Photo By 1st Sgt. Mark Hanson | The 10th annual International Conference on Women Leaders in Science, Technology, and...... read more read more
KUWAIT CITY, Kuwait—The 10th annual International Conference on Women Leaders in Science, Technology, and Engineering kicked off Discover America Week at the American University of Kuwait Center for Research in Informatics, Science and Engineering building 23-25 Oct. Several Soldiers of the 35th Infantry Division were among more than 200 attendees.
“The conference is fabulous,” said Maj. Laura Webb, Family Nurse Practitioner, 35th Inf. Div., of Emporia, Kansas. “Careers in the sciences have really advanced for women in the last 40 years in particular. Nursing as a career has been around a long time; but it was more of a nurse-maid type of role. Now we’re really implementing the sciences into our profession.”
The concept of creating a more diverse group of professionals with fresh perspectives and talents was among the benefits touted during the lecture series, which encouraged women to take part in educational and career opportunities involving science and math disciplines.
Among the many prominent guest speakers were Dr. Faiza Al-Kharafi, chairperson of the International Conference on Women Leaders in Science and Technology, and board member of the Kuwait Foundation for the Advancement of Sciences; H.E. Lawrence R. Silverman, ambassador of the U.S. to the State of Kuwait; Dr. Celeste M. Rohlfing, chief operating officer, American Association for the Advancement of Science; and Dr. Adnan Shihab Eldin, director general, Kuwait Foundation for the Advancement of Science.
Presenters encouraged women to think beyond academia, participate in mentoring and networking, join professional societies and plan for success while taking chances and having fun, enjoying their professional journeys.
Sgt. Brandi George, senior satellite communications officer, 35th Inf. Div., of Boonville, Missouri, said that her job was unquestionably science and technology-oriented, allowing her the opportunity to work with electronics on a regular basis.
“My job is definitely technology related,” said George. “I am very glad to be invited here. It’s very exciting. It has made absolute difference in my life to be able to contribute and participate in science and technology.”
Among the career and developmental strategies mentioned were using social media to take research around the world, embracing international partnerships to achieve science-based development in Kuwait and closing the innovation gap between research and industry. Attendees were invited to the AAAS annual meeting, planned for Feb. 15-19, in Austin, Texas, where these and other concepts would be expounded upon.
Maj. Kelly Loomis, civil affairs information management officer, 35th Inf. Div., underscored the importance of women in science and technology fields.
“Women face a lot of challenges in trying to integrate into traditionally male-dominated professions,” said Loomis. “But, they definitely bring a different perspective and can perhaps bring innovation into areas that their male counterparts have not considered.”
In looking toward the future and the importance of women being involved in math and science professions, Webb agreed.
“I think women bring a whole different perspective,” said Webb. “We do tend to look at things a bit more holistically and sometimes taking our perspective into account brings a different level into how we utilize education and the sciences on a daily basis.”
| Date Taken: | 10.23.2017 |
| Date Posted: | 10.31.2017 10:28 |
| Story ID: | 253546 |
| Location: | KUWAIT CITY, KW |
| Web Views: | 115 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Women in Science, Technology, and Engineering; professions enriched by inclusion, by SSG Tina Villalobos, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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