#1.

1 GENDER & CAREER

CHOICES
1. Be Exceptional/Challenge the Expectation: Nontraditional Careers (1)

2. Do What You Love: Nontraditional Careers (4)

3. Moraine Park supports men in pursuit of non-traditional occupations (7)

4. The real reason there aren't more female scientists (11)

5. Technology and Innovation for Gender Equality (14)

6. How can employers attract men and women into non-traditional careers? (28)

https://youtu.be/MXwzKKQE2yw?si=JOg0T00-as5W1Qkm

Be Exceptional/Challenge the Expectation:

Nontraditional Careers
0:03
I decided on law enforcement as a career path because I admire what law enforcement officers
0:08
do.
0:09
What they face every day is a challenge—the way they protect and serve their communities.
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I’ve just always been fascinated by it.
0:14
There are many things that I love about this field.
0:17
First of all, I like the mystery of it.
0:19
Once you start learning about the whole anatomy of the eye and the diseases that can affect
0:24
the eye, it gets very interesting to try and solve that problem.
0:28

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Whether they realize it or not, these Palm Beach State College students are breaking down
barriers.

0:33
They’re choosing careers based on their personal interests, goals, and talents—not
0:37
gender stereotypes!
0:40
I decided to choose radiography as a career because I love helping people, but also because
0:45
I love the technology involved.
0:47
Where I'm from originally, cause I'm from Africa, it's believed that as a male going
0:51
into the medical field, the only position would be a doctor or surgeon, nothing like
0:57
a nurse or radiographer.
0:59
When I got out of the military, I talked to some people about continuing my education
1:04
and going into network administration, and I got told you'll never be able to do it.
1:08
It's going to be hard to find a job because you are a female.
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And I just never have let that deter me from what I want to do.
1:15
By exploring careers traditionally chosen by the opposite gender, you may discover many
1:19
surprising benefits – for example, higher salaries.
1:22
Software developers earn $100,000 dollars a year on average, yet only 20 percent are women.
1:29
Dental Hygienists earn over $70,000 dollars a year on average, yet only 2.9 percent are men.

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1:34
Nontraditional careers may also lead to increased job security, more promotion and training
1:38
opportunities, and most of all: real job satisfaction.
1:42
I wanted to go into some kind of training that would give me some kind of security and
1:48
employability.
1:49
Well, there are several different things that I love about law enforcement, anywhere from
1:54
job security, to the mere benefits, including, of course, retirement, tuition reimbursement
2:00
and, of course, just the job satisfaction.
2:03
With over 130 career programs to choose from, Palm Beach State College gives you the
opportunity
2:08
to start your dream career today.
2:11
Talk to our advisors and professors, attend program information sessions, or visit one
2:15
of the College Career Centers, where you’ll find loads of resources and potential mentors.
2:20
Ultimately, it's about the passion that drives you to achieving greatness.
2:24
Remember, it’s your career.
2:26
Whether you want to make a difference in people’s lives or break into a new industry, don’t
2:30
limit yourself!
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Instead, be exceptional, challenge the expectation, and never let gender stereotypes get in the
way of a great future!
https://youtu.be/aWlJcI1KQ6Q?si=QxQIp020qMWT238a

Do What You Love: Nontraditional Careers (2018)

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- It came to a shock or a surprise even to my parents
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when I told them, "I wanna do welding."
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And they're like, "That's pretty awesome."
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And I just got a lot of support from everyone around me.
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That made it a lot easier for me
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to step into this program.
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(welder crackling) The biggest challenge
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as a female accepting that you are gonna be in a field
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that is more dominated by men,
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but it's not intimidating.
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Everyone welcomes you.
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- Don't listen to what others think you should do.
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Do it for yourself. Find your passion.
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Do what you think is right.
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- The first time my dad took me out trout fishing,

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0:38
it was kind of a click in my head. I wanted to do this.
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All of my classmates were very supportive.
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For every class, if we ever had teamwork situations,
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we were always all included.
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The fact that, yeah, there is a lot more boys
0:53
in this program had no
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determining factor in how successful I was in the field.
0:59
- My family's been very supportive, especially my husband.
1:02
He's like, "You can do anything you put your mind to."
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And I thought, yeah, I can do it. And I'm doing it.
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- I chose nursing because I really had a fascination with,
1:13
overall, just the body and how it works.
1:14
My friends and family, they were very supportive.
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Once I graduated, they were overwhelmed.
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- My classmates, they are amazing.
1:23
We are all here for the same purpose.
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We all want that degree.
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There are so many different opportunities out there

for females, and males also,

1:29
but with especially females now.
1:31
- I actually don't feel uncomfortable.
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I feel confident with myself that I can do
1:36
what I want with my life.
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It kind of makes me wanna get better,
1:40
so then I can show other women
1:42
that they can do the same thing.
1:43
They can empower themselves into the world
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and do something that they want to do but,
1:50
there might be some people holding them back from it.
1:53
- I feel like it's not as much of
1:55
a female-dominated profession anymore.
1:57
I feel like I've seen just as many male nurses on the floor.
2:00
I don't feel awkward about it at all.
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I thought I might be coming into it,
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but everyone's just so awesome with making sure

