From 1 to 5 February 2021, some 40 women volunteers from CERN, EPFL and the University of Geneva gave talks on working in science to over 1350 schoolchildren in the local area. Nineteen talks were given in schools, following strict health measures, and another 47 by videoconference due to the tougher health restrictions introduced in the canton of Geneva.

The volunteers displayed impressive ingenuity and flexibility in adapting their presentations to the online format. All sorts of ideas and resources were drawn on to keep the students’ attention despite the remote set-up: interactive quizzes, simple scientific experiments conducted in parallel on screen and in the classroom, and virtual tours of the volunteers’ workplaces.

For the fifth year running, and despite the difficulties posed by the health crisis, Women and Girls in Science and Technology opened the eyes of many schoolchildren in the local area to career possibilities in science, technology, engineering and maths, while also giving them some female role models to identify with. Since 2017, more than 11 000 pupils aged between 7 and 15 have taken part in the initiative.

Are you a teacher or volunteer who would like to take part in the 2022 event? Contact the CERN events team.