International Day of Women and Girls in Science

11 February is the United Nations International Day of Women and Girls in Science, celebrating the theme 'Investment in Women and Girls in Science for Inclusive Green Growth.'  According to data from the UN Scientific Education and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), fewer than 30 per cent of researchers worldwide are women and only about 30 per cent of all female students select STEM-related fields in higher education. 

To celebrate this day, we interviewed our very own environmental scientist Portia Condell to give us a glimpse into her daily work, why she enjoys it, her hobbies, how she deals with the ever changing environment and also what the future might hold for someone in her field.

 

Icon Water recognises that building a diverse workforce is critical to improving employee productivity and engagement levels. 

Hiring people from all backgrounds regardless of gender, race, disability or age, for example, and enabling them to contribute and develop leads to greater diversity of thinking and opinion, and ultimately increased levels of innovation. We are proud that five of the eight directors on our Board are women. They bring diverse experience to the oversight of our operations and are champions of gender equality in Icon Water.

On top of that we have an internal group called InspireCo which is a collaboration between ActewAGL and Evoenergy to support gender equality in our organisations. The forum brings together employees who are interested in gender equality to provide networking and professional development opportunities.