The power of versatility in perspectives
Reflections on the No Permission, No Apology conference at the Media Lab
Why are women underrepresented in STEM fields? There is no achievement gap between genders in math and science at school, and in early education there’s also no interest gap. Yet enrollment in science and engineering courses in college is much lower among women than men; and although women earned nearly 60 percent of all bachelor’s degrees in 2013, only 17.9 percent of computer science degrees were earned by women; only 19.3 percent of engineering degrees; and only 40 percent of physical sciences and mathematics degrees.
Those numbers shrink ever smaller when you look at advanced degrees and the workforce, and there is even greater disparity among
racial and ethnic minorities. Across industry and academia, STEM has a diversity and inclusion problem.
That problem has long been reflected in the MIT Media Lab’s own enrollment and faculty numbers, and while intensified efforts in recent years have closed that gap significantly within our community, we have not yet achieved parity. Even more importantly, despite efforts over the past decade to attract more women and people of color to STEM careers, the workforce is no more diverse today than it was in 2001.
The Media Lab’s No Permission, No Apology conference on September 9 was designed to address these issues of diversity and inclusion in STEM—for women as students, academics, entrepreneurs, and employees. Alumna and current US CTO Megan Smith set the tone for the day with her keynote speech, in which she harkened back to the unsung history of women responsible for great advancements in technology and science.
Smith’s message resonated throughout the daylong event, which included breakout sessions focused on developing personal and professional skills for navigating spaces that aren’t always inclusive of women and minorities. Read more about the conference in this MIT News article.
We asked four members of the Media Lab community with very different perspectives for their reflections on the No Permission, No Apology conference: their expectations, their experiences, their takeaways—whatever struck them personally about the event. Here’s what they had to say.
Bettina Arkhurst
Undergraduate researcher, Synthetic Neurobiology group; co-creator of the Random Acts of Kindness week at MIT
No Permission, No Apology provided empowerment through knowledge. The conference speakers each had tools for navigating the STEM world, and with each story and every piece of advice, we, the attendees, accumulated another tool of our own.
Being “empowered” to leave your mark on STEM as a woman requires more than impassioned speakers; it requires true role models in the field.
But looking back, I realize that I’d had an unconscious expectation of what it meant to be “empowered” as a woman. I’d thought of rallies with fervent speakers encouraging us to go forth, push on and fight whatever stands in our way. I’d expected to be told to be rigid in all aspects of my life — never sway, never show weakness. I soon found out that this expectation was far from what the conference turned out to be. I soon found out that being “empowered” to leave your mark on STEM as a woman requires more than impassioned speakers; it requires true role models in the field. It requires women who have navigated the field and succeeded in ways that show a young engineer (like myself) that she can also make an impact.
At a panel discussion, five women talked about their own experiences: what they had faced, their products, their motivations, their strategies, and their personal lives. They were a diverse array of immensely talented and accomplished women in STEM, but I discovered that they were all united in one crucial aspect: the versatility of their perspectives.
Oftentimes, in a field where one is considered a member of the minority, she gains a deeper insight into the way the majority may see the world. She is able to relate to at least two demographics: the majority and her own. During the panel session, I realized the power of both empathy and experience in design. And I realized I had a marketable skill as a black woman in tech which I had never cared to explore: versatility. I can see the world through a myriad lenses. I can view technology through a lens that is truly different from many others in my field. I can be a valuable asset to a team.
At that moment, I felt myself becoming inspired. I was beginning to see my self-worth in the field that first introduced me to imposter syndrome. I felt empowered.
As my time at MIT continues, I see the power behind diversity more clearly. Diversity in perspectives, in experiences, and especially in the way we think can lead to a more impactful solution to the world’s problems. Isn’t that what MIT’s all about? Changing the world for the better?
Nicole L’Huillier
Second-year master’s student, Opera of the Future group
Do we, as a society, have a shared identity that we all identify with? For at least half of us, I think not. So let’s build one! We urgently need to change and construct, as Megan Smith said in her keynote speech, a “less style-compliant society.” In my opinion, the conference was a solid first step in creating change and looking toward an evolution in our communal thinking.
We build our reality every day — something even more important in a place like the Media Lab, where our work is to dream new futures and make them real.
I was surprised and proud that the Media Lab gave us a complete day to celebrate diversity and expand our thinking. But I wish more men had been present — the changes we need to make are for all of us, and self-segregation doesn’t help at all.
Megan Smith reminded us that we build our reality every day — something that’s even more important in a place like the Media Lab, where our work is to dream new futures and make them real. Each time we create something new by building our ideas, we are expanding our reality.
