Interview with Women in Science: Meet Karen Duca
This International Day of Women and Girls in Science, we interviewed six women in science from the United States Agency for International Development to discover their journeys in this field. Meet Karen Duca and learn more about her experience and advice for the next generation of women in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).
Can you give a brief introduction of yourself?
A: I am an International Development Specialist in the United States Agency for International Development’s Bureau for Food Security. Trained as a biophysicist, the majority of my professional experience has been as an academic scientist, primarily in U.S. and African universities. My specialties include advising on African higher education and supporting STEM and science-focused non-governmental organizations throughout West Africa, and my professional interest is in creating scientific businesses and STEM education in the developing world.
How have your experiences working on matters of education with other countries influenced your perception of the relationship between gender and education?
A: I’m an older scientist — I was a teenager during the second wave of feminism in the United States in the 1970s, so I remember as a young girl being told what I could and couldn’t do. So that kind of older thinking in some developing countries is very familiar to me. There’s been a lot of catching up when it comes to women’s and gender issues, but what made the feminist movement of the 1970s so successful was the need for women in the economy. That’s why I’m optimistic that gender inequalities in developing countries will continue to evolve and improve, now that we have a global economy, because we need both men and women to keep it alive. For example, in the life sciences, there’s been a surge of women in the field, in some places there are even more women working in this field than men. I’ve seen that occur in Ghana, where I worked. So if the question is, “Are women embracing these opportunities, are they stepping up?” I think the answer is that they definitely are.
What motivated your interest in biophysics? How do you use that background in your career today?
A: I started originally loving theoretical physical chemistry, doing models of how ion channels work. Both my undergraduate and graduate degrees are in chemistry. But I love math, and that motivated me to obtain a Master of Business Administration. These are two very different fields, but they’re of equal importance to the work that I do now. My backgrounds in science and business have taught me three important things that remain with me in all the work that I do: a deep appreciation for data quality, the importance of a scientific approach, and a knowledge of how to build and understand models — for me that started as chemical models, but now that’s evolved to business models. Having an understanding of these three things has equipped me to explore and analyze scenarios in the work that I do today.
What do you see as some of the biggest challenges ahead for biophysics and STEM?
A: The big question of our time is how to shift into a more sustainable world and how to deal with climate variability. These are the challenges now and for the next generation — so we don’t want anyone left out. The more people we can get into science, the better.
What do you see as some promising opportunities ahead?
A: In the field of life sciences, we’re reaching the computational power of whole genome comparisons and we’re constructing very detailed models that go from the molecular level to the ecosystem level. These things will be game-changing. The amazing thing is that the developing world won’t be left out of these opportunities because they don’t require high-end laboratory equipment in order to make a contribution; you just need solidly trained people. We’re moving toward more equal access and a dissolution of boundaries in the life sciences, and I’m very excited about that.
What are some of the most exciting projects that you’re working on right now?
A: The U.S. Embassy in Abuja, Nigeria, has a great program that encourages the participation of girls in STEM. I worked on that program for awhile. Every week they had science-related activities and events, and there is a girls’ robotics team and they compete in competitions in the region — it’s all really cool. I was able to help them with things like food safety testing, analytical chemistry and water testing.
What advice do you have for young girls who want to pursue STEM?
A: Dive into STEM if you love it and if you believe it will be a mechanism to address problems that you feel called to tackle. And get that mentoring network in place! Anyone can be your mentor who knows one more thing than you do. Respect that and really embrace the concept of a large network of mentors that you admire and relate to and want to be more like.
The views and opinions expressed in this blog are those of the interviewees and do not reflect the official policy or position of the initiative.
