Today, 11th February marks the 10th annual International Day of Women and Girls in Science, a day established to recognise the progress made towards increasing participation of women and girls in STEM disciplines, while advocating for gender equality and empowerment in these fields.
In celebration of this day, we are taking a moment to highlight some of the inspirational women working alongside CCR Energy and the Aberthaw Project, from feasibility projects focused on the relationship between food security and renewable energy, to overall project management, to immersive learning experiences.
“As a geologist, we faced lots of challenges, doors weren’t open for you – you had to push and show that you were just as capable as your colleagues, sometimes more.”
Dr. Pauline Found, is a senior lecturer at Cardiff University’s School of Business, and a key partner in a feasibility project focused on Agri-Food Technology solutions. Dr. Found expressed her excitement around being able to bring together experts from different fields to find a solution to combat climate change, focusing on Agri-tech solutions and the potential of climate-smart agriculture.
Reflecting on her early career, Dr. Found shared her experience as one of only three women in a class of 35 geology students, highlighting the challenges she faced in a male dominated field. “As a geologist, we faced lots of challenges, doors weren’t open for you – you had to push and show that you were just as capable as your colleagues, sometimes more.” She also stressed the importance of listening to women and girls in STEM disciplines, as well as taking steps to empower them.
Dr. Found emphasised the importance of encouraging women and girls to be passionate about science and technology, noting that they bring unique creativity and perspectives to problem-solving.
Dr. Found’s expertise in Operations Management have allowed us to partner and collaborate with key stakeholders and experts, channelling their creativity and imagination to solve problems around sustainable innovation, food security, renewable energy, and community engagement, while integrating these elements at Aberthaw.
“In school I definitely feel like science classes were more male dominated. However, I think this is shifting in the industry. For example, at Arup we have a lot of strong female leaders.”
Another key partner supporting CCR Energy at Aberthaw is Eleri Jarrold, a university student and a Project Management apprentice at Arup, our technical advisors. Eleri has been supporting the redevelopment of Aberthaw, working closely with our projects team at CCR Energy.
Eleri emphasised the crucial role of science in project management, noting that managing projects requires extensive knowledge of extremely diverse scientific principles from different scientific fields. She highlighted how the redevelopment of Aberthaw is a great example of this, involving science in project management on a daily basis.
Looking back at her experience in science, Eleri said “In school I definitely feel like science classes were more male dominated. However, I think this is shifting in the industry. For example, at Arup we have a lot of strong female leaders.”
“Our work alongside the team at CCR Energy will hopefully inspire both women and girls to think differently about how they too can get involved in making our communities cleaner and greener for better future.”
Last but not least, CCR Energy have been working with Siwan Rees from Academii. Their expertise on immersive and engaging learning experiences have encouraged us to look at different ways to engage girls in STEM disciplines, and inspire the next generation of women in science.
At last year’s Eisteddfod, Siwan supported CCR Energy with an immersive experience where younger generations got to explore Aberthaw through VR headsets.
“It has been an amazing opportunity to work alongside CCR Energy to bring their vision into reality. Our contribution at Aberthaw means we get to be involved in bringing technology and subject matter expertise together to inspire the next generation of girls to not only think about how VR, AR and AI can be used to create immersive and engaging learning experiences but also to bring to life the various careers in renewable energies that Aberthaw will create. Our work alongside the team at CCR Energy will hopefully inspire both women and girls to think differently about how they too can get involved in making our communities cleaner and greener for better future.”
Working with these women highlights the importance of gender equality, partnership, collaboration, and the diverse contributions that women and girls bring to STEM disciplines.
Written by Nuri Santiaguillo Jin, Communications Executive at CCR Energy.