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2:07
that all the males in the field feel more welcome.

https://youtu.be/KD7WZsduUng?si=toYx0lXulg0O_dBC

Moraine Park supports men in pursuit of

non-traditional occupations
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Moraine Park has been the saving grace in my educational future.
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When I started wanting to be a nurse,
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I didn't realize how long and how hard it would actually be.
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When I came out here, the first thing I saw--
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I was like, hey, oh, how's Moraine Park?
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I looked it up, I saw that they had good, outstanding
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graduates percentage was high and stuff so,
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so my sister was like, well, why don't you
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just go into the medical assistant program, just
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start off first there.
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So that's where I went.
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If you want to get into the medical field,
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and you do find that nursing is a career that you
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want to go down, you do have to go to school.
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0:36
You do have to get the associate degree,
0:38
and possibly a bachelor's degree to move forward in nursing.
0:42
But I will say that it is absolutely worth every second
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that you have sacrificed.
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We are open to any qualified applicants for our positions.
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We have been very happy with the recent influx
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of nontraditional applicants for some of our positions,
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especially males in the workforce,
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in traditional female oriented positions,
1:02
such as medical assistants are registered nurses.
1:05
Many of our patients enjoy having male caregivers as options.
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Many people react differently to situations,
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to different cultures.
1:14
And to have a diverse population in your nursing staff
1:17
is a wonderful thing.
1:19
Being male, it's even better.
1:21
And being Hispanic, being bilingual.
1:24

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I started my clinicals right now.

1:26
And as I'm doing my clinical, they are looking at me like,
1:29
Do you want to stay here?
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I'm getting job offers left and right.
1:33
My life has changed dramatically since I
1:35
graduated from Moraine Park.
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I went from working two jobs, full time
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before school to sacrificing a lot
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and still working full time during school.
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Once I graduated, I was blessed enough to get
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a career in nursing that I very, very much enjoy.
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The income definitely provides enough for myself and my family.
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Moraine Park alumni do stand out among my other applicants.
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I know that Moraine Park alumni are trained and ready to go.
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I know that SSM Health will not have
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to spend a lot of money and resources,
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training the basic skills that they need to do their job.
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If you have the passion for nursing,

2:09
for being a medical assistant to helping others, just go at it.
2:13
Do not hesitate.
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Go sign up immediately.
2:16
It has changed my life 1,000 times over.
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So according to O-NET and the Bureau of Labor Statistics,
2:25
nationally, nursing and health care areas are growing.
2:30
But in Wisconsin, psychiatric care technician,
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and some of our social services type
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program's areas are growing, as well as well as
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cosmetology and surgical tech.
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So there are some programs that Moraine Park
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offers that Wisconsin is really looking for people in.
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Gender doesn't matter when it comes to your career area--
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really, it's your passion.
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Moraine Park can help you or assist you
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in finding your passion, and then
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supporting you in your journey to your career goals.

