Eugenia Covernton, the Woman behind the LeWiBo initiative "Women in STEM".

Dr. Eugenia Covernton grew up in a small town in Argentina. Since she was a little girl she was always fascinated with science, especially with viruses. As a young woman, she decided to leave her home country to pursue a PhD in virology, during which she discovered her passion for communicating science, in particular to young audiences. She devoted her career to science outreach and education, with her main focus in low- and middle-income countries, where science education is needed and there is a higher level of gender inequality.?

Eugenia started working for Lecturers Without Borders (LeWiBo) in July 2020, when it was a small network of around 40 scientists who reached schools through their personal connections. She was tasked with engaging more scientists. Since then, the network has grown to include over 360 scientists, and she was appointed as LeWiBo's CEO in March 2022.

What is “Women in STEM”, and why did you start the initiative?

It is a known phenomenon that, for decades, many young students equated the word “scientist” with “white male living in the global north”. This misconception has led to millions of girls considering themselves inadequate for a career in STEM. Fortunately, a lot of progress has been made over the past few decades towards 'normalising' the idea that a woman could be a scientist. However, in many small towns - especially in developing countries and especially in the global south - there is still a belief held by many young girls that only one or two women in history (maybe Marie Curie or Rosalind Franklin) 'managed to become a scientist'. A career in science still feels, to them, like something unreachable.

To participate in the "Women in STEM" initiative, students need to identify and interview a female STEM professional in their own communities (ideally through personal connections). They will then present the work/research about this STEM professional to their peers, by preparing a short video or presentation. The aim of the project is to challenge students to ask relevant questions and to practice their presentation skills, but, most importantly, to present them with the reality that there are 'women scientists' everywhere. The hope is to inspire young women to consider a career in STEM for themselves.

Why did you start the initiative?

It all started during a conversation with two of my female colleagues at LeWiBo. Most of us are women, and many of us are scientists from low- and middle-income countries. We were discussing that many young students equated the word “scientist” with “white male living in the global north”.?

Although a lot of progress has been made in normalising the idea that a woman could be a scientist from any part of the world, those advances have not reached every corner of the planet. Therefore, as the CEO of LeWiBo, I decided to task our team with contributing to reaching those far corners, through the “Woman in STEM as role models” initiative, by doing what we do best: high-quality science outreach worldwide, with a focus on diversity and inclusion.?

I think of science outreach as a direct action in the community: around the world, women working in science are a minority and most high-level positions belong to men. I want to strengthen the voices of women working in STEM, reach communities where women working in STEM are a minority, and create connections between young girls and role models in their own communities through this initiative.?

What are some of the challenges that the project or organisation has faced whilst working on engaging girls and young women with STEM, and what lessons have you learnt?

The most common challenge is how to overcome the initial reluctance of teenage girls to get engaged in science activities. With young girls it is usually easier, as they tend to be less aware of gender roles and are therefore less prone to thinking that science is 'not for girls'. With teenagers, however, and especially in certain cultures, there’s a stigma around 'being too smart', and this makes millions of teenagers reluctant to engage with any intellectual activities, in particular related to STEM.

Over the years we’ve learnt that the best way to engage them is to start by asking them to reflect on the roles that are available to them, and invite them to rationally explain why it would be unacceptable to be a scientist as opposed to, say, a teacher.?

What advice would you give to someone wanting to do STEM outreach?

As (I was) a girl: my advice to girls is to give science outreach activities a chance. You might not be interested at the beginning, but you might discover your future passion, as I did.

As a scientist: my advice is to start any science outreach activity from a position of equality, openness, and willingness to learn from the people in front of you.

As an educator promoting science outreach activity: my advice is not to forget that science outreach is about encouraging a transformation from both sides - from the scientist learning about the audience and the needs of the society, as well as from the audience learning about the scientist and the science.

Why is it important to encourage more girls to be interested in/ engage with STEM subjects?

According to the World Economic Forum, at the current pace, it will take 99.5 years to achieve gender parity worldwide. Because gender stereotypes affect girls’ interest and success in STEM, women currently working in science are a minority, and, high-level positions in STEM mostly belong to men.?

Technology is advancing fast, and by 2030, between 40 and 160 million women will need to transition between occupations. That means that millions of women and girls need to learn the technological skills to navigate these transitions successfully, now. However, the progress made in this subject has recently declined, as climate change and the COVID-19 pandemic are exacerbating gender inequalities around the world.

Therefore, we cannot afford to waste time. We need to support girls' engagement with STEM subjects because:

• A transformation in teaching practices has the potential to transform gender relations.
• Gender equality is a human right.
• The underachievement and underrepresentation of girls in STEM worldwide negatively impacts humanity, offering fewer chances for scientific discovery and solutions to global problems, such as climate change.
• Many girls have ideas that could revolutionise our understanding and our transformation of our world.?