2023-February-16
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Empowering Future Leaders to Dream Big
BY KRYSTAL CHENG · GLOBAL EMPLOYEE COMMUNICATIONS · UNITED STATES
4 MINUTE READ · 7 MINUTE LISTEN
International Girls in ICT Day is a global movement to encourage young women to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering, art, and math.
Its purpose is to inspire them with career attainment and advancement opportunities across ICT and empower them to dream big.
The next International Girls in ICT Day is on April 27, 2023. But with briefing sessions fast approaching on February 21, it’s never too early to sign-up to volunteer.
Find inspiration from last year’s volunteers who hosted events filled with inspiring keynotes, speed mentoring sessions, office tours, career panels, networking workshops, and more.
Veronica Martinez, Account Manager, Richardson, Texas
In between the keynotes and mentoring sessions, we took a mental pause to allow the girls to network with each other. There were 166 girls from 10 different school districts, yet their stories were all identical.
They were the only girls in their networking class and never got picked for projects because the boys didn’t think they were smart enough.
But that day, they got to be in a room filled with women just like them. They saw just how many other amazing women were on the same track and encouraged each other to keep moving forward.
Seeing them find camaraderie was truly remarkable. I’m so grateful I got the opportunity to lead this event in partnership with over 30 amazing volunteers and the support of all of my local EROs.
I always say it’s not what I do as part of my day job. It’s what I get to do because of it.
Elda Perez, Technical Leader, Mexico City, Mexico
I understand the importance of representation in tech. Everyone wants to see themselves in positions they want to be in in the future.
I was once that little girl who needed someone to tell me, “It’s OK and you’re going to make it. There’s a lot of room for you, and you’re going to be great.” I needed to hear that growing up, so now I want to be that person to tell these girls.
We organized a huge virtual event on Socio with 300 attendees from Mexico, Guatemala, Colombia, and Argentina. It was just awesome being behind the scenes, knowing you’re making an impact on someone else.
It’s amazing to think that someone who attended our event will be the next leader in tech.
So if you want to volunteer, just do it! Once you live it, you’ll realize how important this is and how much change you can make from where you stand.
Aurelia Takacs, Program Manager, Brussels, Belgium
We held our session in our Cisco headquarters in Diegem, Belgium for 40 girls between the ages of 10 and 15.
One of the best parts of my day was doing the welcome speech. My 10-year-old daughter was there, and it was so special to do the kick-off speech with her in the audience!
As she grows older, I see how valuable and necessary it is to instill role models at a young age — the younger, the better — to help them realize they’re capable of everything and anything.
As a woman in ICT, I know firsthand how important community, mentorship, and sponsorship are as we grow professionally and personally throughout our careers.
There are so many ways to make an impact at this event, and you don’t necessarily have to be technical to volunteer. Whether it’s with a group of 10 or 100 girls, it makes a huge difference. No deed is too small.
Ben Nicholls, Account Manager, Brisbane, Australia
We came together with Queensland University of Technology (QUT) and Women in Digital to put together our event for 30 students, ages 14 and 15.
A highlight for me was seeing the girls write their takeaways from the event on a whiteboard. The sentiment we got was amazing. The students walked away realizing that the career choices they make today aren’t permanent and that they can pivot as many times as they want.
Within the Queensland office, we do a lot of give back in STEM. Our close relationship with Women in Digital supports women’s internship programs for university students.
On International Girls in ICT Day, we can make sure we’re supporting girls at the high school level too.
Volunteer for International Girls in ICT Day
Sign up to encourage girls and young women to see themselves in tech. You can become an academy event assistant, event organizer, or social media influencer to create a fun and meaningful event in your community.
Each year, a theme is chosen based on important topics in the tech industry. And this year, we’re focusing on using technology to solve environmental challenges, which is more important than ever for our next generation of leaders.
Let’s ignite new passions for ICT and inspire an inclusive future for these young women.
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