At the site of the International Forum ATOMEXPO-2024, women leaders from 8 countries presented the best practices on involving women in technology and innovation.

At the site of the International Forum ATOMEXPO-2024, women leaders from 8 countries presented the best practices on involving women in technology and innovation.

At the site of the International Forum ATOMEXPO-2024, women leaders from 8 countries presented the best practices on involving women in technology and innovation.

On March 26, 2024, the Rosatom Women's Community organized two sessions at the Sirius University of Science and Technology within the framework of the two-day International Forum ATOMEXPO-2024, one of the largest international events in the nuclear field.

The moderator of the session was Alexandra Ryabykh, co-founder of the Foundation for the Support and Development of Women's Initiatives "Association of Women in the Nuclear Industry". The session brought together women leaders from 8 countries: Russia, Great Britain, South Africa, Egypt, Indonesia, Serbia, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan.

Tatyana Terentyeva, Deputy Director General for Human Resources of the State Atomic Energy Corporation Rosatom, opened the event with a welcoming speech, noting that such unique feminine qualities as flexibility, ability to work in a team and create a special atmosphere are inherent in the economy of the future, especially in such a fragile world.

Raquel Heredia Silva, Head of Leadership Development Programs at the World Nuclear University, said that the main principles in the development of women's leadership are a systematic approach and structured communication between participants.

In turn, Gulnara Bikkulova, Deputy Director General – Director of International Initiatives and Partnerships Unit of the ANO “Rosatom Corporate Academy”, presented a number of Rosatom initiatives aimed at supporting women within the industry. The program [in] Visible Power helps the participants to form their own unique career perspective. The initiative of the International Summer Technology School for girls from all over the world seeking to build a successful career in the nuclear industry was also announced. The program will be held in the city of Obninsk.

Elsie Pule, Group Executive Head of Human Resources at Eskom Holdings SOC Ltd, spoke about the peculiarities of the women's movement in Africa, which has more than 2,000 organizations: now the main focus is on attracting women's attention to leadership positions at generating stations.

Soheir Korraa, President of African Women in Nuclear, Professor at Egyptian Atomic Energy Authority, identified three main areas to combat stereotypes:
● the respect for gender balance in the country, the company and at the personal level;
● the need to show that working in the nuclear industry is not scary, but interesting
● nuclear industry enterprises are safe.
"As long as you work hard, no one will be able to stop you," said Soheir Korraa.

Geni Rina Sunaryo, Head of HIMNI Women's Capacity Development Department, presented the experience of successful women in Indonesia who have found their vocation in the nuclear industry.

Zamira Akbagysheva, President of Congress of Women of the Kyrgyz Republic, Secretary General of the Union of Business Incubators and Innovation Centers of the Kyrgyz Republic, summed up the 30-year history of gender equality in Kyrgyzstan: "Thanks to women, export and domestic brands are developing, more and more women entrepreneurs are appearing, great attention is paid to attracting women to innovative technologies."

The next speaker was Snežhana Pajović, Professor of Molecular Biology, Director General at the Vinča Institute of Nuclear Sciences, who spoke about women in science in Serbia. "Over the past two years, the proportion of women among researchers has amounted to 69%, because the female brain allows us to find new approaches to unsolvable problems," the speaker emphasized.

At the end of the session, Zarina Sayfieva, Director of the Regional Education and Training Center for CBRN Security and Combating Weapons of Mass Destruction Terrorism of the Agency for Chemical, Biological, Nuclear and Radiation Safety of the Republic of Tajikistan, President of WiN Tajikistan, noted that the state policy of the Government of the Republic is aimed at the active participation of women in scientific activities and spoke about the projects implemented by the Agency to support family and national values.

The outcome of the session was formulated by the moderator of the session Alexandra Ryabykh: "Russia is actively working to attract women to high-tech sectors, and already today holds a leading position in terms of the number of women in senior positions. Our broad participation in the field of science and technology is critically important for the economic competitiveness of any country. Today's exchange of experiences of women leaders from more than 11 countries has allowed us to understand which methods and programs of women's leadership are already showing effectiveness, and what steps can be taken to increase women's participation in the development of technology and innovation. Following the session, we will continue to create and implement joint initiatives with our international partners and develop roadmaps for the implementation of projects to comprehensively support women in STEM," said Alexandra Ryabykh.