Today (8 March) marks International Women’s Day (IWD) – a global day that celebrates the social, economic, cultural, and political achievements of women. In this blog post we are stepping away from our usual engagement topics to take a moment and celebrate some of the inspirational women working in NERC and across the environmental science sector.
Fanny Adloff, ENES Scientific Officer, National Centre for Atmospheric Science (NCAS), NERC
My name is Fanny Adloff, I work as a scientific officer for the IS-ENES3 European project at NCAS in Reading. I am co-leading the design of a sustainable European infrastructure for Earth system modelling and I also facilitate the scientific communication within the project, ensuring the smooth delivery of project outcomes. My role involves scientific coordination and extensive liaison with our international partners.
What has been your proudest achievement?
When I got interviewed by the French TV after one of my research papers caught the attention from the French media.
Who are the women who have inspired you the most?
Professor Ellie Highwood (previously at the Department of Meteorology, University of Reading) has been very inspiring with her decision to shift focus in her career leaving academia to run her own business helping individuals to develop via mentoring and coaching. Her example and support have really helped me with the decision to move from a research role toward a scientific coordination role.
What is the one thing you wish would change about the system to make it a fairer one for women?
I wish there would be more support for women who return to work after maternity leave, both in terms of managing expectations and in terms of career development.
Tahmina Ajmal, Senior Lecturer in Engineering, University of Bedfordshire
I am Tahmina Ajmal, Senior Lecturer in Engineering at University of Bedfordshire. My job includes teaching and research in electronic engineering applied to improve environment and society.
I completed my Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Electronic Engineering in India, before coming to UK (University of Essex) for my PhD in 2003 in Optical Cryptography.
After this, I joined the University of Bristol as a research fellow for developing a low-cost water testing device. This was the turning point in my academic journey as I transitioned into the environmental sphere. From there, I joined my current position in University of Bedfordshire in 2010 and continued my journey through working with local agencies and attracting some excellent research funding as Principal Investigator.
One of my Biotechnology & Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) /NERC funded research projects is to develop a precision aquaculture infrastructure to increase the productivity and reduce the impact on environment.
What has been your proudest achievement?
Looking back, I feel that each step in my academic journey has been an achievement on its own; completing my PhD, getting a job, securing research funding, supervising PhD’s to completion and so on. However, I feel privileged now to be in a position to apply my skills for bringing about a change in the environment, society and economy.
Who are the women who have inspired you the most?
During my career, there have not been a lot of female colleagues because engineering is one of the areas known for its gender imbalance. However, my mother has always been a source of inspiration for me, she completed her Master’s in Organic Chemistry (in first class) and went to start her PhD. However, she couldn’t pursue her career any further because of her dedication to her children (three daughters – both of my sisters are Doctors in Paediatrics). And, she always encouraged us to achieve all that she couldn’t and more.
What is the one thing you wish would change about the system to make it a fairer one for women?
To make the world a fairer playing ground, I would like more work and research opportunities that focus on the emotional skills inherent to women. Women bring to any discipline an empathy and a high emotional quotient together with an immense attention to tiny details. However, that does mean delivering less results. Appreciating this aspect will give women a much-needed confidence in their capabilities, bring about a much-needed women engagement and make the world a better place to live in.
Professor Helen Brindley, National Centre for Earth Observation (NCEO) Divisional Director/Reader in Earth Observation at Imperial College London
My name is Helen Brindley, I am the NCEO Divisional Director/Reader in Earth Observation at Imperial College London. My job seems to involve an ever-expanding amount of activities but my role within NCEO is mainly focused on identifying, implementing and managing the strategic research that allows the Centre to meet its remit to provide National Capability in Earth Observation. I have particular responsibility for the Energy and Water Cycle research theme.
What has been your proudest achievement?
In life, becoming a mother. At work, three things, my first published paper many years ago, supervising my first PhD student to completion and most recently, helping the European Space Agency (ESA) FORUM mission to be selected as Earth Explorer 9.
Who are the women who have inspired you the most?
Although we are a small percentage of the total, I have been lucky enough to have brilliant female academic colleagues spanning many different groups within the physics department at Imperial, including several within my research group. I have super-supportive male colleagues too, but seeing women being fantastic in the senior positions you aspire to is important.
What is the one thing you wish would change about the system to make it a fairer one for women?