Now, why is having this conversation so important and fundamental for the Media Lab? Because we need to empower society from its creative sources. We all have the obligation to build a world where gender doesn’t define our opportunities, where color doesn’t define a person. The Lab is a place of designing and using technology to build new futures, and we need thinkers, tinkerers, scientists, engineers, data analysts, designers, artists, and makers to invent the world we want to live in.
I attended Sara Hendren’s breakout session, “Solve Problems/Ask Questions.” The discussion centered around the role of design in our society, and the importance of incorporating more inclusive design, in a more intelligent way. If we start designing a world with open possibilities for speculation around diversity and the roles of women and minorities, those possibilities will make their way into our ideas, into our words.
Being able to talk about these things with friends and people I work with every day was very meaningful to me. Being a Latino woman from a developing country, I constantly find myself being immersed in stigmas and surrounded by a (micro) aggressive world. That’s why I think that this conference was a milestone in our community, because it gave us tools and space to speak up and act differently.
Amy Yu
Alumna, Macro Connections group; Director, Web Strategy & Data Science at Viacom
Going into the conference, I was excited to take part in the growing conversations about diversity at the Media Lab, and in the broader MIT community. During my time at the Lab, diversity initiatives were largely driven by student-led, grassroots efforts, so it’s incredibly encouraging and inspiring to see more events and initiatives being supported at an institutional level to foster real conversations across the Lab and inspire the community towards actionable change.
“How do we get more women in tech? You hire them!”
I was really moved by all of the stories that women shared over the course of the day. These are just a few of many memorable moments that left an impression on me:
When Megan Smith said, “How do we get more women in tech? You hire them!” I loved the bluntness and her bias toward action in this statement. Then, when she shared a Gloria Steinem quote — “Women have always been an equal part of the past. We just haven’t been a part of history.” — it was particularly poignant alongside the stories of all the engineers who had been instrumental in the development of technological breakthroughs, such as the space program.
During the panel discussion, called Designing for Other (Than Straight, Rich, White Men), one of the speakers, Yvonne Lin, said “There is nothing more pink or more sparkly than a product for women designed by men.” I found the “shrink it and pink it strategy” to be an especially funny, yet on-point observation by Yvonne, and it highlighted how design traditionally fails to account for anything that is “other.”
I hope that this conference will inspire more members of the Media Lab community to share their own stories and join in the effort to build toward the vision of inclusiveness, both for the Lab and the broader MIT campus.
Jason Haas
PhD student, MIT Education Arcade
The fact of the matter is that I felt unqualified to comment on the No Permission, No Apology conference. I’m a cisgender-heterosexual white male, and most days, my interests stray pretty far from the tech sector. My instincts were, in some ways, that I could finally just shut up! What an opportunity for me to, as an ally, lend my presence and attention and just not say anything! Who needs to hear from some dude?
Well, I must report that the conference was one of my proudest days as a Media Labber. It was a celebration of the progress we’ve made and of the spirit in which we approach the road ahead.
Early in my tenure in the Lab, the Diversity Committee at the Lab had produced several small, focused, and meaningful events. As the committee received the resources to more seriously address the real issues of representation and inclusion, we realized that our problem was so severe that we couldn’t make the substantive changes needed without a full-time champion. Enter Monica Orta, our assistant director of diversity and student support. The organization of No Permission, No Apology was perhaps the most publicly visible demonstration of Monica’s thoughtful and tireless work to make change in the Lab.
In my time at the Lab, I have seen the transition from when Megan Smith, in her role as a member of the Lab’s visiting committee, really pounded the Lab on our failures in diversity, to this glorious meeting where Megan celebrated our progress and the hard work yet to do. And I’ve seen how easy it can be to make it happen. Lab Director Joi Ito has taken decisive action to ameliorate some truly thorny diversity problems.For example, in response to concerns raised by the Student Committee, Joi issued a statement to the entire Lab community — including our member companies — reminding everyone connected with the Lab of its zero-tolerance culture when it comes to any behaviors that show a lack of respect for women or underrepresented minorities at the Lab.
At No Permission, No Apology, Joi essentially said, that if you’ve ever seen him do or say something smart on these topics, it is because Megan Smith, Monica Orta, and others like them have made the case for diversity so plain to him, fought so diligently for these issues, that they have became permanent fixtures in his mind. They are like cartoon angels that sit on his shoulders, whispering, “a plurality of perspectives makes for a resilient and thriving organization…” Our work going forward is to get everyone a Monica and a Megan of their own.
Learn more about the diversity, equity, and inclusion resources at MIT.
Photos by Mim Adkins.