https://youtu.be/l-6usiN4uoA?si=SCzLL5dNEUntFNaa

The real reason there aren't more female scientists

0:00
Everywhere we hear about massive gender bias against women in fields like physics, technology
0:04
and engineering. But what if it's just not true? That's coming up next on the Factual
0:10
Feminist. There's a class at Harvard called Math 55, which is advertised in the catalog
0:21
as "probably the most difficult undergraduate math class in the country." Math 55 does not
0:27
look like America. Each year as many as 50 students sign up, but at least half drop out
0:32
within a few weeks. In 2006 the final roster was "45 percent Jewish, 18 percent Asian,
0:40
100 percent male." Some annoyed reader of the Crimson added "And all virgins." As a
0:48
rule, women tend to gravitate to fields such as education, English, psychology, biology,
0:53
and art history, while men are much more numerous in physics, mathematics, computer science,
0:58
and engineering. Why? Unfortunately, there's no simple answer. When professors were asked
1:03
why there was a relative scarcity of female pro¬fessors in math, science, and engineering,
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1% believed it was due to women's lack of talent in those areas. 24% believed it was
1:14
because of sexist discrimination, and 74% chalked it up to differences between men's
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and women's interests. Let's delve into each of these explanations. Only 1% said scarcity
of talent.
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I am surprised ANYONE agreed with that --even to a pollster. These days it is
1:29
politically radioactive to deny that everyone is good at everything and that no one is better
1:34
than anyone else. But consider this inconvenient finding: According to an analysis performed
1:40
by my colleague Mark Perry, for every 100 girls who score 700 points or higher on the
1:46
math section of the SAT, 184 boys do the same. The SAT performance gap suggests there may
1:55
be more boys at the highest levels, but it doesn't adequately explain the dearth of women
2:02
in Math 55 or university physics and engineering. There are still many gifted females who could
2:08
succeed in mathematics or computer science, even if the pool is somewhat smaller. So let's
2:13
consider the second possibility: sexist discrimination. This is hugely popular with some women's
groups.

2:20
Over the past decade or so, there has been an avalanche of literature claiming women
2:24
face hostile environments in the math, tech and engineering programs. Here's the first
2:29
problem with all of this. Why is there so much alleged discrimination in math and engineering,
2:34
but not in biological sciences or agriculture or veterinary medicine or law-- where women
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are flourishing? There are indeed many studies that purport to show bias against women. But
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when anyone outside the STEM-equity universe reviews them, they turn out to be flawed or

2:49
sometimes, shamelessly slanted. So let's turn to the third possibility: different interests.
2:55
There's a lot of evidence that men and women, taken as groups, have somewhat different
propensities,

3:00
aspirations. Women earn more PhDs than men in the humanities, social sciences, education
3:06
and life sciences—but men prevail by large numbers in engineering, physics, and computer
3:11
science. Does sex role stereotyping or patriarchy explain these choices—or could it just be
3:18
in the pursuit of happiness, men and women take slightly different paths? When asked
3:23
on a vocational preference test how you would prefer to spend your time, more men than women
3:28
say they would enjoy manipulating tools or taking apart a machines. Women are more likely
3:33
to say they would prefer to working with people and other living things. And here is one last
3:37
intriguing finding. Male and female math prodigies they differ in a significant different way:
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Males are more likely to have what's called an asymmetrical cognitive profile. That means
3:49
that their proficiency at math is not accompanied by a proficiency in verbal expression. On
3:55
the other hand, females who are gifted in math are often just as gifted in verbal expression.
4:00
That gives them more career prospects that the gifts men don't have. My guess is that
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girls with the talent for Math 55 are just too interested in other pursuits to spend
most of their week on linear algebra.
https://youtu.be/ruNbSMUfjH4?si=klENxwMfQuRfh8SK

Technology and Innovation for Gender Equality

0:14
One day my teacher decided to go completely off curriculum and she introduced us to this game
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where a snake had to navigate a maze using blocks that represented lines of code.
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That was the first time that I realized that the apps and the websites that I had pretty
0:29
much relied on on a day-to-day basis were made of using code. And that's also when I
0:34
realized that I wanted to be able to learn this mysterious language of computers and partake
0:39
in this future of technology. When I asked my teacher if we would be able to learn more about
0:45
programming in the classroom, I was told that no, unfortunately it isn't part of the national
0:51
computer curriculum, but I could go online and engage with free CS tutorials from there.
0:56
So that's what I did. For the rest of middle school and early high school I would look up
1:02
free computer science tutorials on how to learn how to code, and that was how I kind
1:06
of self-taught myself different CS skills. Fast forward to high school and I started being asked
1:13
all these questions about my future, about what majors I wanted to apply for, what schools I
1:18
wanted to potentially go to and what kind of career I wanted to have in five to ten years.
1:24
In response to many of those questions I said that I was considering a career in technology.

