The Tech Industry Needs More Women and “Generation Girl” Is One Small Step To Making This Happen
In Silicon Valley, supermodel Karlie Kloss has a vision of raising leaders of the tech industry by teaching young girls how to code.
In South Korea, Girls’ Generation or SNSD, has become the leading driver of entertainment in their country.
Now, in Indonesia,we have a combination of both: Generation Girl. Sort of.
Led by Anbita Nadine Siregar, a Product Engineer at GO-JEK, and Crystal Widjaja, SVP of Business Intelligence, Growth and Performance Marketing, Generation Girl is a non-profit organization founded by women leaders in GO-JEK who share a passion for making an impact on education and technology in Indonesia. Together, they have stepped up to raise awareness about women in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics).
Both Nadine and Crystal have had past experiences being minorities in this largely male — dominated field.
As Nadine mentioned, “On my first day of work in an Indonesian tech company, no one believed I was actually a developer. Throughout my career, people have thought that my successes come from “batting my eyelashes” or just the simple fact that I’m a girl. My ultimate goal is to have so many women in STEM fields that we start saying that tech is a girls club”
Similarly, Crystal expressed, “During my first computer science class in high school, my male classmates were already relatively experienced with programming and technology, so there was no way I would be able to catch up independently. I effectively dropped out of that class. But now, I am dedicated to giving young women a chance to be successful by facing their insecurities and challenging the status quo”
Today, Nadine, Crystal, and Vania Radmila Alfitri, a QA-turned-iOS-developer in GO-JEK as well as Josephine Bahari (Blueboots Farm) and Janice Widjaja (MOKAPos), are dedicated involving more women in STEM fields — namely by making the journey easier for the next generation of women leaders.
Their first step in creating future female tech leaders is through a Summer Club, which introduces technical topics like “How to Build a Website” to girls aged 12–16.
The Pilot Program is scheduled for December 17–21. For one week, it will be focused on teaching a group of 15 girls the basics of web and mobile development for free. Additionally, the program emphasizes hands-on and interactive activities, visits to Indonesia’s best tech company offices, and more.
For those who want to take part in this initiative, check out http://www.generationgirl.org, follow their instagram https://www.instagram.com/generationgirl.id/ and donate here.
You can also get in touch with the women directly at contactus@generationgirl.org
Written by Wilma Zulianti.
