15 Dec Young Women Shining as STEM Role Models

In recognition of our shared support of women’s representation in STEM, FIRST Global partnered with the Temasek Corporation to launch the Temasek Women in STEM Award as part of the 2023 FIRST Global Challenge in Singapore. Through this award, leaders from the Temasek Corporation recognized three outstanding young women as engineering role models who connect other young women with STEM opportunities.

The award recipients were selected through an application process that showcased their leadership skills, technical achievements, and practical proposals for conducting STEM outreach among young women in their communities. Proposals included detailed plans for how the applicant would recruit participants, enhance young women’s connection with STEM, and measure their progress. Three applicants were selected, and each was granted $1,000 USD, 50 Experiential Robotics Platform (XRP) robots, and the supporting curriculum, technical documentation, and tutorials to help them bring their proposals to life.

Each of these young women is a testament to the exponential impact FIRST Global can have on transforming the next generation into community leaders who pass on the skill sets and confidence they gained through their own experiences. As we continue to empower young girls to realize their potential in STEM fields, we are diversifying these industries and better equipping them to solve the complex challenges of an ever-evolving future.

Dea from Albania

Dea serves as a robot builder and the head of public relations for FIRST Global Team Albania. Her coding skills, collaborative outlook, and passionate leadership in engaging other youth in community service make her an engineering role model. With the award materials, Dea plans to implement the EmpowHERed program and create robotics clubs across 10 cities in Albania between November 2023 and June 2024. The program aims to inspire Albanian girls’ interest in the world of STEM and build their confidence in pursuing STEM fields through hands-on robotics projects, site visits to tech companies and research institutions, and networking with STEM professionals.

Nehal from Saint Lucia

Nehal is the student leader of FIRST Global Team Saint Lucia. Her programming expertise – which helped her lead an effort to program medical courier drones in response to the Covid-19 pandemic – combined with her integrity and empathy make her an engineering role model. Nehal plans to use the resources from the 2023 Temasek Women in STEM Award to create a custom skills training and mentorship program for cohorts of young women in Saint Lucia, upskilling at least 50 young women with the goal of facilitating their entry into STEM careers. To achieve this, she will host five-day workshops in different areas of the country to explore the worlds of coding, robotics, physics, and essential career-building skills that culminates in the completion of a final project.

Having these opportunities for young girls to explore and know what it is that they can be — an engineer, they can be a programmer, they can open a software business — and that it's possible for them is very important to me.” —Nehal

Mittina from Uganda

Mittina is a creative and welcoming member of FIRST Global Team Uganda. Her expertise in physics and math and her ability to apply them to real-world problems make her an engineering role model. Recently, Mittina used her STEM skills to create a sanitary pad vending machine for girls in rural schools so that a lack of access to sanitary supplies would no longer prevent their school attendance. With the award resources, Mittina plans to inspire more than 100 young women to pursue STEM through robotics bootcamps that culminate in a project showcase of solutions to real challenges. Mittina additionally plans to open a STEM club in a local school to serve as a weekly meeting space and supportive environment where girls in her community can learn.