Women4IT

Women4IT: Shaping the future of digital
2022-11-23 09:30 - 13:00 UTC | Brussels, Brussels, Belgium
In an increasingly digitalised world, women continue to be underrepresented in STEM education and technology careers.Women4IT was created  to change that.
Women4IT – an initiative financed by the EEA and Norway Grants’ Fund for Youth Employment and supported by DIGITALEUROPE – aims to empower young women across Europe to become part of the digital economy.
By providing  fully funded, individually tailored digital skills training that reflects current market needs, we have worked  to equip women with a set of in-demand digital competencies and employability guidance, all to drive their career advancement and economic independence. In its pilot phase, the project has retrained +900 women across Europe as programmers, data analysts and other ICT roles that are vital to reach our Digital Decade goals.
The upcoming event entitled Women4IT: Shaping the future of digital marks the end of our four-year project. Together, we will look back at the project’s main achievements, good practices and lessons learnt, as well as hear first-hand from the Women4IT graduates about their experience and plans for a career in tech. We will also review how the EU currently performs in terms of fostering gender diversity in STEM and discuss the next steps in boosting the impact of initiatives like Women4IT.

AGENDA

09:30-10:00 | Welcome coffee and light breakfast

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10:00-10:05 | Welcome remarks
Katarzyna Udała, Project Manager, DIGITALEUROPE

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10:05-10:15 | Keynote: On the mission to foster digital inclusion
Cecilia Bonefeld-Dahl, Director General, DIGITALEUROPE
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10:15-10:25 | Keynote: Grassroots initiatives boosting digital skills and youth employment
Sheena Elaine Keller | Senior Sector Officer, EEA and Norway Grants
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10:25-11:10 | Women4IT Showcase: methodology, innovative tools and impact made

Māra Jākobsone | Vice President, LIKTA
Maria Giannacourou | Project Manager, CRETHIDEV
Danguole Rutkauskiene | Head of Projects, BETI
Monica Lopez | Project Manager, Plan International España
Sephora Cutajar | Project Coordinator, Tech.mt
Andrada Beloia | Project Manager, Fundatia EOS

11:10-11:30 | Coffee break
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11:30-11:40 | Keynote: Women in the future of STEM
Themis Christophidou | Director-General for Education, Youth, Sport and Culture of the European Commission (DG EAC)
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11:40-12:00 | In conversation with the Women4IT Participants

Ariadna Bascuñana Sierra | Digital HR Course Assistant,
Digital Career Institute (Spain)
Christina I. Iliou, | ICT Manager, Organization Administrator of Google EMEA Scholarships: 2022 Google Career Certs (Greece)
Ieva Šica | Customer Solutions Group Manager, If Insurance (Latvia)

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12:00-12:50 | Expert panel: Shaping the future of digital – how can we boost the impact of Women4IT and similar initiatives across Europe?

Dana Adriana Puia Morel | Coach, Trainer and Policy Expert, DG GROW, European Commission
Armand Leblois | Regional Manager for Europe CIS, CISCO
Sana Afouaiz | Founder and Director, Womenpreneur Initiative [TBC]
Mary Cleary | Coordinator, Digital Skills National Coalition of Ireland
Peter Palvolgyi | CEO, All Digital (moderator)
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12:50-13:00 | Closing remarks:

Katarzyna Udała | Project Manager, DIGITALEUROPE
Eva Fabry | Director, European Center for Women and Technology

Women4IT Conference: The path to achieving gender equality in digital
2022-01-20 10:00 - 13:00 (Europe/Paris) | Online Event
In an increasingly digitalised world, women continue to be underrepresented in STEM education and technology careers. For the last three years, Women4IT has been working to change that.

Women4IT – an initiative financed by the EEA and Norway Grants’ Fund for Youth Employment – aims to empower young women across Europe to become part of the digital economy. By providing fully funded, individually tailored digital skills training reflecting current market needs, we have worked to equip women with a set of in-demand digital competencies and employability guidance, all to drive both their career advancement and economic independence.

As the first cycle of the project is coming to an end, we invite you to join us on 20 January 2022 for a conference organised by DIGITALEUROPE entitled “Women4IT: The Path to achieving gender equality in digital”.
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The conference will be a half-day event full of panels, keynote speeches and interactive discussions aimed at exploring ways of engaging more young women into the digital sector. Together, we will explore the current situation of women in technology, boosting youth employment in Europe, and ways of working together across sectors to make that vision a reality.

With the project consortium, we will look back at the last three years to discuss Women4IT’s path to success, the innovative solutions created to support the project’s mission, and the invaluable partnerships established along the way. We will also hear first-hand from the Women4IT graduates about the impact the programme has had on the careers and personal growth. Finally, Women4IT’s ambitious goals for 2022 and beyond will be revealed.

Women4IT will also be presenting the first Women4IT Awards, recognising the work of employers, agencies and other organisations who have significantly contributed to the Women4IT initiative and continue to support our work.

