By Edwina Dueñas, Communications Associate
TechWomen welcomes 21 Emerging Leaders (ELs) from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan to the 2015 program. This year marks our expansion to the Central Asian region. In two days, the 2015 Emerging Leaders arrive in San Francisco!
We can’t wait to meet the Emerging Leaders and to connect with the Central Asian cohort to learn more about them and their region. In anticipation for the program, ELs from Central Asia shared their thoughts, excitement and expectations for their TechWomen experience.
Learn more about the ELs below.
“I’m extremely proud to represent Turkmenistan as a first-year Emerging Leader from Central Asia. It gives great excitement, courage and responsibility to inspire other women in STEM and girls who are still having doubts about entering the field. Now we are in an age where technologies are rocking the world, yet in my region, people continue to think that STEM fields are primarily for men. I know this stereotype very well. Having a bachelor’s in linguistics and information technology, I started off my career path on construction sites, where I learned that if you are truly passionate about job, when you put your helmet on and go to the site, it doesn’t matter if you are a man or woman. You are a professional.
As a citizen of Turkmenistan, I live in a country with vast quantities of natural resources and great potential in its rational and effective consumption. During my TechWomen mentorship, I’m interested in focusing on renewable energy, particularly solar energy management in order to learn how to establish the safe, sustainable and profitable use of these resources both domestically and internationally.”
–Bahara Nurmetova, Turkmenistan
“Nowadays, the Kazakhstan government supports STEM fields significantly. There are different government programs, which provide additional motivation for tech professionals to develop their ideas and boost STEM in the country. However, there are very few female representatives taking leadership roles in the field. I really hope my participation in the TechWomen program will be a mind-changing experience, which will allow me to not only take leadership positions in STEM, but also motivate other talented women to take an action toward developments in tech areas and to make the difference. I hope my experience with TechWomen will allow me to build a society of women in Kazakhstan that will work toward improving the quality of life of socially vulnerable people in our country through modern technologies.”
“My name is Oksana. I am from Kyrgyzstan, a country of Central Asia, where for many centuries existed the Great Silk Road that linked Western and Eastern civilization. The Great Silk Road played a great role in forming Kyrgyzstan as a country. I feel great responsibility representing Kyrgyzstan in TechWomen’s first year with Central Asian Emerging Leaders. At the same time, I am grateful to have the chance to participate in this program. I have great expectations from this program and will do my best to make the most of the opportunity for myself and for my country.”
“I am really happy to be a TechWomen Emerging Leader for 2015. It is an amazing feeling to represent Turkmenistan in the TechWomen program. I cannot express all my feelings with words alone. I am so inspired to participate in TechWomen and implement knowledge and experience that I gain when I return to Turkmenistan. Turkmenistan is a developing country, and we need more women in developing technologies. I wish to inspire more women to develop their leadership skills and grow in their careers despite the difficulties we face working as women in tech. It is not easy to be technical women working with male colleagues, and we work to prove that females are equals in the field. I believe that the TechWomen program will inspire all developing female leaders around the world to develop and be open to new opportunities in their future career.”
–Naira Ayrapetyan, Turkmenistan
Stay tuned to our blog for more posts on the 2015 TechWomen program. Be sure to add #techwomen15 to your posts on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram to join the conversation.
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