Building Bridges: Sulata Dhakal’s Path to Inclusion
“Your intelligence, creativity, and resilience are the keys to unlocking a world of endless opportunities. Keep pushing boundaries and paving the way for future generations.”
Life is full of unsung heroes who make sure that other people won’t have to go through the struggles that they once faced. In this series of NWiC-Celebrate, we bring you the story of one such hero — a young girl who is breaking barriers and working for the representation of women in Nepal. Someone who went through a transfigurative journey from dealing with imposter syndromes and being voiceless to a confident woman who believes that her visions for the future of women will be heard. She is Sulata Dhakal: a STEM advocate, an engineer, and now a Doctoral Researcher at Tampere University, Finland.
Fated To Be An Engineer
They say dawn always brings the day. Growing up, Sulata watched her father skillfully draw maps and utilize AutoCAD, which sparked her curiosity. As she grew older, she gained a clear understanding of what engineering entailed. For many, engineering has always seemed like a daunting profession in terms of skill. However, seeing someone so close to her effortlessly perform engineering tasks gave her the encouragement to pursue it.
Sulata also expresses gratitude for her upbringing in an engineering family. She acknowledges the privilege this background represents, which is not available to everyone. Driven by this awareness, Sulata is now working to create similar opportunities for others. Her goal is to bridge the gap and ensure that everyone, regardless of their background, has the chance to pursue a career in engineering.
Following her early dreams, Sulata obtained her bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering and later went on to complete her master’s degree in Structural Engineering from Pokhara University. Her master’s journey was not all sunshine and rainbows as she was the only female student in her batch. This isolation, despite her resilience, led to feelings of self-doubt and imposter syndrome. The lack of female representation in the field made her question her place and abilities. However, in between these challenges, a realization set in: other women likely faced similar experiences. This understanding led her to seek out female mentors and peers in the field and sparked her passion for empowering women in engineering and ensuring a more inclusive future.
Role Model: Goddess Of Hope In The Name Of Mother
We asked Sulata about her role model. Her face glowed with fondness as she spoke of her mother as the guiding light in her journey. We traveled down her memory lane.
“मम्मी खोई?”, asked her relatives.
“मम्मी त पढ्न जानु भको छ।”, she and her sister responded ecstatically. Even Saturdays were not immune to that answer.
Her mother completed her master’s degree while raising three children. It’s this determination that inspires Sulata. She holds her mother in high regard, recognizing her as one of the most influential people in her life, a source of strength, courage and hope.
Erasmus+ Scholarship journey: The Experience of Studying Abroad
“Seeing someone pursuing the same career goals that you want to pursue invokes a strong desire and motivation,” Sulata explains. “While pursuing my master’s degree, I would often look for women in my field and just seeing them going to the construction field and their day-to-day life would ignite a sense of determination within me.” This reflected in her academic performance and eventually helped her secure the Erasmus+ scholarship, a scholarship to study in Europe. This opportunity provided her with a perspective shift and she transitioned from being less vocal to an outspoken person in matters of just a few months.
The feedback from the professors, and the environment she was in; where she felt that her voice would be heard, provided her with a much-needed confidence boost. Her time abroad studying helped her identify the difference in the teaching methodologies and the overall approach towards teaching and learning.
Interests Beyond Structures: Love For Computers
Your career path seldom confines your interests. Despite hailing from a Civil Engineering background, she developed a keen interest in computing.
During her master’s, some projects involved using Matlab. Her desire to explore more in Machine Learning and Neural Networks such as CNN and ANN, led her to apply for Data Science courses. This knowledge she gained would later on prove beneficial, as she began as a lecturer and a research associate at Advanced Engineering College. Sulata gained experience in multidisciplinary research, making her more confident in exploring the horizons beyond the confines of civil engineering.
Biases in STEM: Discussing Disparity In Representation
Sulata quotes the book “Invisible Women” by Caroline Criado Perez:
“Men are more likely than women to be involved in a car crash, which means they dominate the numbers of those seriously injured in car accidents. But when a woman is involved in a car crash, she is 47% more likely to be seriously injured than a man, and 71% more likely to be moderately injured,46 even when researchers control for factors such as height, weight, seat-belt usage, and crash intensity.47 She is also 17% more likely to die.48 And it’s all to do with how the car is designed — and for whom.”
She expressed that biases in critical fields always do more damage than it is visible. She expressed concern about the lack of women’s representation in significant areas of our lives. This argued that the root cause of an unfair society and skewed beliefs is the prevalent biases and disparities haunting us women. Acknowledging this, Sulata advocates for inclusivity and equal representation for women and marginalized groups.
Shifting Mindset: Overcoming Preconceived Societal Notions
The expectation of women only getting married, settling down, and having children has plagued Nepalese women for centuries. Regarding her encounter with such societal pressures, she expressed that her supportive home environment had shielded her from it.
While such thinking is still prevalent, she sees the rays of hope for change. According to her, the support of her family towards her mother pursuing her higher education hints at the reforming beliefs. She is optimistic that we are one step ahead of such thoughts. Even if this perspective shift has occurred in several households, over time, it is bound to spread. She views today’s world as a much better place than what once was and remains positive toward the inevitable changes in societal attitudes. These changing attitudes will ultimately enable women to pursue their aspirations.
Flourishing SmartCheli: Envisioning A Better Future For All Women
The spark ignited by her own experience fueled her desire to contribute to the betterment of women. It was awaiting an opportunity to spread. That blissful opportunity came in the form of another dedicated woman Pratiksha Pandey. The two of them later went on to address gender inequality in the STEM field through Smart Cheli.
Smart Cheli took off with workshops aimed at encouraging and motivating women. Their first workshop was a coding workshop where girls from a school in Kapan participated. When a girl from the management stream expressed her joy in being able to type in Nepali and English and managing accounts, they knew the program was effective. This was how the humble beginnings of Smart Cheli turned into an organization creating multiple opportunities for women today.
Sulata continues to carry her relentless efforts and momentum to work for the welfare of women. She recently participated in the International Visitor Leadership Program(IVLP), an initiative of the US Embassy. Her focus during the program was on “Women in STEM”. Selected as one of only 45 participants, Sulata joined a diverse group of international leaders who shared their experiences, challenges, and strategies for overcoming them. Throughout the three-week-long workshop, they gained valuable insights through visits to various universities, and research centers, and immersive experiences in American culture and educational systems.
In Retrospect: Things She Would Have Done Differently
We all have experiences we wish we could revisit. Drawing from her self-reflection, Sulata underscores the importance of delving into practical applications. She realizes that conventional pedagogical approaches often fall short and just theoretical knowledge is seldom sufficient in today’s dynamic market. She advises young generations to be more involved in extracurriculars. It is only when you are out there learning and communicating with other people that you can develop your all-around skills. As the old saying goes, “A stitch in time saves nine”, Sulata suggests the younger generation be more vocal and proactive.
Sulata’s endeavors know no bounds and she is a true role model. We at NWiC are very grateful to have the opportunity to cover her story.
This article was written by Sayjal Shrestha, a valuable member of Nepali Women in Computing for Nepali Women in Computing — CELEBRATE.
