Global Marathon For, By and About Women in Engineering & Technology, March 9-11, 2015

March 2, 2015 | By Business Wire News

WASHINGTON

The Global Marathon For, By and About Women in Engineering & Technology kicks off on Monday, March 9 at 11:00 am (ET), with an opening keynote by Megan Smith, former Google executive and currently Chief Technology Officer of the United States. The event is an annex of DiscoverE’s “Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day” an annual event providing engineering focused engagement and mentoring to as many as one million girls. This year’s theme “There’s A Little Bit of Engineer In Every Girl” enlisted the hashtag #BringItOut.

A free, worldwide online forum connecting and engaging women in engineering and technology across six continents, this year’s Global Marathon theme is Engineering New Horizons. The Global Marathon allows women professionals to meet virtually and share their stories of personal, educational and professional challenges and successes. This year’s marathon includes speakers from 15 countries who will explore topics ranging from entrepreneurship in Uganda to emerging Latinas to the culture of millennials and more. The 2014 Marathon engaged approximately 1,000 active participants in 43 countries.

“The Global Marathon brings women from all over the world together to expand their networks, and learn and be inspired by some of world’s most courageous, smart and successful women,” Dawn McGinley, chair of the Marathon and 3M women’s leader explains.

Some of the highlights of the three day event include:

March 9
Daily Theme: New Horizons for Women in Engineering and Technology

In addition to Megan Smith’s keynote, this first day is highlighted by remarks from Shaesta Waiz, the world’s first female Afghan-American fixed wing pilot. Shaesta, a graduate student at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, is planning a solo flight around the world in 2016 as a way to inspire women and girls to follow their dreams.

March 10
Daily Theme: Your Horizon: Finding Perspective

Day Two’s highlights include a session on work-life balance, “It’s Your Choice” led by international women leaders in 3M engineering careers, and a discussion on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Questioning and Intersex (LGBTQI) mentoring. This discussion will be led by Rochelle Diamond, member of the professional staff at Caltech and Chair of the Board of Directors of the National Organization of Gay and Lesbian Scientists and Technical Professionals (NOGLSTP). and takes a frank look at the state of technology and engineering careers for gay and lesbian professionals. The professional environment may be improving in certain parts of the US, but in other parts of the world, it’s a very different story. What is the best way to address this issue on a global level? And, is the tone different in academia versus industry?

March 11
Daily Theme: Explore Your Next Horizon

The final day of the Global Marathon includes a discussion on CoderDojo, a global network of free, volunteer-led, independent, community based programming clubs for young people between 7 and 17. This new program enables free IT education to students world-wide and shows them how to write code and develop websites, apps, programs and games, while exploring technology in an informal and creative environment. The Global Marathon discussion will highlight what CoderDojo is and how hundreds of volunteers, both in person and virtually, have embraced it.

Another session also brings together Millennial women, those born between 1980 and 2000, from across Latin America and the United States, to discuss the issues important to them, based in the following topic areas:

• What Millennials want and need in the workplace

• Communication in the workplace (it’s not just about the email!)

• Relationships in the workplace (4 generations under one roof)

The panel of millennials will talk about working in multi-generational companies and the challenges and rewards that come with generational diversity. They will also touch upon how technology is bridging the gap and the important role good communication plays in the success of workplace relationships with colleagues.

For more information, please visit http://www.discovere.org/our-programs/global-marathon.

Major sponsors of the 2015 Global Marathon include 3M, Bechtel, Fluor, IBM, Motorola Solutions Foundation, Northup Grumman Foundation, Shell, and TE Connectivity Foundation.

About DiscoverE

DiscoverE is leading a growing volunteer movement that inspires and informs present and future generations to discover engineering. Our network of volunteers in the US and abroad is drawn from the DiscoverE coalition of more than 100 professional societies, major corporations and government agencies. Together we meet a vital need: introducing students, parents, and educators to engineering, engaging them in hands-on engineering experiences and making science and math relevant. For more information, visit www.discovere.org.