Throughout history, there has been a significant gender gap in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics disciplines. Although women have made huge strides in these areas, they are still underrepresented in these fields. The United Nations is trying to bridge this gap. In collaboration with the Royal Academy of Science International Trust (RASIT), the United Nations (UN) Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA) designated February 11th as International Day of Women and Girls in Science (IDWGIS) beginning in 2015.
IDWGIS to honors the contributions made by women in the field of science. It was originally adopted out of a declaration that was formed at the inaugural High-Level World Women’s Health and Development Forum, which reflected a global action agenda for global health and foreign policy. Celebrated internationally, this day is on the official United Nations calendar of observations.
The International Day of Women and Girls in Science Assembly meets annually to have open discussions about identifying conditions and tools to put science, technology, and innovation at the heart of sustainable development programs, international relations, and more. This year, the assembly met on February 10th at the UN Headquarters in New York. In 2023, its focus is on clean water and sanitation; affordable and clean energy; industry, innovation, and infrastructure; sustainable cities and communities; and means of implementation. The assembly will have over 80 speakers, including a first-time workshop for blind girls and a session on making science more accessible to the blind through braille. There will be a panel for discussion on the focus areas and a separate panel entitled “Think Science. Think Peace.”
For more information on the assembly and its initiatives, please visit their website.
Here is a list of related reading materials available here at the library:
- Broad Band: The Untold Story of the Women Who Made the Internet by Claire Lisa Evans
- No One is Too Small to Make a Difference by Greta Thunberg
- Figuring by Maria Popova
- The Glass Universe: How the Ladies of the Harvard Observatory Took the Measure of the Stars by Dava Sobel
- The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot
- Thinking in Pictures: My Life with Autism by Temple Grandin
- The Plant Hunter: A Scientist’s Quest for Nature’s Next Medicines by Cassandra Quave
- Dopamine Nation: Finding Balance in the Age of Indulgence by Anna Lembke
- Lab Girl by Hope Jahren
- Life on the Rocks: Building a Future for Coral Reefs by Juli Berwald
- Silent Spring and Other Writings on the Environment by Rachel Carson
- Rise of the Rocket Girls: The Women Who Propelled Us, from Missiles to the Moon to Mars by Nathalia Holt
- Hidden Figures: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Mathematicians Who Helped Win the Space Race by Margot Shetterly
- The Only Woman in the Room: Why Science is Still a Boys' Club by Eileen Pollack
- Invisible Women: Data Bias in a World Designed for Men by Caroline Pérez
- Rocket Girl: The Story of Mary Sherman Morgan, America’s First Female Rocket Scientist by George D. Morgan
- A Lab of One’s Own: One Woman’s Personal Journey Through Sexism in Science by Rita Colwell
Happy reading!