The Fourth Industrial Revolution

1:31
We are in the midst of the fourth industrial revolution
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1:34
and we've seen advances in robotics artificial intelligence, the internet of things,
1:39
3d printing and genetic engineering. What does this mean for women and girls?
1:44
Crystal Rugege, Managing Director of the Centre for the Fourth Industrial Revolution, Rwanda
1:50
The fourth industrial revolution represents a fundamental change in the way we live,
1:55
the way we work, and the way we relate to one another, as well as the rate and the scale
2:01
at which that change is happening. When we speak about the fourth industrial revolution,
2:05
it's really about blurring the boundaries between the digital the physical, and the
2:10
biological world, where we've seen advances in robotics and artificial intelligence,
2:16
internet of things, 3d printing, genetic engineering. Although women and girls were largely
2:21
excluded from the previous industrial revolutions, the fourth industrial revolution is anchored in
2:26
disruptive technology that can address very specific areas of gender discrimination and really
2:31
bring about equality. But in order to achieve this we have to empower girls and women to be more
than
2:37
just consumers of technology. They have to be the designers and the developers of this
technology.
2:43
My peers were surprised because I was the only girl in my entire grade that wanted to go into
2:48
tech, and I was one of the two that wanted to go into STEM as a whole. The other girls wanted to
be
2:53
doctors, so very different from my aspirations. I was already thinking about technology for
2:58
social impact. WiTech is a global youth or non-profit organization that aims to educate,
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3:03
inspire and empower youth from around the world to break gender barriers, and to start to make
3:08
a difference in society. We have 14 chapters spread across six countries around the world
3:13
and we're just getting started. Overall, our goals are not just to close the gender gap
3:17
in tech, but also promote tech accessibility for all, regardless of their socioeconomic status.

Gender divides in STEM

3:22
Education systems have allowed gender divides to be perpetuated.
3:27
The most marginalized girls are the worst affected. While girls tend to out-perform
3:31
boys in reading skills in most regions, they continue to be under-represented
3:36
as top performers in STEM subjects, and later, in the STEM workforce.

Stephen Bereaux, International Telecommunication Union

3:45
Research clearly indicates that the majority of future jobs will require at least basic digital
3:50
skills, and research also notes that globally women are much more likely to lack those skills
3:56
than men are. The issues range from the worst countries where women are outright denied or
4:01
blocked from learning opportunities, to those where it's less obvious,
4:04
but no less present, due to systemic social issues. What's particularly
4:09
troubling now is that, unfortunately, the learning challenges that women and girls,
4:13
and young women are already experiencing are worsening in the wake of the pandemic,
4:17
and the need for those skills are becoming more and more critical. We need to work much harder
4:22
and faster to ensure equal opportunities for girls and digital skills acquisition
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4:27
if we are to fully leverage the potential of ICTs as the foundation of a better future for all.
4:32
And so what this requires is, you know, building skills at the most basic levels of digital
4:38
literacy to advanced engineering skills. And when we look at the developed world, women
represent
4:44
about a quarter of the STEM workforce, and if you look at, you know, some of the emerging
economies
4:51
this is a much lower number. And so, you'll also find that the numbers are skewed towards
4:56
science and mathematics, and you have much fewer women in engineering and technology roles.
5:01
So I think that we have to encourage girls from a very young age to embrace STEM, and we need
to help them
5:07
understand the importance of STEM jobs in the current economy as well as the future of work.
How can this change
5:12
The COVID-19 pandemic has forced innovation
5:15
into the heart of almost every education system around the globe, but left millions of girls in
5:22
poor rural communities with little if any access to learning. How can this change?
5:27
Nasrin Siddiqa, Brookings Echidna Global Scholar
5:32
So we are moving fast to develop the technology,
5:36
but we are very slow in developing our girls quality education standard.
5:41
We are not giving emphasis for reducing or resolving multiple level barriers
5:47
for women and girls in STEM education and school, and career.

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So it is a total imbalance if we give emphasis for emerging technology, but if we do not give

emphasis for our rural girls and women.

6:02
A recent report by ITU's EQUALS access coalition indicates that the world's least developed
6:08
countries have women as at 33% less likely to have internet access than their male
counterparts.
6:15
This unequal access to ICTs is not a new phenomenon, but the connectivity chasm
6:20
has taken on a much greater and more alarming amplitude in the wake of the COVID pandemic,
6:25
as women are once again bearing the brunt of the social and economic consequences of the
crisis.
6:30
COVID-19 has exposed, you know, many of the stark inequalities in education,
6:34
particularly in many emerging economies. And so, you know, there's first the issue of access,
6:40
and that's access in terms of devices, in terms of the cost of data, but secondly, you know,
6:46
there are also many many girls who've been disproportionately
6:49
burdened by chores at home when they're supposed to be at home continuing their learning
remotely.
6:56
We knew that in order to really embody this principle of equality we couldn't just make
7:00
this 50/50 in the tech industry. Just from the upper strands of the social economics, I guess,
7:08
spectrum, we needed to make sure that that 50/50 was diverse and came from multiple
backgrounds.
7:13
In essence, the Women in Tech taught programme really aims to go out into
7:17
communities and bring technology education to communities with little to no access to tech.

