En el imaginario colectivo hay una idea de que las carreras asociadas a la ciencia, tecnología, ingeniería y matemáticas (llamadas STEM por la sigla en inglés) se relacionan en mayor medida a lo masculino. Es un tema mundial, del que Uruguay no es ajeno. Este jueves se realizó el evento Mujeres en Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación: un problema de justicia en la Torre Ejecutiva, donde la Mesa Interinstitucional de Mujeres en Ciencia y Tecnología –creada en 2016 y de la cual forman parte más de diez instituciones estatales y privadas– firmó un convenio para realizar un mapeo de instituciones, políticas y acciones en materia de género. La idea es “definir objetivos comunes” para disminuir la brecha de género en el área de las Tecnologías de la Información y Comunicación (TIC) y ciencias básicas, desmitificando que son áreas del conocimiento para varones.
"Uruguay cannot afford that half of its population is not included in the future of production," said the Minister of Industry, Energy and Mining, Carolina Cosse, who participated in the event, on the "imperative need" to promote a public policy aimed at the participation of girls and women in science and technology.
A study presented during the conference shows that "although there is an institutional discourse on the importance of addressing gender issues, policies are not rooted, and are linked to the people and boards of directors who are in place at the time". On the other hand, it was identified that the policies that are most represented are those linked to women and maternity and, at the same time, it is recognised that "they are still insufficient".
Cosse - an engineer by profession - maintained that "there is a marvellous world that we women cannot refuse to know" and in this sense, she affirmed that in addition to "the construction of happiness" that implies a choice free of prejudice, "even for a commonplace reason, let's say, [it is a problem that] must be addressed".
The minister considered that "girls are teaching us a lesson" in relation to their participation in the robotics and mathematics olympiads, which, in many cases, is dominated by boys. "Let's not allow these girls to lose their enthusiasm and let's not put obstacles in the way of their development," she said, pointing out that this is a "priority" issue on the government's agenda, but that it also "must have the support of mothers, fathers, grandmothers and grandfathers, so that they are not afraid to study careers that were traditionally linked to men".
In relation to the possibilities of the inter-institutional roundtable, Cosse proposed the creation of a portal that brings together information on all the tools that the state has for the promotion of girls and women in science and technology, in order to promote coordination. "It is time," she concluded.
Source: La Diaria
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