Day of Women, Girls in Science Focuses on Growth, Inclusivity

During this year’s International Day of Women and Girls in Science, intellectuals are encouraging equal opportunities and growth in the science world for future generations.

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Celebrating its fourth anniversary, the commemorative day this year is targeting youths around the globe, advocating for a more balanced work place where women can participate in what has always been a male-dominated sector.

"We need more young girls to gain interest in STEM majors- science, technology, engineering and mathematics- and hopefully, with having more of a female role model on TV, more girls and women will get interested in meteorology," AccuWeather Broadcast Meteorologist Brittany Boyer said.

Thanks to over 25 years of activism from the United Nations among other institutions, various countries have begun to address the serious gender gaps in both the science and medical sectors.

However, internationally, the advancement of women and girls in these concentrations has remained a concern, maintaining low levels and some say even regressing, contributing negatively to the already present gender gap.

“Women stand to gain only one new science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) job for every 20 lost, in stark contrast to men, who gain one new STEM job for every four lost,” the World Economic Forum reports.

Other international studies show there are fewer than 30 percent of female researchers, and even fewer in high-paying STEM jobs or decision-making roles. Despite the fact that women earn 57 percent of college degrees, female students still struggle to hold 35 percent of degrees in STEM fields, research of the Hamilton Project at the Brooking Institute says.

Association of South African Women in Science and Engineering's Dr. Taime Sylvester, “It is really important for us to empower young girls to pursue careers in science. We need to try and get women in this academic world to celebrity status. We need to talk in a very popular type of way about our work that will go a long way in promoting science careers among our young girls.”