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7:23
I say this because in many places that we go, the students have never heard of programming
before,
7:28
much less startups or different careers in technology. We aim to normalize that going
7:33
into STEM just doesn't mean being a doctor or an engineer, and we also aim to bring about this
7:40
mindset that you don't have to associate different careers with different genders,
7:45
and that you can be anything you want as long as you are 100% at your most authentic self.

Why are there so few women in science

7:52
Why are there so few women and girls in the world of science, maths, engineering and
technology?
7:57
Multiple barriers are holding women and girls back:
8:00
poverty, lack of affordable access to devices, lack of exposure to ICTs,
8:05
lack of training in digital literacy, lack of relevant content, particularly in local languages
8:11
and in formats that can respond to women's low literacy rates in those poorer countries,
8:16
concerns about online safety, entrenched gender stereotypes and cultural norms, and a lack of
8:21
visible female role models in an industry that is still overwhelmingly dominated by males.
8:26
Looking back, I think the feedback that hit me the hardest was when a teacher told me:
8:34
which means: "Audrey, you don't seem like a good fit for technology." And hearing this as
8:40
a young teenage girl from a teacher that I had very much looked up to was a pretty low blow.
8:46
And when I really thought about her words I kind of agreed on that I also couldn't imagine myself
8:51
in the tech industry, because I realized I couldn't even name a single woman in tech.
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8:56
When I thought of big figures in the tech industry, leaders in the tech industry,
9:00
I thought of Mark Zuckerberg, Bill Gates and Elon Musk, so basically, middle-aged Caucasian
men that
9:06
I had very little in common with, and that's when I decided that in order to know the stories of
9:12
women in tech, diversify the tech scene, I needed to go out there and seek their stories myself.

Role models
9:17
When it comes to attracting female talent into the sciences, having a role model is crucial.
9:23
Sandra Cauffman is the Deputy Division Director of NASA Earth Science.
9:28
It all started with the moon landing that inspired this young girl from Costa Rica, when she was
9:35
7 years old. And at that point it was just fascinating to me that men could walk on the moon
9:43
and of course, I wanted to be the first female to walk on the moon. I didn't have a lot of role
models
9:47
but I did have a mother who was very encouraging, a mother who who really didn't think
9:53
that there was any impediment to anything that a woman could do. It starts at home,
9:59
with the parents really encouraging girls to do and dream and become whoever they want to
become,
10:09
but at the same time, you know, encouraging them as they go through school and in high school,
10:14
and in college, you know, to develop their natural abilities and things that they know they can do.

Start early
10:20
It is crucial to introduce STEM education for girls in their early childhood years
10:26

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and to continue to support them throughout their education. Jennifer Brooks Microsoft Philanthropies

10:32
We need to start early. We start with computer science unplugged,
10:35
we don't need a computer for that. We start teaching computer science through
10:40
early childhood programmes to spark that critical thinking and that creative thinking
10:45
early. Every country should include computer science in their curricula from early childhood
10:52
to high school, and also provided in a non-formal setting to ensure that those who did not have
10:58
that privilege when being at school can catch up and learn. We need teacher trainings,
11:04
of course. Teachers have to be the front line knowledge barriers of computer science education.
Teacher trainings
11:11
Teachers clearly have a significant role to play.
11:14
How can we equip STEM teachers with the skills they need to break down
11:18
gender stereotypes in the classroom and encourage girls to pursue STEM subjects and careers?
11:24
Catherine Collin coordinates the UNESCO CapED programme in Niger
11:28
In Niger, Indonesia, our UNESCO capacity development for education program is focusing
11:34
on teachers, and that can be from supporting teacher training to helping the governments
11:39
develop its national teacher policy. Based on the study that we conducted in the Tilaby
11:44
region to understand why girls were performing less in standard voice,
11:49
we concluded that focusing on teachers would have the most impact to improve girls’
performance,
11:55
to improve their retention rates, and also their learning outcomes.
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12:00
So we wanted to create this snowball effect. We believe that by helping teachers, social change
will come.
12:06
And with the gender responsive pedagogy, girls will participate more in class and,
12:11
ultimately, they will perform better, and this will begin then to tackle stereotypes.

