Report from the G7 Civic Society Outreach Event

On April 14, 2016, the Director of Strategic Development, Marcia MacDonald, attended the G7 Civic Society Outreach Event in Ottawa. On behalf of SCWIST, she provided policy recommendations to the federal government. Below is her report from the event.

The event was hosted by Peter Boehm, Deputy Minister of International Development, and Diane Jacovella, Associate Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs. In preparation for the meeting, Maria GyongyossyIssa led the development of a detailed written submission , which was shared publicly, then participated in a followup event in Ottawa May 4, 2016.

Following the event, we were encouraged to note that federal Science Minister Kirsty Duncan has said , “I am personally committed to working to improve the representation of women in STEM disciplines, and view this as an important part of my mandate”. The Communiqué from the G7 Meeting in Tsukuba, Ibaraki, Japan, May 17, 2016 states that the Science and Technology Ministers have decided to:

• Support international networking of female researchers, scientists, engineers, and students;
• Monitor and take actions against gender stereotyping and bias that too often exist within Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) disciplines and workplaces;
• Share good practices in encouraging female entrepreneurs, researchers, and engineers in science and technology oriented businesses and organizations; and
• Develop policy and working environments in which equal opportunity allows women to exert their abilities, advance their career prospects and play a full role in STI fields.