As another year flies by we find ourselves in 2020 already! The WISE Young Professionals’ Board rounded off a really successful 2019 by recruiting some new faces ready to kick off 2020 to a flying start.
This year was particularly competitive, with some incredibly talented applicants. We are delighted to welcome the five who shone the brightest though their passion, positivity and dedication to furthering gender parity in Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM):
Tariq Ismail, Inspiration & Engagement Specialist at The Smallpeice Trust
“By joining the WISE YPB, I want to be a visible ally for gender equality. There are so many amazing role models from a diverse range of backgrounds already on the board, and I’ll get to learn first-hand from them how they and their organisations foster inclusivity.”
Rachel Lord, Lecturer in Sport and Exercise Physiology at Cardiff Metropolitan University
“By joining the WISE YPB, I want to be a visible ally for gender equality. There are so many amazing role models from a diverse range of backgrounds already on the board, and I’ll get to learn first-hand from them how they and their organisations foster inclusivity.”
Josiah O’Brien, Graduate Physicist at AWE
“During a GCSE physics class my teacher did a presentation on all the jobs you could do with physics, from understanding what makes up the universe, to harnessing the elements to produce energy. From that day I knew I wanted to be a physicist, whatever that meant, and to have so many career possibilities.”
Beth Probert, Junior Consultant Engineer at Altran
“It’s amazing to have a job where you get to build something that’s never been built before. As a software engineer, I do something new every day and learn something new every minute! I write scripts that have direct, real-world applications and it’s great to know that software I’ve worked on is being used by people all around the world.”
Gisela Rossi, Software Engineer at Tessian
“Although computer science is a very logical discipline, the most accurate way to think about it as a profession is to look at it as a craft. I can compare it to oil painting which is my hobby: you need a lot of skills and knowledge that you develop during your studies and years of experience. But … in the end it will be a unique work of craft-womanship.”
You may have noticed that this year the board looks a little different… we changed our name from the Young Women’s Board to the Young Professionals Board for 2019, opening the door to all other genders. In 2019 the board was passionate about opening the discussion of gender in STEM, by inviting everyone to the table and ensuring our language is inclusive. For 2020 we actively strived for a more gender-diverse application pool and received nearly 25% non-female applicants! Excitingly, two were within the five best applicants, so we are very happy to invite men to the board for the very first time!
As a whole the WISE YPB is a group of STEM professionals from a range of different backgrounds, educational routes, locations, STEM disciplines and now genders. Our diversity gives us a variety of perspectives and opinions that increases the value of our feedback to WISE, drives change, and extends our influence to further corners of the industry. This is what makes us different.
Together we are a group of diverse, relatable professionals who lead initiatives to inspire, engage & advocate for the next generation of STEM. Objectives & targets we have to look forward to in 2020 include:
- Inspiring the next generation through our support of HarperCollins Children’s books and running competitions
- Engaging others through increased involvement at the WISE annual conference, social media (@WISE_YPB) and Blog writing https://www.wisecampaign.org.uk/news-section/blog/
- Advocating WISE by being a ‘sounding board’ for The WISE Campaign and mentoring senior professionals in the industry through our Reverse Mentoring pilot.
I couldn’t write about the coming year without mentioning the incredible people who are leaving us. Sabrina Castiglione, a fantastic Chair who has kept our energy high, kept us focused and is always impressively organised; Hollie Wright, one of the duo who brough to life the innovative creative writing competition in 2019; Devon Edwards Joseph, a brilliant lead for our negotiations workshop at the WISE Conference and blog coordinator; and Lauren Gracey and Narmeen Rehman, both engaging with students in education through our children’s book project with Harper Collins and supported us all. We are sad to see you go but sure we will keep in touch and get you involved in future projects!
Have any questions? Message us on twitter @WISE_YPB. And check out all our profiles https://www.wisecampaign.org.uk/young-professionals-board/