What needs to change

12:16
What needs to change in education to close the STEM gender gap
12:20
and gender digital divide more generally?
12:23
Rita Bissoonauth, African Union International Centre for Girls and Women’s Education in Africa
12:29
What is important is to ensure that we have gender sensitive teaching and learning
12:34
environments. What do we mean by this? By this we mean that it is important to have
12:41
the curriculum which is gender sensitive, the teaching and learning resources which are gender
12:47
sensitive, the administrative background, the environment which are gender sensitive.
12:52
If we look at the curriculum, especially in the African continent, a lot of the teaching
12:58
and learning materials are still gender biased. Where we see the girl or the woman being
depicted
13:05
as being a housewife, as being a cook or being a hairdresser, and the men, of course, being,
13:11
of course, working in construction or being a plumber. So in our textbooks, in our teaching
13:18
and learning materials today, it is too much gender biased, and these gender biases need to be
13:25
changed, need to be removed, because our children are growing up with those gender
stereotypes.
13:31
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Considering this, we launched a pilot in 15 schools, secondary schools,
13:36
and for that we developed modules and teaching guides that are free of gender
13:41
biased stereotypes. Next, we train 130 teachers and principals in gender responsive pedagogy
13:49
in STEM subjects specifically. As role models are so crucial, we tried to train a high number of
13:57
female teachers so that girls could identify with them. At the school level as well, head teachers
14:03
play a very important part in raising awareness in local communities and supporting teachers
which
14:09
helped everyone work together. The pilot was expanded to additional regions in the country
14:15
and other primary schools, benefiting in total some 9500 teachers and education staff.
14:23
We then integrated training modules in all teacher training institutions for primary level teachers
14:28
in the country. Secondary level is to follow. This means long-term change, 5 000 gender
responsive
14:36
and empowered teachers are now entering the education system every year. This is now
reaching
14:42
an estimated half a million students, 40% of girls with access to gender responsive education.

Girl-centered education
14:49
What more can be done to help girls see themselves as scientists,
14:52
mathematicians and leaders in technology? What does a girl-centered approach to
14:57
STEM education look like and how can it be part of the solution?
Lauren Rumble, UNICEF
15:04

23
UNICEF together with governments and businesses is spearheading a global program dedicated

to girl-centered learning. In over 18 countries now we have active programs supporting girls

skills and training designed by girls themselves.

15:14
We believe, based on evidence, that in order
15:20
for girls to learn and thrive specific learning opportunities for them to learn and thrive must be
15:25
girl-centered. First, girls must be co-designers and managers of any program that we support,
15:31
ensuring that the programmes are tailored to girls' realities and also incorporate their
15:36
feedback during the programme implementation. Second, we need a multi-pronged curriculum
15:41
that includes STEM, but not alone, it must also include foundational, informational & digital skills,
15:46
like digital safety and literacy. Thirdly, we need safe spaces for girls to learn,
15:51
such as dedicated digital labs and learning platforms, after school clubs, and we need
15:56
to link these spaces with female mentors and coaches who can help transition girls to support
16:02
services when they're needed, as well as work experience programs.

Girls’ STEM learning

16:06
How can we promote girls' STEM learning outside of the classroom?
16:10
We had formed many science clubs, environment clubs, STEM clubs in Bangladesh. So our
experience
16:18
says that when we had formed a science club and if it is a girls-led science club or STEM club,
16:28
they really do better and they can help other girls too, and we found that they can do good for
16:34
the future career. So this type of extracurricular activities and girls' club are very important,
16:41
24
and exchange programmes, like the urban students and teachers can come to the
16:47
rural area, and rural students and teachers can come and take the opportunities in urban schools.

The role of technology

16:53
How can technology provide tools to help break down barriers which keep girls and women from
16:59
accessing learning opportunities, participating in the workplace, and making their voices heard?
17:05
The role of technology and breaking gender barriers is that technology basically democratizes
17:12
access, as long as you have a laptop, as long as you have a wi-fi connection. In this day and
age,
17:19
we aren't limited anymore by what we can learn just in the classroom. We can learn things
17:25
online. So in terms of breaking the gender gapin tech, technology is such a useful tool
17:29
because it doesn't just provide mentors, it provides resources, it provides community. So
17:35
essentially, what we want to be able to do and achieve with WiTech and,
17:39
hopefully, with partnerships as well from other organizations, is really this future wherein there
17:45
are no limits to what a child can learn because they don't have access to tech, so that they
17:50
in turn can build, create and represent their communities, and using that for social change.

