Drawing from her experience as an engineer, Alvarez emphasises the importance of showcasing the work of women in STEM fields.
“Visibility, visibility and visibility. The more the work we STEM women do is seen and the more the wide spectrum of scientific professions that exist, at all levels, goes viral, the more girls will learn to see this world as an achievable, interesting, creative and challenging opportunity,” she says.
Meanwhile, she also believes role models are crucial to breaking down barriers in the industry.
“It is very important, not only because it inspires girls and young women, but also because it is necessary to challenge gender stereotypes and promote equal opportunities,” she says.
“Science is there to provide answers to the world’s problems and the presence of more and more women in science encourages a more inclusive approach to tackling these problems. We all have a lot to contribute from our gender perspective and this diversity in teams is necessary to improve creativity and decision-making, which will also benefit both industry and society in general”.
Despite significant progress, Álvarez acknowledges that the perception of technology as a "masculine" domain still exists.
She continues: “I think we still have a long way to go to change this perception and it has a lot to do with what we generally know about this world. We all know the name of a CEO of a technology company, but could we name a woman? They exist, of course, but few people could name one.”
However, moving forward, she remains hopeful for the future, stating “that society as a whole agrees that a more inclusive world is a fairer world and we are on the right track”.
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