AGENDA
10:00 – 10:05 Welcome and opening remarks
Katarzyna Udała, Project Manager, DIGITALEUROPE

10:05 – 10:15 Keynote: On the mission to bring more women into digital
Cecilia Bonefeld-Dahl, Director General, DIGITALEUROPE

10:15 – 10:25 Keynote: Women4IT boosting youth employment across Europe
Grethe Haugøy, Senior Sector Officer, EEA and Norway Grants

10:25 – 11:20 Panel I: Women4IT – the road to success (with Q&A)

Greta Volodzkaite, Deputy Head, BETI
Maria Giannakourou, Project Manager, CRETHIDEV
Andrada Beloia, Project Manager, EOS
Mary Cleary, Secretary General, ICS
Vita Vītola-Lapiņa, Project Specialist, LIKTA
Agustina Gansievich, PLAN International
Charmaine Buttigieg, Coordinator – Projects, Tech.mt

Piloting partners will discuss the creation of Women4IT, its mission and goals, and the innovative tools and solutions developed to support the initiative.

11:20 – 11:30 Coffee break

11:30 – 11:50 In conversation with the Women4IT graduates

Virginia Arroyo Armenteros, Digital Media Specialist Trainee (Spain)
Diana Mladin, Web Developer Trainee (Romania)
Leticia Martins, Digital Marketing Executive (Ireland)
Tayara Rebouҫas Marques Barreto, Data Analyst Trainee (Ireland)

Women4IT graduates will discuss their experience throughout the project, benefits of taking the Women4IT courses and their plans for the future.

11:50 – 12:40 Panel II: Working together towards bridging the gender gap in tech (with Q&A)

Themis Christophidou, Director-General, DG Education, Youth, Sport and Culture, European Commission
Evita Simsone, Director, Latvian State Employment Agency
Daniela Ciuma, HR Manager, Victory Square Partners
Joanna Pruszyńska-Witkowska, Vice President and Co-Founder, Future Collars

Panellists will discuss the ways forward in bridging the gender gap in digital – from corporate recruitments strategies, through impactful mentorship, to the private-public partnerships and an overarching EU strategy for digital skills.

12:40 – 12:55 Women4IT Awards Ceremony
Eva Fabry, Director, European Centre for Women and Technology, and Māra Jākobsone, Board Member and Digital skills and Digital Transformation Project Manager, LIKTA

12:55 – 13:00 Wrap up and closing remarks
Katarzyna Udała, Project Manager at DIGITALEUROPE

REGISTER HERE

We look forward to having you with us.
The Women4IT Team

Women4IT Webinar: How to work with employers in skills-building initiatives?
2021-10-28 15:00 - 16:30 (Europe/Helsinki) | Online Event
In an increasingly digitalised world, women continue to be underrepresented in STEM education and technology careers. Women4IT – an initiative financed by the EEA and Norway Grants’ Fund for Youth Employment – is here to change that.

Women4IT aims to empower young women across Europe to become part of the digital economy. By providing fully funded, individually tailored digital skills training reflecting current market needs, we aspire to equip women with a set of in-demand digital competencies and employability guidance, all to drive both their career advancement and economic independence.

Among many contributing factors, the collaboration with employers across 7 European countries has been invaluable to Women4IT’s success over the last 3 years. As we complete our initial piloting efforts, we hope to share our experience with you.

Join us on 28 October 2021 for the “Women4IT Webinar: How to work with employers in skills-building initiatives?’. During the event, we will share our approach to engaging employers, present the tools we have developed for this purpose and discuss what we have learnt in the process. In the interactive part of the event, we will also work together to explore how to make initiatives like Women4IT even more impactful in the future.

AGENDA
15:00-15:05 – Welcome and opening remarks
15:05-15:20 – Introduction to Women4IT: project purpose, achievements and key developed tools
15:20-15:40 – Presentation: Working with employers in Women4IT (with Q&As)
15:40-16:20 – Interactive session: How can you better engage employers in your initiatives? How can the Women4IT Employment Toolkit be used by other organisations?
16:20-16:30 – Closing remarks

REGISTER HERE

We look forward to having you with us.
Women4IT Team

Women4IT Dissemination Conference
2021-05-17 11:00 - 13:10 (Europe/Helsinki) | Online Event
The Women4IT Dissemination Conference, organised by PLAN International Spain, will take place on 17 May 2021.
This online event will be dedicated to discussions on promoting young women’s participation and leadership in the digital economy. It will bring together Women4IT trainees, digital companies and female role models with prominent careers in ICT, who will share their stories, experiences and best practices to educate and inspire our audience.

Agenda:
11:00-11:10 – Opening remarks by PLAN International Spain
11:10-11:45 – Panel 1: The role of companies in Women4IT, Q&A
11:45-12:20 – Panel 2: The next generation of Women4IT, Q&A
12:20-12:55 – Panel 3: Advancing women’s leadership in ICT, Q&A
12:55-13:10 – Keynote and closing remarks from the European Commission

Register now!

Dublin Conference (online event)
2020-10-30 08:30 - 23:30 UTC
Dublin conference will be a half-day event to show-case the Women4IT project to potential participants, employers, and community organisations across Ireland. The event will include keynote speeches and panel interventions.
During the conference, the participants will explore the current training landscape in Ireland and Europe, the importance of female role models in technology and the impact of the Women4IT project on the trainees and their professional and personal growth.