Who needs to be at the table

17:56
Education systems cannot drive such transformative change alone.
18:00
Who needs to be at the table? How can we ensure women and girls are at the heart of this work?
18:05
So achieving, you know, gender equality and STEM education will directly contribute to
18:10
achieving gender parity across the board. That's really a fundamental belief of mine. And so,

25
18:15
we must have a multi-stakeholder approach and the way we're securing commitments from
governments,
18:20
businesses, academia, you know, civil society across the board, and it has to be championed,
18:25
you know, at the highest level of leadership, but all the way to the level of parents, teachers
18:30
and local government leaders. So I think the main, you know, message is that we
18:34
must all take ownership of the problem and we must all be a part of creating the solution.
18:40
You know, we all need to recognize first that this is a challenge to understand and appreciate that
18:47
in our world empowering women empower society. We need to start making a concerted effort
18:56
to understand that digital skills are where the future is going to be taking us. And then we need
19:02
to really focus on making sure that women and girls can participate and can lead in this area.
Impact Investments for Girls
19:09
We really need to encourage all private sectors and public sectors to come together
19:17
in a multi-stakeholder approach to support access to computer education,
19:23
because that's the only way we will ensure everybody's participation in a digital economy:
19:30
through digital inclusion and livelihoods that are inclusive
19:34
not only of learning how to use technology, but how to understand, how to create technology.
19:41
This year, UNICEF, Volta Capital and Global Smart Investing launched a report that argues
19:46
that together we can leverage over 21 billion ГЫ dollars in impact investments for girls learning,
19:52
including the skills of the future, like STEM. Imagine what this kind of large-scale
19:57
26
investment can do for girls and women, and for the societies in which they live.
20:02
Investing in girls at this kind of scale can have a transformational intergenerational effect.
World’s Best Investment
20:08
World's best investment is the investment for girls education, and in this context of the world,
20:14
I will add that the best investment is to invest for the girls' STEM education,
20:20
girls' quality STEM education. And if we can give supporters for quality STEM education,
20:26
they will pay it back successfully in the future to make a better world.
20:32
I tell this to young girls, you know, the nature of your birth does not dictate the
20:37
person that you can become. So you can become anybody you want to. Just put your mind to it,
20:42
then apply it to yourself. So my message to girls and young women who want to have a future in
STEM
20:50
career is to just feel the fear and do it anyways if you have a dream and you want to become the
20:57
person that you want to become. So it is important to have that dream and really stay true to it.
21:05
The most wonderful thing and one of the most wonderful things I think about being a part of gen
21:09
Z is that we can connect with absolutely anybody around the world, as long as they also have a
21:15
connection, the technology, to the internet, and that's something that I'm seeing empower a
21:20
lot of young girls from around the world. They're not just launching their own initiatives like me,
21:24
but they're also sharing their voices and their stories, hence

setting forth or getting us closer to gender equality every single day.

27
 https://youtu.be/cqiRch4TFfg?si=XP2HnHdoNW0Qx8OQ

How can employers attract men and women into non-

traditional careers?
0:02
Hi I'm Jackie Woods from the Workplace Gender Equality Agency and I'm joined today by Katriina
0:07
Tahka from A Human Agency. And we have just finished a terrific event here at the agency.
0:14
It's the first one in our 'Too Hard Basket' series where we explore the issues that employers
0:20
find too hard when it comes to dealing with gender equality in the workplace. And today's
0:25
hot topic was attracting women and men into non-traditional areas because a common refrain
0:31
that we hear is 'oh we'd love more women' or 'we'd love more men' - ' but they just don't apply.'
0:38
So what do we do about that? We had an excellent discussion and the agency's data shows that
0:45
this is a very real problem. Australia has a very segregated workforce. Six in 10 Australians
0:52
work in an industry that is dominated by one or the other gender. At one end of the spectrum
0:58
we have industries like mining and construction that are about 80% men, and at the other end
1:03
- health care and social assistance which is about 80% women. And what's really concerning
1:09
is graduate data shows that graduates entering those industries show that it is becoming even
more concentrated
1:18
into male and female. Big challenge for employers to recognise that diversity is good for their
1:28
workplace culture and good for their business. But it is just not happening or they are really
1:32
struggling to attract and retain women and men in their workplaces. So one of the things
28
1:39
that jumped out at me today was discussion today about workplace culture - absolutely
1:44
- and how important that is. People talked about how they had a perception of whether
1:50
a workplace would be friendly for them and there was a great line about - 'does everyone
1:55
really want to go to the grand prix?' - yeah - because of the expectations that some industries
2:00
have about the kind of activities people will take. So what did you take out of that discussion
2:06
about the importance of culture? It's absolutely critical. And I think the reason why is we
2:11
know that attracting people is step 1, but retaining them is really what's important
2:16
and what's going to be important for retention is the culture. That's the stick factor, isn't
2:21
it? Yeah. So you can put all the ads out, you can get people through the gates but if
2:25
they're not going to enjoy working there - we had a few really open and honest stories about
2:30
people crying in the lift - that's a culture you're not going to stay in. You will walk
2:34
out the door. So that cultural point is absolutely critical and it's great that we got to sort
2:40
of deep dive into some of the things that create the culture. So like you said, it's
2:45
the stereotypes, it's the events, it's the behaviours - you know, things written on walls,
2:50
thing being said to people, the way flexibility is approached - all of it goes into the 'too
2:57
hard basket', which got named thankfully. And I think what was really interesting about
3:02
the stats about the grads that you just mentioned is just shows that generational change won't
fix this.

