Getting Girls into STEM

Insa Thiele-Eich, a German meteorologist, starts out her talk on space by telling her audience about a vacation she went on with her family when she was just 8 years old, when her father showed her some constellations in the sky. This was one of her first memories of understanding the greatness of the universe, and caused her to ask questions regarding it.

As she grew older, Thiele-Eich's infatuation with space grew, and she was passionate to pursue a career in it. She continues by telling her audience about the stats of those who've had the chance to go into space, and exposes that no German women have done so. She says that a large part of the lack of female astronauts comes from an under-representation of women in STEM subjects, which is in-part due to a lack of confidence among them in male-dominated areas.

Throughout her talk on space, Thiele-Eich considers some of the different ways that this discrepancy can be rectified -- such as empowering young girls by showing them that they are capable of succeeding in STEM subjects, and reinforcing their ability by offering them positive environments to learn in. Although this problem isn't all that easy to fix, Thiele-Eich states that it starts with taking out the gender roles that are often associated with actions and jobs, so that girls don't feel like they're out of place when taking part in ones that are traditionally dominated by men.