Dr. Eden Hennessey (she/her) is a Social Psychologist who researches and mobilizes knowledge related to diversity promotion and discrimination reduction. Her most recent work assesses the consequences of confronting gender bias in science, technology, engineering, arts, and math (STEAM). Dr. Hennessey advocates for equity and inclusion on university campuses and combines arts with data to impact world-wide audiences. She is deeply committed to her work as the Manager of the Student Centre for Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (CSEDI) at Wilfrid Laurier University and as the Research and Programs Director of the Laurier Centre for Women in Science (WinS). Title: Women and Girls in STEAM: Engineering Inclusion Abstract: Have you ever thought about who pursues engineering and why? This interactive talk presents research evidence on the experiences of women and girls in engineering, highlighting the variety of factors that contribute to gender imbalance. Social Psychologist Dr. Eden Hennessey utilizes data and images from a recent photo-research exhibit to illuminate the stories of diverse women in engineering professions. Finally, attendees will learn about actions that promote inclusion in science and technology, so that all people can see themselves as engineers.
Panel 1: Effective high school outreach models Panelists: Panel 2: Building inclusive experiences for engineering students Panelists: Tessa Krause completed her Bachelor of Applied Science in Engineering Physics at Queen’s University in 2020. During her undergraduate degree, she was involved with the Formula SAE design team, in addition to performing with musical ensembles with the Dan School of Drama and Music. She is currently pursuing a Master of Applied Science in Applied Physics at Queen’s University with a focus on quality assurance for laser machining processes. When not working on her research, she works with the Queen’s Formula SAE team on EDII initiatives to ensure the opportunities of being on a design team are accessible to all students. Dimpho Radebe is a PhD student in Engineering Education at the University of Toronto, Canada. Her research interests include engineering culture and identity, engineering careers in the public sector, and ethics, equity and social justice in STEM. Dimpho has several years of professional experience in the public and private sectors in process engineering, as well as project management and implementation. She holds a BASc in Industrial Engineering from the University of Toronto and an MSc in Management, specializing in Operations Management, from the University of Bath, UK. Her career vision is to be a driving force for efforts to diversify engineering and to challenge some of the dominant ways of thinking that might restrict diverse engineers with different viewpoints and varying career path interests. Brielle Thorsen is an urban Cree-settler graduate student passionate about social and environmental well-being and justice. In 2020, she graduated from Queen’s University with a Bachelor of Applied Science in Mathematics and Engineering and is currently pursuing her M.ASc in Mechanical Engineering also at Queen’s University. Brielle’s thesis work aims to integrate Nehiyaw ways of knowing and being into the design of Net Zero Energy homes for First Nation communities. She is the 6th recipient of the Order of the White Rose Scholarship in memory of the victims and survivors of the 1989 Polytechnique tragedy, and she received Queen’s University’s 2020 Peer Leadership Award. Panel 3: Positive co-op and internship experiences for all Panelists: Andrea Forster, Experts Ops COE Leader at SUEZ Water Technologies & Solutions, graduated with a B.Eng & Mgmt in Mechanical Engineering from McMaster University in Hamilton, ON. She then joined Zenon Environmental Inc as an application engineer for the International Sales Division where she had the opportunity to work for 2 years from the company’s European headquarters in Budapest Hungary. Over the course of her career with ZENON/GE/SUEZ she has held several roles in Sales, Quality, Commercial Excellence and Project Execution while in parallel returning to McMaster to complete her M.B.A. in Management of Innovation & New Technologies. Most recently she has been responsible for leading the Proposals division for the NAM Projects Business. 
Declan Mullane is an American-Canadian software engineer who received their Bachelor’s of Engineering from McMaster University in the spring of 2021. As a member of the 2STLGBQIA+ community, they spent four years as a volunteer and executive team member of McMaster’s Pride Community Center, a peer-support service run by and for 2STLBQIA+ students that focuses on community building and identity-specific programming. During their undergrad, their favorite courses were the ones that emphasized the importance of including an interdisciplinary approach to design. Living as a nonbinary queer person with invisible disabilities, Declan advocates for the importance of involving different perspectives in every aspect of engineering design, as well as the importance of non-STEM courses in the education of engineers – future and present.
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