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GirlCon DIGITAL |20-25 JULY 2020 VIRTUAL EVENT

We had the pleasure this year to take part in our first ever GirlCon. Due to the global pandemic the entire event went digital. Not withstanding the missed opportunity to meet in real life with all these incredible girls and women organising, presenting and participating in GirlConChicago2020 this did make it possible  to extend the conference to a 5-day event filled to the brim with inspirational keynote speakers, diverse break-out session and exiting professional development sessions.

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On the GirlCon website you can scroll down the home page to see some of the recorded sessions and key notes.

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Ally Geren, one of the GirlCon CORE Team organisers welcomed us and opened our session. 

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"I loved the combination of art, science, technology, social justice, and community awareness that Catch A Wave incorporated into the conversation!" GirlCon participant

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"...this was a great reminder for me about the real problems of climate change and global warming, how it affects the ocean and wildlife, and how we can use art and our voices to help change behaviors/habits!" GirlCon participant

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We presented in the TECH + ART session on the very first day. In 45 minutes we tried to explain, present and showcase what we are trying to do as the Catching A Wave (CaW) collective by integrating Art, Science and Technology, where and what role this can play and to what extent this can contribute to environmental sustainability as well as impact and influence the social challenges of our day. After introducing all the team member of the CaW collective and mention our diverse backgrounds and roles we have within the project we kicked off. This session was mainly to be about the technological side of our project so we illustrated the different technical elements within the process of creating the glass waves. Using which techniques, old and new, as well as how they are captured and produced was explained in detail by Kristin and Lisa Beth. The project is at its core about coastal sustainability and ocean health addressing critical boundaries and human vulnerabilities like sea level rise as a consequence of climate change using scientific knowledge to underpin this. As earlier pointed out in the keynote by IBM's René Bostic and Janine Sneed the need for and the importance of equal and fair opportunities for all was something Shona reiterated by explaining the context of our project, not just from an environmental and ocean health perspective but also peoples’ well-being and how and why the Catching A Wave project is more than an environmental expression emphasising the need for human equality and social justice. Hester gave a demonstration of the project website and the different channels of engagement and methods we use to communicate and connect with our different audiences.  One of the key features of the CaW project is our opportunity to bring our joint knowledge and experience together for a greater good and it was this we tried to convey with our presentation that together you can do so much more. Which led nicely in how we think it is important to listen to others and always remain open to change. We ended the session with a request to our audience to send us their expressions (either a short essay or a video) on why combining tech, art and science is important for ocean sustainability to them?

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Submissions now online on our Padlet Site

On our Padlet site all the submissions have been made available. A huge THANK YOU to all the GirlCon participants that submitted their inspiring essays and thoughts. We received submissions from the USA, The Philippines and Canada - you can click on each one in the Padlet site to read and leave a comment.

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click here or on image to see the submissions

All of the girls also received their own glass wave and have become part of the
Planetary Wave Project.

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We were part of the TECH + ART break-out session on
Day 1: July 20 from 5:15 - 6 PM .

 

The full schedule is available on the GirlConChicago site.

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GirlCon is an annual Chicago-based event that is taking place in mid-July. Due to the circumstances, it will be virtual this year. GirlCon has breakout sessions from numerous companies that the attendees will have the opportunity to learn from and make connections with. We focus on how technology is a huge factor in EVERY career field, whether it be science, fashion, or anything that students are passionate about. The lack of diversity in STEM is a big issue that everyone on the GirlCon team is striving to fix. The attendees will have a chance to personally connect with companies from many different career paths and gain advice from women in both college and the workforce.

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#GirlCon2020 #ForceOfNature
 

Find out more about GirlConChicago

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