Women4IT Webinar for Mentors
2020-09-24 10:00 - 11:30 UTC
On 24 September 2020, the European Centre for Women and Technology, the expert partner of the Women4IT project will organise a webinar for Women4IT mentors. The event will bring together mentors who are part of national training programmes starting across Women4IT piloting countries this autumn and until June 2021. The participants will explore how mentors can support trainees throughout the learning period and complement the training with their expertise best.

Women4IT 6th Transnational Partners Meeting
2020-09-08 - 2020-09-09
For the first time ever, the Women4IT Partners will meet online to conduct their periodic Transnational Partner Meeting. This two-day event will mark the start of the third year of the project. It will provide the time for partners to evaluate and reflect on the project’s achievements up to date and plan the next steps, including the launch of the training programmes in 7 pilot countries. Stay tuned!

Women4IT Webinar: Empowering women in the digital economy
2020-07-07 | Online Event
Women4IT – an initiative financed by EEA and Norway Grants – aims to empower young women across Europe to become part of the digital economy. By providing fully funded, individually tailored digital skills training reflecting current market needs, we aspire to equip women with a set of in-demand digital competencies and employability guidance, all to drive both their career advancement and economic independence.
To guarantee the success of the project, on 7 July 2020, DIGITALEUROPE will host a Women4IT Webinar. The webinar will facilitate knowledge sharing as well as providing critical comments on the tools the partners have developed so far in the project. We will also explore how to make the initiative even more impactful.

Validation Workshop and the 5th Transnational Partner Meeting in Malta
2020-03-10 - 2020-03-12 | Sliema, Malta, Sliema, Malta
The Women4IT will gather for the fifth time to assess the progress of the project and discuss the next steps. During the meeting, we will also hold a validation workshop. 10 experts from the field of digital skills, employment and youth will evaluate the tools we have develop so far to make sure that they are ready to use by all engaged in the project stakeholders.

Active Youth Annual Seminar by EEA and Norway Grants
2019-11-25 - 2019-11-26 | Brussels, Brussels, Belgium
The annual thematic seminar is an opportunity for the project partners to get together and strengthen their community through common learning. The event focuses on learning and skills development within the field of youth employment, to enhance the competence of the project partners. Its goal is to inspire the project partners and encourage their active participation through creation of common learning space. The ambition is to use the seminar’s topics to ensure knowledge-sharing relevant and useful for all 26 projects, focusing on common challenges like outreach, soft skills development, cooperating with local stakeholders, work-based learning, entrepreneurship and job creation.
During the event, DIGITALEUROPE and LIKTA, partners in the Women4IT project, will take part in the panel during the “ICT/Digital, Social Economy and Entrepreneurship” session.

4th International Partner Meeting in Dublin
2019-10-16 - 2019-10-18 | Irish Computer Society, Dublin, Ireland
The Women4IT project partners will gather in Dublin for their fourth international partner meeting. During the meeting, the partners will evaluate the first year of the project’s duration, coordinate on the upcoming activities and present an overview of the second year’s actions.
The priority for this meeting is to discuss the creation of toolkits for Women4IT target groups as well as to draw out the Training Roadmap – an outline of training programmes implemented throughout the project.
Stay tuned for updates on our social media: Twitter, Facebook & LinkedIn

ALL DIGITAL Summit 2019
2019-10-10 - 2019-10-11 | Bologna, Bologna, Italy
On 10-11 October, over 150 representatives of organisations and networks, working in the field of digital inclusion and empowerment, will gather in Bologna for the XXII ALL DIGITAL Summit. The event is organised by pan-European association ALL DIGITAL and strives to enhance digital skills across Europe.
ALL DIGITAL Summit 2019 will tackle two distinctive but equally important themes for our network. Basic digital skills for everyone have always been at the core of our work ever since the digital inclusion leaders met more than 10 years ago to establish a European network. STEAM skills are, on the other hand, a newer topic on the advanced side of the skills spectrum with increasing importance where digital competence centres have a key role to play.
WOMEN4IT will join the ALL DIGITAL Summit 2019 as one of the exhibitors. We encourage you to look for our stand and stop by for a chat about our project.

Women4IT Launch Event
2018-12-12 09:15 - 14:30 UTC | DIGITALEUROPE OFFICE, Rue de la Science 14, Brussels, Belgium
Releasing women’s potential for the digital economy
Brussels, 12 December 2018
The underrepresentation of women in the digital sector is a missed opportunity for Europe. Less than two in ten ICT specialists in Europe are women. The situation has not improved in recent years, even though there is a severe shortage of digitally skilled professionals.
Changing this situation will take time. Meanwhile, engagement and actions at all levels are paramount to show young women that technology provides valuable tools for boosting creativity and real-world problem solving.
On the occasion of launching the Women4IT project we are pleased to invite you to the expert networking event “Releasing women’s potential for the digital economy”.
The Women4IT project aims to help releasing the untapped potential of women and contribute to economic growth in seven EU countries. Thanks to the support from the EEA Grants and Norway Grants Fund for Youth Employment, 700 young women will be trained in digital skills.
Register Now
