The team member of Network Services AreaGonçalo Lopes offers his contribution to the GÉANT #WomenInSTEM campaign, highlighting examples from his professional career that illustrate the importance of making a change. During the month of March, the FCCN Unit will share the opinions of several of its employees on gender diversity and the important role of women in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.
It's a fact that women in science and technology have a much lower representation than men, even though several studies demonstrate that gender diversity is highly beneficial. A while ago, I heard an expression that I think is apt: "If we always look at the same face of a cube, we'll believe it's a square. We'll only be able to see the cube in its entirety if we're somehow presented with the other faces." Greater gender diversity allows us to interact with people with different experiences and ideologies. The resulting learning helps us develop our way of being, living, and working.
I experienced these benefits during my student days. Being somewhat introverted, the first people I contacted were those with whom I formed a work group at the beginning of my degree, and they happened to be all boys. At this stage, we all had roughly the same ideas and work methodologies, which was sufficient, but far from ideal. As friendships developed, we formed a more gender-diverse group of friends and colleagues. We began to work in a more organized and focused manner, largely influenced by the girls, which resulted in a significant increase in the performance of all members.
Throughout my academic and professional life, I've never felt any difference in terms of abilities or vocation for the field, and I don't believe that's the justification for the lower female representation. After reading and reflecting on the subject, I realized that the reasons for this appear to stem from influences from society in general, which seem to imply that, because it's a field with a significantly higher male representation, it's a field "only for men." The process of increasing female representation won't be trivial, and I don't believe I can offer a concrete solution, but I'm certain that it will involve overcoming this stigma together.
