Kenyan native Charity Wanjiku was first inspired to study architecture at the age of 10 when she saw a TV commercial for an insurance company where a businesswoman was presenting a model house to a boardroom of applauding men. Determined to pursue her passion — despite the fact that very few women enrolled in architecture courses — Wanjiku eventually graduated from the Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology with a Bachelor of Architecture degree. Later, she earned her Master’s degree in Project Management in Construction. It was at her first job where she discovered her interest in project management.…
The Science Creative Quarterly
By Ingenium - Canada's Museums of Science and Innovation
The Women in STEM initiative by Ingenium is driven to engage, advance and retain the interest of young women in the STEM fields. Women have always made important contributions to STEM fields throughout history, yet gender inequity persists, especially at the highest levels of academia and industry. Our mission is to contribute to international efforts to achieve gender equity in STEM by celebrating achievements and advocates, and shedding light on persistent, often implicit, gender biases. There are multiple structural and cultural barriers that contribute to this, the causes complex. We recognize this and have developed multiple long-term and sustainable strategies to engage young women in STEM.
This will be done through a multi-pronged approach designed to address the underrepresentation of women in STEM and to contribute to efforts to achieve gender equity in these four fields. The initiatives include a Fellowship opportunity in Gender, Science and Technology with the University of Ottawa, a travelling display that will relay more in-depth stories such as the ones featured in our posters, and specialised programming and events.
All of this is being developed with the support of an Advisory Council composed of individuals from across Canada and abroad who offer advice and insight on the proposed plans and components of the initiative and provides suggestions on possible partners and linkages with outside organizations and individuals.
This is a collaborative effort between the three Ingenium museums: Canada Agriculture and Food, Canada Aviation and Space, and Canada Science and Technology and our partners to support the engagement, advancement and furtherance of women in STEM.
Eugenia Duodu: Inspired, Elevated and Empowered
Dr. Eugenia Duodu earned an honours Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry and Biology from the University of Toronto in 2010, and proceeded to study medicinal chemistry as a PhD student. Fueled by her passion to improve life for others, her research focused on providing effective treatments for human diseases such as cancer. Having grown up in a low-income community and experiencing numerous disparities to enriched science-based opportunities, Dr. Duodu sought out ways to share STEM with her community. It was at this time that she signed up as a part-time volunteer with Visions of Science Network for Learning Inc.…
Nadine Caron: Barrier Breaking Surgeon
Dr. Nadine Caron was born in Kamloops, British Columbia. In 1993, she earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Kinesiology at Simon Fraser University, where she was also a star basketball player. From there, she entered medical school at the University of British Columbia, eventually graduating at the top of her class and becoming the first First Nations woman to graduate from the program. Dr. Caron proceeded to Harvard University, where she earned a Master’s degree in Public Health. She went on to the University of California, San Francisco to complete her postgraduate fellowship training in Endocrine Surgical Oncology. In…