June 23, 2020 is International Women in Engineering Day (INWED); this day was started to bring recognition and awareness to engineering career opportunities available to women, and also to celebrate the achievements of women currently working in engineering fields. This year's INWED theme is "Shape the World".
Women currently represent roughly 13% of professional engineers in Canada, which aligns with the smaller percentage of women represented in this and other STEM fields. Associated Engineering also stated that Engineers Canada is "targeting 30% newly licensed female engineers by 2030." This is a fantastic representation of how far Canada has come in female representation in engineering professions, but also underlines the gap that still exists between the male and female workforce in these fields.
BARR Plastics is proud to work with and support engineering firms that support and employ a percentage of women in their workforce higher than the national average. Male-dominated industries have typically been a place that feels intimidating for women to be a part of (and succeed in!), but Canada has become a place where women can succeed in STEM fields and demonstrate excellence in engineering jobs.
Resources:
(1) Engineers & Geoscientists of British Columbia (EGBC) has created a fantastic page that profiles women in engineering and includes facts about their daily work, career goals, and why they were drawn to an engineering profession. Click here to read
(2) Engineers Canada has chose a unique stance for INWED2020, asking women engineers how they've responded to the COVID-19 pandemic and what challenges they've had to overcome. Read the responses here.
(3) INWED UK has provided posters and literature for companies that want to share INWED2020 on social media or their website. Show your support today and throughout the rest of the week for our female engineers! Access the poster resource pack here.
Thanks again to all of the amazing women that make up the diverse landscape of engineering in Canada and all around the world!