The STEM Women Congress (SWC), which has been held in cities such as Madrid, Barcelona, Lisbon and Milan, was held for the first time in Latin America on August 1, in Bogotá – Colombia and was led by the  Colombian NGO Geek Girls LatAm. The congress brought together 320 attendees from various corners of Colombia, as well as participants from Peru, Mexico and Argentina. EAN University was the setting for this event, where students, entrepreneurs, public officials, teachers, and business leaders came together to connect with the community and the ecosystem that supports female talent in the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) areas.

Brigitte Baptiste, rector of EAN University and Carolina Deik, first lady of Bogotá D.C. It was the powerful women who opened this Latin American edition. The luxury academic agenda was inaugurated by the Mexican Marcela Cendejas, CTO of Honeywell Latam, who raised the challenges of society 5.0, such as digital inequality and ethical concerns, underlining the need for a gender perspective to address them. The conferences and panels were attended by prominent leaders in education, science and technology, who shared their experiences, anecdotes, guidelines and inspiring messages for girls, young people and women, emphasizing the importance of being curious and questioning the status quo.

Among the featured panelists were Vicky Colbert, creator of the Escuela Nueva educational model; María del Pilar López-Uribe, District Secretary of Economic Development of Bogotá D.C.; Juanita Rodríguez Kattah, Manager of Education, Culture and Productivity of Colsubsidio; María Isabella Muñoz Méndez, Executive Director of Invest in Bogotá; Luisa Chaparro, scientist and creator of ScienteLab and Sindey Carolina Bernal, recognized as the Best Teacher in Ibero-America in 2021, among others. There was also the participation of male moderators, such as Luis López from 3M, demonstrating that the conversation for gender equality is inclusive.

Within the framework of the SWC, Geek Girls LatAm, an organization led by Joanna Prieto and Diana Salazar, celebrated 8 years of legal constitution and 12 years of tireless work to close gender gaps in STEM areas by bringing this event to Colombia. “The STEM Women Congress is not just an event, it is a movement. A movement that drives girls and women to dream big, to lead and transform the world through science, technology, creativity and knowledge. Connecting with women leaders and enthusiasts of closing the gender gap fills us with hope and motivates us to move forward with more strength in our purple purpose,” says Diana Salazar – Co-founder of Geek Girls LatAm.

The event also highlighted the purple talent of Ximena Lasso, public accountant and beneficiary of the Talent 4.0 program of Geek Girls LatAm, who spoke about the barriers of systematic racial discrimination that exist in the scientific and technological world. The participation of STEM girls Sophia Henríquez, 10 years old, who made the attendees dance with her Cumbiatron Robots, and Mariana Mambuscay, 13 years old, with her automated irrigation project for greenhouses, stole the hearts of the attendees with their innovative presentations.

Another great moment was the talk of María Alejandra Botero, the first woman aerospace engineer graduated in Colombia and participant of the 4th generation of the Chair: Women, Leadership and Future STEAM of Geek Girls LatAm. In her talk, María Alejandra called for listening to all voices to build a more equitable society. She shared her inspiring experience as a STEM activist and expressed her desire to show Colombian girls and women that they can reach for the stars

“The SWC 2024 has demonstrated a very high level with the speakers and the academic agenda and has left us an indelible, emotional and highly committed mark to make this great meeting the most relevant in the STEM and Gender ecosystem for Latin America,” says Joanna Prieto, Co-founder of Geek Girls LatAm.

The STEM Women Congress Latin America also stood out for its commitment to sustainability. In collaboration with EAN University, the carbon footprint of the event was measured in real time. To compensate for this, 30 trees will be planted in the gardens of EAN University, and attendees will be invited to participate in this day, thus leaving a green legacy and reaffirming their commitment to the environment.

The STEM Women Congress Latin America had the support of EAN University, 3M, Bioré®  skincare, Jergens®  skincare, John Frieda®  Haircare, Bancolombia, Honeywell, EY, Colsubsidio Employment Agency, Inchcape Digital and allies such as Sara Alarcón, Presidency of the Republic of Colombia, Secretariat of Economic Development of Bogotá D.C., Ticketcode, Invest in Bogotá, El Dorado,  Ashoka, ScienteLab, Red STEM Latinoamérica, Ascofade, EdLatam Alliance, Avancec, CONASTEM, HealthTech, Agata and MeF.

In addition to having the active participation of 13 technological communities in Colombia allied to the event: Pioneras dev, Tech Community, Friends Of Figma Medellín, Medellín AI, Ibagirls dev, Comunidad Pro, Medellín Js, AWS women Colombia, Frecuencia Gamer, Google Developer Group Medellín, Italia Per Tuti, Wingu, Makers Colombia

The SWC gave space to women entrepreneurs with projects such as Esponjosos, which offers hoodies and blankets for the cold, Teffity Jewelry, creators of silver jewelry using recycled x-rays as an input and Bohara, which was part of the Geek Girls LatAm Mentoring Program,  and focuses on menstrual education. In addition, the attendees enjoyed the experience of painting with the talented paisa artist Sara Alarcón, who was chosen by Geek Girls LatAm as the emblematic artist of this edition as part of the launch of its exhibition “Distorted Colors”.

The STEM Women Congress Latin America closes with a call to action for the entire community attending to become a STEMinistA, that is, a person who makes visible and collaborates so that the world of STEM advances towards equity, diversity and inclusion.

This congress has sown the seeds for a more equitable future and has motivated new generations to pursue their dreams in STEM areas. Geek Girls LatAm is committed to continuing to work on this mission and looks forward to the next editions of the congress, where female leadership in science and technology will continue to be promoted.