International Day of Women and Girls in Science

Sunday, 11th February 2024 marks International Day of Women and Girls in Science, and this date also celebrates the birth of Marie Curie, the pioneering physicist and chemist who made ground-breaking contributions to the fields of radioactivity and nuclear physics.

In late November 2022, I attended the Hye on Wye Winter Book Festival and heard author Dr Anne-Marie Imafidion, MBE talk about her latest book She's In CTRL, (2022, Bantam Press) which not only takes inspiration from her own experiences in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) but also from the stories of many overlooked women inventors and innovators who have, against the odds, transformed technology. Did you know, for example, that Austrian-American actress Hedy Lamarr was the pioneer behind today's WIFI technology (Pg 52) or that when your satnav/map app brings you safely to your stated destination the mathematician you need to be thanking is Gladys, and her Positioning System (Pg 114).

A prayer for International Day of Women and Girls in Science

Creator God

We thank you for the many wonders of this world, for those who are curious, asking the questions why, and looking for answers, and for those who are using Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM)to help develop a better future for us, and those generations to come.

On this day we give thanks for the many STEM achievements of women throughout the world, and down the years, which, we are saddened to say, are still so often overlooked, ignored, or silenced because of our gender bias and prejudices in the field of science and technology.

Help us to do better, and offer true encouragement to mothers, sisters, daughters, nieces, and every girl and woman in every sphere of education and learning, but especially today in those areas of science that so often remain seen as "subjects for the boys".

For all women working within the disciplines of STEM, be that in commerce or education, affirm them in their chosen vocation, especially in those moments when they are disregarded, devalued, or demeaned by others, for you see them all as beloved daughters, beautiful, strong, and worthy of respect not just in the workplace, but the world.

Amen.

If you have a few pennies spare you can subscribe to the hay player to watch the full interview of Dr Anne-Marie Imafidion and her book: https://www.hayfestival.com/p-19637-anne-marie-imafidon-in-conversation-with-elena-rodriguez-falcon.aspx?skinid=16

Written by Revd Kim Shorley