About For Women in Science

Each year the L’Oréal-UNESCO For Women in Science Australia & New Zealand Fellows share their stories with female students through our Girls in Science program.

This year senior female students participated and were able to hear from the Fellows and ask them questions about their career path. The fellows were great role models and showed the students how the various scientific and stem disciplines are used to combat climate change. They also discussed the difficulties of being a woman in a male dominated field and provided advice on how to overcome these difficulties encouraging participants to pursue this vocation and help to increase the representation of females in science. ​

Today,

· 28% of researchers are women

· less than 20% making up the most senior leadership positions

· 3% of Scientific Nobel Prizes ever having been awarded to women.

This is why, for over the past 20 years, the L’Oreal Corporate Foundation and UNESCO have been committed to increasing the number of women working in scientific research.

In 1998, L’Oreal and UNESCO founded the For Women in Science Program to promote and highlight the critical importance of ensuring greater participation of women in science. The For Women in Science Program recognises the achievements of exceptional female scientists at the early stages of their careers and awards them with a Fellowship to help further their research.

The Fellows (and their articles) included:

Dr Adele Morrison; Australian National University

How long do we have until our cities will be under sea level?

Dr Emma Camp; University of Technology

Will extreme corals bide us time in order to protect our Great Barrier Reef?

Dr Kate Nguyen; RMIT University

A sustainable coating that could save thousands of homes from bushfire.

Dr Marzi Barghamadi CSIRO

The next generation of lithium battery technology is within our grasp.

Dr Shari Gallop; University of Waikato

Moving rivers to restore the lifeblood of communities.

Karlie Noon

Karlie Noon is an Aboriginal women who has completed a double degree in Mathematics and Physics and has since completed her studies in Astronomy and Astrophysics at the Australian National University.

The purpose of Karlie’s visit to the school was to communicate and share her experiences with the challenges she faced, overcoming discrimination and looking at how determination and focus can achieve systemic change.

Our students prepared some really thoughtful and interesting questions for Karlie. Karlie provided extending responses to the questions and they valued gaining an understanding of Karlie’s educational experience and advice regarding overcoming challenges that young people experience and establishing a career with STEM focus. The event was recorded and shown to students during a KEYS lesson.

The contribution of the P & C to this event was appreciated by staff and students.