Today marks the International Day of Women and Girls in Science. According to UNESCO data, just 30% of female students select STEM-related fields in higher education and less than 30% of researchers are women. Globally, female students’ enrolment is particularly low in ICT (3%), natural science, mathematics and statistics (5%), and in engineering, manufacturing, and construction (8%).
Despite the damning statistics, women and girls continue to lead innovation and ground-breaking research, creating life-saving medicine and breaking the sound barrier, exploring the universe, and laying the foundation to understand the structure of DNA. They are inspiring role models for our future generations. At AFL Hyperscale, we are passionate about educating and inspiring the next generation of innovators and are lucky enough to have some of the brightest minds in the industry working with us to create a better future.
One of these individuals is Ros Neat. Ros works as a Technology Manager at our office in Milton Keynes, UK, initially joining us as a Product Manager in 2011, managing adaptors, patch cords and cables to name but a few. Widely considered the AFL Hyperscale cable “guru”, she now divides her time between managing our cable range, delivering training, and overseeing our standards compliance. Ros has worked in a staggering 28 countries and is a participant of numerous standards boards and the Chair of British standards GEL 86 and GEL 86 3.
Bridging the gender gap in STEM is crucial to developing future technologies. Today, we celebrate International Day of Women and Girls in Science with the hope that women and girls will be given the opportunities to continue to make inroads in what is a predominantly male-dominated industry, following in the footsteps of women such as Ros and helping to shape the technology that will support future generations.
