Women and Science Careers: The Sustainability Attraction
The reasons vary for why girls and young women might steer away from science and technology careers, but I submit that now is the time to finally identify and resolve the matter! Why now? Sustainability is THE business and research movement that could give STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) careers for women a much needed boost of interest.
New research reported on by Miller-McCune’s Tom Jacobs may hold clues as to what has held women back from such careers thus far. He writes:
A team of Miami University researchers led by psychologist Amanda Diekman has come up with a different explanation. In a paper just published in the journal Psychological Science, they argue women perceive STEM careers (those in the fields of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) as largely incompatible with one of their core goals: Engaging in work that helps others.
If perception of the science/tech career is one of the lone, geeky scientist sitting in a badly lit lab working on projects that have no immediate or “social” application, you can see why anyone with more social awareness might steer clear. But, the needs of our sustainably-oriented economy create the perfect storm – where what we most need are science and technology-oriented brains rounded out by just such empathy. There has to be an interconnectedness of the “geeky” stuff with the human stuff, or sustainability will not be sustainable. Women in science and technology could be the embodiment of that connection.
As in so many cases within the sustainability realm, the issue seems to be one of communication. If girls/young women better understood the connection between STEM careers and healthier communities or environments, a lot more of them would be signing up for such college degrees and heading into the many, many jobs of those types now becoming available. In fact, companies are probably a bit frantic already, trying to find the right minds for exactly those current and future positions.
Interestingly, those companies may already be doing a much better job communicating their sustainability stories through branding and marketing campaigns. And, consumers are responding. Now, could similarly focused and relevant messaging be developed and distributed in the right places and in the right way so that women will also see future, attractive, career possibilities? Of course. The truth is that women with an underlying desire to help others will be INTEGRAL to the mix of scientists and technologists that are already so core to our sustainable future. They should be given the power to lead the way AND to teach their peers about the human side of science.
Photo credit: Malcom Bowman
