Equivalent Too

5 years later and I still have weekly conversations with incredible women in STEM. why, because it keeps me humble and grateful as a human being. This conversation was no different. It took a sudden twist when I learned that she had lost her Dad. My own Dad has been such a massive influence in my own life. He has probably been at the core of all my life decisions, some positively driven and some driven by a little bit of resentment. This conversation reminded me that we all go through challenges, but you keep fighting to help others and pursue your purpose. No matter what.

I grew up watching Maggie Philbin on Tomorrow's World, the stories she covered on this iconic BBC science and tech magazine show, were the core of many family discussion at the dinner table, about pie in the eye tech that would be part of our future.  All of these ideas came true and now Maggie has turned her attention to inspiring diversity into science and technology through teenagers!  She offers a fresh and alternative perspective to encouraging and supporting people into STEM, and over 40 years later, she continues to push boundaries in this male-dominated field.      

In this conversation we talk about striving to achieve it all and get realistic about the challenges and sacrifices involved in ticking all of the boxes as a woman in engineering and STEM. Its amazing how the first few years of our lives shape the rest of our futures too!

UNIQ+ research internships are designed to provide students from under-represented and disadvantaged backgrounds who are ordinarily resident in the UK, with the opportunity to experience postgraduate study. Dr. Tom Crawford (mathematician/fluid dynamicist), Dr. Sagida Bibi (immunologist) and I get together on a panel to talk about our experiences doing doctorates. Its a 90-min chat, where we take questions from the audience. The sound is not great on this recording, but I wanted to be able to share this experience with you all!

This conversation gets really honest about under representation in STEM and life. We open up about cultural differences and navigating being different! This conversation offers so much solution, but also gets raw about the problems. This episode is an eye-opener to mental well-being and empowerment.

It’s so inspiring meeting young women who have a strong drive and ambition to build careers in STEM.  Thendral Kamal is one of those women.  She is so focussed on becoming the first Indian woman on Mars, that she is leaving no stone unturned in getting there.  Not only is she an aerospace engineering student, but she is also so knowledgeable about NASA, that one would think that she already works there.  If you are feeling a bit lack lustre about your own path in life, listen to this episode and it will give you the rocket boost you need to realise your own greatest potential.   

She is an engineer through and through. She sees the world through an engineering lens. Totally head led, totally, rational and loving protocol, because it allows her to think outside of the box and solve problems - like all great engineers do. She’s a mechanical engineer and more, who believes in the power of repeatability. Practice is key, which she applies to all multi-dimensions of herself. Nika is such an interesting person and is a great speaker - I highly recommend this conversation, for a boost towards your own goals and dreams in life - Nika is a truly motivating force.

Watch out boys, girls are increasing in empowerment. We want independence and don’t want to have to rely or report to men. Its time to level up to what women bring to the table! Prachi Gupta was raised in India, a place where women are still assumed to have a subordinate role to men, but the young women of India are starting to find this mentality completely unacceptable to them and in this conversation, we hear what they are doing about it through STEM…

Anete Dowling is passionate about machine learning, especially when applied to social robotics.  She works hard and pushes herself to be the best she can be in this field.  At the same time, she has also been blessed with good looks because she is also a fashion model.  I have a chat with her about doing these seemingly contrasting jobs and I find her attitude towards her work really refreshing and really current for our times.  Why should any of us try and squeeze ourselves into pigeon holes, when we can enjoy all that life has to offer us instead!  I’m all for the idea of being the best possible version of yourselves, however multi-dimensional that may be.  

Chloe Sales is truly inspiring.  Our conversation contained so many mic-drop moments because she has clearly done a lot of soul-searching.  Her early 20’s were hard as she muddled around figuring out what to do.  However, she has surely found her groove with work as a welder, and discovered a treasure trove of confidence, resilience and strength of character.  I need to listen to the episode on a regular basis, there are so many gems of wisdom her.  It really is true that out of darkness comes light.