This issue of SA instrumentation & Control includes our Sustainable Manufacturing Industry Guide, and we have some great examples of companies actively contributing to a net-zero carbon future. It’s also Women’s Month, and we have a feature on Women in Engineering, while in June we covered International Women in Engineering Day.
At first I was not quite enthusiastic about this. I am from an era – a while ago − when Gloria Steinem was as famous as Greta Thunberg is today. In those days, you had to take sick leave if you were going to have a baby, and if you dared to ask for the standard company housing subsidy you were told “sorry you’re not the head of your household”. I thought women had progressed beyond the need for this recognition, just getting out there and doing the job. Our own company, Technews is a good example. At our helm have been, and still are, some outstanding women leaders.
But the stories that I’ve recently come across have changed my thinking. I’m in awe of what women have achieved today, not just in fighting to reach the top like in the old days, but also in the contributions they have made along the way to making the world a better place. From leading their countries like Indira Ghandi, Angela Merkel and Jacinda Ardern (my favourite), to outstanding role models like Michelle Obama, to top executives in industry like the MD of the SA Space Agency or the CEO of ArcelorMittal, to woman engineers making a difference in rural communities, they have not let negative thinking stand in their way. South Africa is upfront too. According to the World Economic Forum, we are among the top 20 countries with a high presence of women in government.
It’s not only happening today. I love the story of Emily Roebling, who took charge of the construction of the Brooklyn Bridge, in the 1870s, when her husband fell ill. She studied engineering, mathematics, and materials science, becoming the chief engineer. Her leadership and technical expertise brought about the successful completion of the bridge.
Engineering is a tough discipline, and woman engineers bring to the party some qualities that make a contribution to peoples’ lives. For example, we have story about Esther Kimani, whose crop pest and disease detection device can detect and identify agricultural pests and diseases, reducing crop losses for smallholder farmers by up to 30%, while increasing yields by as much as 40%. Her invention earned her Africa’s biggest engineering prize, the Royal Academy of Engineering’s Africa Prize for Engineering Innovation. Then there’s young Lisa von Benecke, who invented solar-powered blinds while studying electrical engineering, a field that was labelled difficult by her friends and family. After spending countless hours tinkering and experimenting in her stepfather’s garage until she had a working prototype, she founded a cleantech company. There are many more examples, too many to cover here, but some will be published in our online newsbriefs.
It’s easy to say all this when you had a chance to go to university. What about the bright young girls out there with so much potential who can’t afford a science education, or who are exposed to unconscious bias? It’s important to address the systemic barriers that have limited women’s participation in the STEM field, from gender discrimination to a lack of access to education and mentorship.
There are some great initiatives out there to assist. Here are just a few. For example we have a local story about STEMulator, which is a groundbreaking free virtual science school designed to ignite the spark of curiosity in young minds and stimulate their interest in STEM subjects. Then there’s WomEng, which helps talented girls and women find a place in the engineering and technology industries. Its programme, #1 milliongirls in STEM, aims to reach a million girls through STEM education and mentoring initiatives. Another one is International Women in Engineering Day. With the catchphrase #enhancedbyengineering, it celebrates women engineers who, through their work, have enhanced people’s everyday lives. We also cover the Solar Youth Academy in Cape Town, which trains and mentors work-ready interns for the solar industry. Of this year’s intake, the top five were women.
All of this they are achieving while raising families and running households, somehow still managing to compete in a tough workplace. The contributions of these remarkable women go far beyond their technical achievements. They are role models who show young girls and women that a career in engineering is not only achievable, but also rewarding.
To all those women out there who don’t let negative thinking stop them, I salute you.
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