New horizons for young women
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Last week, the first networking meeting between two cross-regional Women Associations, the WIA (Women in Aerospace Europe) and the American IAWA (International Aviation Womens Association), took place in a mythical venue in Brussels: the Natural Science Museum.
This event was aimed at getting together two associations to join efforts to raise awareness on the shortage of women talent in science, but also to create new synergies to find solutions to achieve gender equality in the Aerospace and Aviation sectors, typically tagged as a “male field.”
The speakers included Alessia Mosca, EU Parliament Member (MEP) for the International Trade Committee; Catherine M. Lang, Federal Aviation Administration Director at the US Embassy in Brussels; and Veronique Dehant, Head of Section, Directorate of Reference Systems and Planetology at the Royal Observatory of Belgium.
During the Challenges and Opportunities discussion, these outstanding women shared their own personal experiences for building a career in a field that has been largely managed by men until recent years. They highlighted the unlimited career possibilities offered to young talents in the science and technological fields, in order to achieve a balanced representation of women at all levels.
Women at Work
MEP Mosca shared her passion about gender equality while working in the Italian Parliament on the so called “Golfo-Mosca” Law that implemented the use of reserved quotas for women on companies’ boards. Catherine Lang talked about her career beginning at the FAA, and how women need to work together to “create tangible change” in any industry or sector. Véronique Dehant highlighted the importance of different associations and organizations like BeWise, whose main objective is to support the position of women in science and to improve communication among women in the Belgian and European scientific community.
At the end of the event, Mr. Fabio Gamba, CEO of the European Business Aviation Association -EBBA- called for efforts to look for young talents in different fields, such as science, politics, business, and innovation. In his own words, “this talent needs to come from the widest pool and that includes women and men. Of course, the first step is to formally assess the issue.”
There are still areas where the job offer is larger than the demand. Younger generations need to enlarge their ambitions and horizons beyond gender stereotypes for any sector. As Anatole France once said “To accomplish great things, we must not only act, but also dream; not only plan, but also believe.” Let's dare to believe in science, because “Science needs you!”
Proofread by Danica Jorden