International Day of Girls and Women in Science

Girls in Year 10 took part in an event on Thursday Feb 11 to celebrate the United Nations International Day of Women and Girls in Science. The Womens Hospital in Melbourne hosted a webinar to highlight the work of four prominent researchers. The Careers Adviser, Kylie Salisbury, and Science teacher, Petra Fluitsma, welcomed the girls to the new Lecture Theatre to introduce the event, with morning tea, followed by the livestream presentation from Melbourne.

The first speaker, Dr Ellen Menkhorst, is a Research Fellow with the Womens Hospital, and her research focuses on the role of healthy placental functioning in preventing preeclampsia. Pamela McCalman, an Indigenous midwife and current PhD student, works on the Nuraagh Manma Bullana project to improve the health of Aboriginal mothers and babies through continuity and personalisation of midwife care. Dr Elizabeth Baker, a Neonatologist and Research Fellow, described her cutting-edge work using cell therapy to develop lung function in preterm babies, and the last speaker Dr Amanda Kwong, a Pediatric Physiotherapist, explained how she is using a movement-tracking app for parents of newborns to assist early detection and early intervention for babies at risk of cerebral palsy.

The Q&A session at the end of the webinar allowed students from around Australia to ask the researchers about their work, about the obstacles they have faced as females working in STEM professions, and about their lives, achievements, professional decisions and advice.

Fort Street is passionate about inspiring the next generation of women to pursue careers in non-traditional fields, and in breaking down long-standing biases and gender stereotypes in professional choices. We are delighted to have been able to join the Womens Hospital Melbourne to celebrate this significant day in the UN calendar.

Kylie Salisbury