Inspiring Women to Shape a Better World

Recently fifty-two students from across First, Second, Transition Year and Fifth Year from Presentation College travelled to the RDS to take part in the I WISH conference. I WISH (Inspiring Women in Stem) is an initiative to inspire, encourage and motivate young female students to pursue careers in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM). The focus of the conference was how STEM can change our world. The lack of female participation in STEM means we are not benefiting from fifty percent of the possible pool of talent. Changing this can solve the current skills gap in the industry.

There are many world problems, the solutions to which lie in harnessing the power of girls who have skills and expertise in STEM. Examples of these world problems are: Food shortage, Climate change, Pollution and Ageing population. Harnessing the power of thousands of girls and encouraging them to pursue careers in the STEM area is the aim of the I WISH Conference.

On the day we heard from a range of various speakers including Gillian Keating, Caroline O’Driscoll and Ruth Buckley (Co-Founders of I WISH), Paula Kirk (ARUP), Gillian Bell (Symantec), Jackie O’Dowd (Science Foundation Ireland) and Nkirika Uwaje (Dell EMC). Many students mentioned the latter as being a particular inspiration for having co-founded Osun, an independent Women's Clothing Brand that looks to inspire the world of fashion with contemporary print and sustainable fashion.

Following the range of speakers, all students had the opportunity to interact with a host of exhibitors from Deloitte, AIG, Chartered Accountants Ireland, Google, Aer Lingus, IBEC BioPharmachem, SISK, MSD, Johnson & Johnson, Zendesk, Stryker, Accenture and many more! A fantastic experience to interact with and gain an insight into the possibilities open to students who pursue Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths. Many thanks to Ms. McHugh and Ms. Cumiskey for organising.

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