Obviously, there are huge changes that can be made on the global scale: access to education is possibly the most important. On a more parochial level, I would say raising expectations is key, in particular giving girls the confidence they can achieve great things.
Helen Glaves, Senior Data Scientist at the British Geological Survey, NERC
My name is Helen Glaves and I am a Senior Data Scientist at the British Geological Survey (BGS) based in Keyworth, Nottinghamshire. I began my career at BGS more than 30 years ago as a geoscientist with a focus on coastal geomorphology. But over the years I have transitioned into a different role that is now focused on geoinformatics with a particular emphasis on data infrastructures to support open science.
In recent years, I have either coordinated or led work packages in a number of EU-funded projects focused on interoperable data systems, and I am currently leading the BGS contributions to two Horizons 2020 projects focused on sharing and re-use of environmental data.
I am also actively involved in the field of open data policy and data sharing on an international level, and have a number of roles including as a member of the GEO Data Working Group, and member of the Technical Advisory Board (TAB) for the Research Data Alliance that promotes data sharing and re-use. I am also an editor for the open access Earth and Space Science (ESS) journal published by the American Geophysical Union (AGU).
What has been your proudest achievement?
I have had many proud moments throughout my career but there are a few that really stand out, which include being awarded the EGU Ian McHarg Medal in 2016 for my contributions to marine informatics, and also being elected EGU Division President for the Earth and Space Science Informatics in 2017. However, I think my proudest moment came in 2019 when I was elected as the next President of the European Geosciences Union. As a result, I am currently serving as the Vice President and will assume the role of President of EGU for a period of two years from April 2021. Having the opportunity to lead EGU is a real honour and will provide me with the opportunity to promote equality, diversity and inclusivity throughout the geoscience community.
Who are the women who have inspired you the most?
I am fortunate to be surrounded by some fantastic women who are real role models for the next generation of geoscientists. There are an increasing number of woman in senior leadership positions throughout the environmental sciences, and having Dr. Karen Hanghøj appointed as the first female Director of BGS is a significant milestone for BGS and women geoscientists. It is also notable that the European Geosciences Union (EGU) and American Geophysical Union (AGU) will shortly both have women as Presidents at the same time.
But my own personal role models have been Dr. Dawn Wright, Chief Scientist at ESRI; and Dr. Lesley Wyborn now at the Australian National University. Both of these amazing woman have brought about real change in their respective fields. Dawn Wright has been a strong advocate for Black woman in research throughout her career. Similarly, Lesley Wyborn has been directly responsible for changes in how women are treated in geoscience research having been one of the first women to be allowed down an Australian mine! Both of these women are real trail blazers in their respective fields and incredible role models for women in any field of research.
What is the one thing you wish would change about the system to make it a fairer one for women?
Women continue to be discriminated against in academia due to the continued perception that they are the designated care givers. This has been brought into sharp focus during the COVID-19 pandemic where many women have had to prioritize family responsibilities over their careers. There needs to be a greater recognition that many parents now equally share caring responsibilities for dependents, and this should be more widely accepted and reflected in the mechanisms and systems that are in place to support women and men who have caring responsibilities. It should be just as acceptable for men stay home to care for dependents as women.
Tara Thompson, NCEO Communications Manager
My name is Tara Thompson, I am the NCEO Communications Manager. I am responsible for our external and internal communications. One of my main objectives is to publicise the important research NCEO scientists do from Universities and Institutions across the UK and emphasise the important role satellites play in understanding a changing planet.
What has been your proudest achievement?
Personally, becoming a mother. Professionally, making a difficult decision to change my career path and pursuing my passion for climate science. I feel very fortunate to work for a great organisation, doing a job I really enjoy and value.
Who are the women who have inspired you the most?
I have been lucky to work with some very supportive and inspiring women throughout my career. As a mother of young children, I have been inspired by colleagues who have children and continue to be successful in their careers. I have always been ambitious in my career and it is inspiring to see that it is possible to pursue your aspirations, while supporting your family.
What is the one thing you wish would change about the system to make it a fairer one for women?
On a global scale – access to education and free sanitary products in schools. From personal experience, it would be really helpful to offer staff any ‘refresher training’ necessary to feel confident coming back to work after maternity/paternity leave.
Please find more celebrations of International Women’s Day on the Constructing a Digital Environment (CDE) blog, capturing the achievements and inspirational stories of the women in the CDE Expert Network.
