Prelude to International Women’s Day
the provincially controlled electrical power agency Ontario Power Generation (OPG) hosted its first ever conference for young girls this week as a precursor to International Women’s Day today.
The event was held over two days near Cornwall Ontario, and invited about 200 young girls in grades 9 and 10, approximately aged 14 and 15, to learn about careers in science.
The event featured a number of women who have achieved prominence in several fields, including a recorded opening message from former astronaut and current Governor-General Julie Payette.
Keynote speaker was Gina Parvaneh Cody who was the first woman to receive a PhD in Engineering from Concordia University. She went on to become an executive and principal shareholder of a highly successful engineering firm. The Concordia Faculty of Engineering has since been named after her.
In her speech she said, ““I’m here to tell you today that you are good enough, you are smart enough and you are strong enough,,,,,. Go build a better future, I dare you. I know you can do it as I did.”
Following speeches, the teens attended a number of smaller break out information and question sessions with women speakers working in a number of upper level technical and managerial fields. Discussions involve four areas of engineering and science regarding potential careers in environmental science, health science, engineering, and trades.
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