The strength and power of Ada Lovelace Day

11 Oct 2022 03:39 PM

Ada Lovelace Day is an international event celebrating the achievements of women in STEM. Ada Lovelace was a nineteenth century English mathematician and often regarded as the first computer programmer in the world.

Yesterday served as a reminder of the brilliant work done by women throughout history – in times where such brilliance may not have been appreciated – and gives us a chance to look forward.

To this day, women are underrepresented across the STEM sectors, in particular in the tech industry where they make up only 19% of the workforce. But the sector is aware of its diversity problem and employers and non-profits are working hard to remedy this. One way to do this is to amplify the great work of women and highlight female role models, such as Ada Lovelace.

Role models matter when it comes to providing mentorship and discussing shared experiences to promote STEM to underrepresented groups. Stories and case studies are of critical importance when inspiring and motivating someone to take the plunge and try something new.

From the very start, girls are less likely to study STEM subjects at school – and this gap continues through to university. PwC has found that 83% of boys are studying STEM subjects at school, compared to 64% of girls, with the number of girls studying Computing GCSE decreasing in 2021. Despite increasing opportunities in the UK tech sector, girls are not considering technology as a career, partly because nobody is putting it forward as a possible option. More than 60% of teen girls regret not studying STEM for longer.

By raising the profile of women in STEM, Ada Lovelace Day looks to create new role models to inspire women. It is essential we enable young women to make informed decisions about the subject choices and education pathways that could allow them to develop the skills and mindsets they need to succeed. Yesterday was also valuable for parents and guardians to understand alternate pathways into tech careers.

In recognition that the tech industry needs more women, and building on the work of inspirational role models like Ada Lovelace, the Tech Talent Charter (TTC) created the Doing it Anyway campaign. This campaign focused on working-age women and compiled accessible resources for people considering retraining for a career in tech. TTC used the power of storytelling and myth-busting to build a community and address stereotypes about tech roles. They also shared the stories of many inspiring women who have faced barriers, but are doing it anyway, with the goal of helping more women see themselves in tech careers.

With Ada Lovelace being a trailblazer in the areas of maths and science, the Ada Lovelace Institute was established by the Nuffield Foundation in early 2018, in collaboration with the Alan Turing Institute, the Royal Society, the British Academy, the Royal Statistical Society, the Wellcome Trust, Luminate, techUK and the Nuffield Council on Bioethics. The mission of the Institute is to use technologies such as data and AI justly and equitably to support people and society.

techUK is proud to continue Ada’s and the Institute’s work throughout the year. By redoubling our efforts to increase diversity in tech, we can not only work towards the normative and societal good of equal representation in the sector, but at the same time take important steps towards ensuring an ethical and sustainable approach to the development and use of technology. Read about techUK’s ongoing commitment to improving diversity.

With the work being done on Ada Lovelace Day, and every day in between, I’m grateful for the powerful women I’m surrounded by and hope that girls and women of all ages can be inspired by those around them too.