Worldwide, women are vastly under-represented in professions that involve science, technology, engineering and maths (Stem). For example, less than 15% of the world's engineers are women. This indicates wasted intellectual potential at a time when we need all the brain power we can get to help us survive climate change, overpopulation and global inequality.
Ahead of next week's discussion on the access and participation of girls in Stem subjects – at school and in work – at UN Women's annual commission on the status of women conference, we are opening up a talk point on the subject.
How can we break down barriers like ingrained social norms about suitable careers for women, as experienced by 18-year-old Celeste Dushime in Rwanda? What can we learn from China, where 40% of people working in science and technology are women (compared to 24% in the US)?
Is the answer more awards, science days, girls in engineering groups or a toy to encourage spacial awareness?
Leave us a comment in the thread below, sharing your experiences or taking on any of the above questions. You can also email or tweet us your thoughts using the hashtag #globaldevgirls.
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