There is a gender gap in Ukraine. Science is no exception. Fortunately, there are initiatives that want to solve this problem. The art project SHE is SCIENCE is among them. Its goal is to acquaint the public in Ukraine and abroad with the role of women in the world of science. The initiator of the project and the founder of the technology company Roosh Sergey Tokarev shared the achieved successes and opened the curtain of grandiose plans nurtured by his team.
Having achieved a lot in business, Ukrainian entrepreneur Sergey Tokarev realized that it was time to make his contribution to solving social challenges. The gender gap attracted Sergey's attention. This problem seemed too neglected, especially in the field of science. This is how the charity project STEM is FEM appeared. To date, it has been promoting STEM education among Ukrainian girls for two years.
However, the problem turned out to be even bigger than it seemed at first glance. A trivial poll was enough to understand that Ukrainians do not know their women who glorify science on the world stage. "The results clearly showed that the vast majority could not name a single Ukrainian female scientist without the help of Google," Sergey Tokarev recalls.
The question was how to fix the situation? Orthodox approaches were rejected immediately. STEM is FEM’s target audience is a new generation. Young people, as you know, do not like to be lectured. They need something interesting.
“We brought together the coolest Ukrainian illustrators and asked them to paint 12 portraits of prominent Ukrainian scientists. Moreover, each portrait tells the story of an individual woman using modern art, demonstrates her character and sphere of activity,” Sergey Tokarev notes.
However, this was not enough to attract the desired number of Ukrainian girls. It was necessary to give young people the opportunity to participate in the project on their own. To do this, STEM is FEM invited Ukrainian girls aged 14 to 21 to write essays about 12 scientists, whose portraits made up the exhibition. The organizers received 561 essays and selected the 12 best works among them. All this together became an educational art project SHE is SCIENCE.
Today, the project surely cannot be called little-known. The long process of organization, determination of winners, and the grand opening of the exhibition in Kyiv. The opening included a charity auction that raised $43,000. The money was given to the winners of the essay contest on their education expenses. The project has attracted a significant number of partners, including the international organization UN Women and UNICEF.
However, the main goal is still ahead, Tokarev says. The organizers of the project want the whole country to see the results. Immediately after the grand opening, the exhibition began its journey around Ukraine. Zaporizhzhia, Mariupol, and Kryvyi Rih were the first to see the portraits and essays.
"Now, we have already sent out 109 copies to the libraries, schools, universities, and other institutions. In total, we plan to distribute 300 sets. So, if you want to join our initiative, you can order a copy for yourself," Sergey Tokarev urges.
Entry into the international arena is also around the corner. Science, obviously, is a strong point of Ukraine, organizers of the project consider. The exhibition has already been hosted by the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry. Negotiations with embassies in the EU and the rest of the world are underway.
But while the work is in full swing in the office of STEM is FEM, you can visit the SHE is SCIENCE exhibition in Kyiv. UNIT.City innovation park readily provides such an opportunity to everyone.