29
3:07
So anyone who is saying 'this will just change with the next generation'
3:12
- it's not happening. We've got to do something transformational. So what were sort of some of the
3:19
practical tips that we heard from employers today about what they are doing? Yeah look I think the
3:24
first one that jumped out was really targets. And how important well constructed, meaningful
3:30
measured targets are. And the data and the analytics. Like really knowing, you know I
3:35
mean Val was amazing, she said they measure it monthly and track it monthly - at St Barbara -
yes
3:41
that's right. That sort of focus and attention on the current state and then driving that
3:46
down and putting a mirror up to behaviour that is not good enough and performance that
3:50
is not good enough, it really sets you up for success. Leadership obviously, and beyond
3:56
just leadership, ownership of the issue. I think it's that clear statement that this
4:01
is not a HR issue, this is a business issue. That has to back up that culture change. That
4:07
was absolutely critical. And then some of those structures and processes are still not
4:12
friendly so we had examples of how flexible work requests are handled, and they're handled
4:18
in a way that completely demoralises anybody who is thinking that they might possibly balance
4:25
work and life - yeah, for example having the same sales targets or that sort of thing but
4:31
trying to work a part-time role. Yeah, that's right. And another thing that jumped out at
4:36
me was when thinking about recruiting, you know perhaps proudly stating that you want

30
4:41
to attract women and men. But then you know the requirements are quite unreasonable so
4:45
the kind of training that people might already be expected to have or that they need to travel
4:51
for 12 weeks to complete the training to do the job might be a real barrier for some people.
4:55
So actually having that conversation 'can we change what is required to attract the
5:00
people'. Yeah and it's interesting because you think well how did that sort of advertisement
5:03
happen? I think there is a lot of assumptions about what other people want from the groups
5:09
in this conversations. There is a lot of assumptions about what women want. There is a lot of
assumptions

5:13
about what men want. But then when you hear the real stories of, you know, males that
5:18
are facing huge stress and huge anxiety at work. And women being demoralised and experiencing
5:25
sexist work. We need to hear those real stories to know that things are not perfect. Yeah
5:30
and that there are work cultures that are not working for anyone. Yep. Yep. But out
5:35
of job security, quite understandably people will be saying 'it's all ok' but it is seriously
5:39
not ok. Yeah. So, there are things that employers can do in their own workplaces but you know
5:47
there is a bigger issue, isn't there, about what employers can do to attract people into
5:53
their industry at an earlier stage, so at school and university. Did you hear anything
5:57
about, you know what was the discussion about that today? I think we all know that employers
6:01
need to look after their own turf, clean up their own backyard. And everyone acknowledges
31
6:06
that but really this is now such a big societal issue. And dealing with some of those perceptions
6:11
and stereotypes of what it's like to work in those industries - it applies equally in
6:16
both. So, the perceptions of what it is like for a woman to enter a male dominated industry
6:21
and just as powerfully, what it is like for a man who wants to work in a female dominated
6:26
industry, and the perceptions of masculinity. These things can only be changed at a cultural
6:32
or social level. So, a lot of work to be done there. Good suggestions around industry bodies
6:37
and peak bodies, you know, what can they be doing more effectively because that
6:42
is very difficult. As well as, also using the supply chain - you know how influential
6:49
can purchasing power be? And if you are big enough to use your purchasing power to drive
6:54
change, how important that can be as a social lever. I loved it, you know today somebody
6:59
talked about tinkering and transformation. And I think we all need to be doing lots of
7:04
little things but we need to all keep our eye on the big picture. Yeah absolutely. Well
7:09
thanks for joining us today - it was a pleasure - it was a terrific event and I am looking
7:13
forward to the next one. Absolutely. Viewers please feel free to leave questions in the
7:17
messages and we'll come back to you. Also you can look at our 'Women's Work | Men's
7:20
Work' material on the WGEA website, where we profile women and men in non-traditional
industries.

32