Thread by @shawnapandya, Thanks for this comment and for bringing attention to why having events [...]

Dr. Shawna Pandya

shawnapandya

Thanks for this comment and for bringing attention to why having events geared towards including underrepresented groups in space and aerospace is important!

(Thread; feel free to share)

1/ https://twitter.com/space_stations/status/1337538912055521280

https://twitter.com/space_stations/status/1337538912055521280

Historically, the space sector has not been very diverse. The first astronauts represent a very homogenous group of male, Caucasian military pilots.

To date, only 12% of astronauts have been women (source: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/news/whm-recent-female-astronauts).

2/

Celebrating Women’s History Month: Most Recent Female Astronauts

For Women’s History Month, NASA and the International Space Station celebrate the women who conduct science aboard the orbiting lab.

https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/news/whm-recent-female-astronauts

This trend also extends to the rest of the space sector. Amongst the space agencies, women are only represented at about 12-37% within science and engineering (source: https://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/sites/c5996201-en/1/2/3/index.html?itemId=/content/publication/c5996201-en&mimeType=text/html&_csp_=ffe5a6bbc1382ae4f0ead9dd2da73ff4&itemIGO=oecd&itemContentType=book).

3/

Why does it matter? Well the data shows that increasing diversity increases performance across a number of domains, especially problem-solving, collaboration and having more perspectives at the table (source: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/09/100930143339.htm).

4/

Collective intelligence: Number of women in group linked to effectiveness in solving difficult...

Researchers document the existence of collective intelligence among groups of people who cooperate well, showing that such intelligence extends beyond the cognitive abilities of the groups' individ...

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/09/100930143339.htm

So - we have both data showing that gender (and cultural) diversity enhances performance in the workplace, but also that we still have a ways to go when it comes to reaching gender (and culture) parity in the workplace.

5/

That's why initiatives like @projectpossum13 @WomeninAero
@woaaofficial @Aero_Med's #WomeninAerospaceMedicine and #HeForShe

matter. That's why allyship matters. And it's why I will continue to be a proud proponent of these initiatives.

Fin/

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