advocates: 25. Evelyn Valdez-Ward

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Evelyn Valdez-Ward

Location: USA

Evelyn is a PhD candidate in ecology and evolutionary biology, and co-founder and director of Reclaiming STEM, a workshop that provides training for marginalised students. She advocates for undocumented scientists who, like herself, hold Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) status, and her activism lead to her being named a 2018 UCS Science Defender. In 2020, she was chosen as one of the Grist 50 for her policy and advocacy work.

You can follow her work here:

Twitter: @wardofplants
Website: evelynvaldezward.weebly.com

Further reading

ALD Online 2020 Women in STEM Organisations: 25. Women in Technology and Science Ireland (WITS)

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Women in Technology and Science Ireland (WITS)

Location: Ireland

Women in Technology and Science Ireland (WITS) advocates for gender equality in science and technology by holding events and influencing policy. It was founded in 1990 by Mary Mulvihill, and they hold a lecture in her name every year. They have been responsible for arranging plaques of female scientists, run a STEMMinist book club, and have published a book called Lab Coats and Lace containing biographies of Irish women scientists. Recently, they have launched a podcast for listeners to find out more about their members.

You can follow their work here:

Twitter: @WITSIreland
Facebook: facebook.com/witsireland
Instagram: @witsireland
YouTube: witsireland
LinkedIn: WITS Ireland (Women in Technology and Science)
Website: witsireland.com

Further reading

ALD Online 2020 Women in STEM Advocates: 24. Marlia Bosques-Martínez

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Marlia Bosques-Martínez

Location: Puerto Rico

Marlia was a graduate research student at The Ohio State University, where she studied root-knot nematode diversity, biocontrol, and yield loss on tomatoes. She is the co-founder and editor of Women in Agricultural Science, an organisation created to increase female representation in agriculture.

You can follow her work here:

Twitter: @MarliaBosques
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/marlia-bosques-martinez
Website: womeninagscience.org