Over 15 years ago I attended a course aimed at growing and Women’s Empowerment. We’re just getting started, and we were asked why we were there. A lady of about 70 years answered confidently and with all the soul of the world: “We are here because we want it all.”
This phrase, so short yet so powerful and with so much meaning, stuck in my mind.
It made me think that thanks to the audacity of women like her, who paved the way and opened doors for us, I could be where I am today.
I think for example Concepcion Mendezbalthe first woman to graduate as a civil engineer in 1930. She initially studied in regular school but wanted more, so she dared to challenge her time and find out what she was passionate about, despite having an idea that engineering was, above all racing for men.
Women still struggle to access STEM careers
It’s been more than 90 years since Concepción graduated from engineering, and unfortunately, there is still inequality between men and women in STEM fields in Mexico. Of the total student enrollment, only 38% are women and the proportion of those practicing their profession is much lower.
This is an alarming number if we think about the leading role that technology plays, which is big data and artificial intelligence.
This is why it is more urgent than ever for women to join STEM jobs so that the gap does not continue to widen or be left far behind in the near future.
To support this, the Tecnológico de Monterrey, through College of Engineering and ScienceCreate initiative ingenia for women, which is divided into five committees and its main objective is to design programs to enhance and enable the professional and personal development of women, through workshops and activities in STEM disciplines, thus supporting large-scale research with a gender and social responsibility perspective. All this applies to teachers, researchers, collaborators and students.
At Ingenia, more than 100 teachers are currently involved and we have an impact on over 2,000 students. We are confident that this beautiful initiative is and will be an agent of change that will ensure gender equality and women’s empowerment within our organization and will also permeate our country. Regional Director of the Mechatronics Division, Coordinator of the Tec-MIT Alliance and National Leader of
Women in Engineering and Science Initiative at Tec. (Adriana Vargas Martinez, Regional Director of the Mechatronics Division, Tec-MIT Alliance Coordinator and National Leader for Tec’s Women in Engineering and Science Initiative.)
This column was originally published in the 40th edition of the digital magazine Tec Review
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