By Joanne Liou, Communications and Impact Specialist
Patrick Horne, economic chief at the U.S. Embassy in Astana, welcomes the TechWomen delegation to Astana on March 17, 2016.
Representatives from the U.S. Embassy in Astana welcomed the delegation to Kazakhstan’s capital, which will host Expo 2017. Patrick Horne, economic chief, addressed the entrepreneurial spirit found in Kazakhstan and the country’s long history of making isolation work for them. However, the economy is monochromatic. “About 80% of the country’s exports are oil and mineral based. They don’t have a lot of diversity,” Patrick said. “They are really interested in partnering with America and expanding.”
Funding for new businesses remains a challenge. “There are not financial vehicles in Kazakhstan that promote small-medium entrepreneurial enterprises,” Joseph Tordella, assistant cultural affairs officer, said. “If you have a good idea, you can get a loan from the bank, but banks are reluctant to loan money because of devaluations.”
Commenting on gender issues, Robyn McCutcheon, environment, science, technology and health officer, said employment for women is often constrained by stereotypical perceptions. “On paper, every country in the region has gender equality,” she explained, but “in Central Asia, there is a return to traditional values, which means women belong back at home and marry early.” TechWomen’s presence in the region is striving to address the challenges with its network of women supporting and empowering women.
Tour and career panel at Nazarbayev University
“As more women get involved in STEM, the better it’s going to get. Sisters, neighbors are watching you. You are a role model,” mentor Julia Lovin said at the panel on women in STEM at Nazarbayev University in Kazakhstan. Julia has been a TechWomen mentor since 2012.
The delegation’s first stop in Astana was Nazarbayev University, which was founded in 2010 as the country’s first research university. The delegation toured the university’s Technopark and research facilities before hosting a panel discussion on careers in science and tech. Mentor Beth Steinberg of Felicis Ventures moderated the panel that featured 2015 TechWomen fellow Shodiyabegim Bakhtiyorzoda of GM in Uzbekistan and mentors Eileen Brewer of Symantec, Julia Lovin of Prysm, Rebecca Biswas of Juniper Networks and Tasha Pelaez of Solar City. Shodiya and mentors talked about their experiences working in a male-dominated environment. “When you have intuition, speak in facts and numbers,” Shodiya said, when discussing how to best approach a male-dominated environment.
Good advice from @bsteinbe: Women need to be both mentors and sponsors for each other and their teams. #TWkz @NUedkz pic.twitter.com/SnmXPjkcTf
— Sheila Casey (@SheilaDCasey) March 17, 2016
STEM workshops for girls
TechWomen mentors lead a hands-on motherboard workshop for girls at the Business for Kids Orphanage in Astana.
At the Business for Kids Orphanage, a group of delegates led hands-on workshops on hardware with motherboards and software with coding. Mentor Eileen of Symantec created an activity to teach how to remove/install components – CPUs, memory, batteries, transistors, etc. – on motherboards, which she has brought to a number of delegation trips since joining TechWomen in 2012. Zaure Uvaliyeva, the director of the orphanage, commented that after meeting with the TechWomen delegation, the girls’ hopes for the future dramatically changed. Before the meeting, many of the girls thought they would stay home and work as a housekeeper as an adult; however, after the meeting, many of the girls said they were inspired to pursue careers in STEM.
“The most valuable visit/workshop happened when we visited Business for kids Orphanage and gave them a hands-on hardware workshop to help them see what kind of things are inside the computer,” mentor Rebecca said. “I felt very connected to those kids… I could see hope and no fear in those young eyes.”
Panel and group discussions on women and STEM
While some mentors and fellows were leading workshops, Sheila Casey of the U.S. Department of State, moderated a panel discussion about career development and finding a job after graduation at the American Corner Astana.
Panelists included Heather Frank of LinkedIn, Mohna Dhomse of Symantec, Saura Naim of Juniper Networks and 2015 TechWomen fellow Tanzilya Yakshimbetova of OLSOFT in Uzbekistan.
.@TanzilyaYa before #TechWomen, I didn’t know #womeninSTEM. I was surprised to meet women working hard at the office and at home.#TWkz
— TechWomen (@TechWomen) March 17, 2016
Power of networking is unbelievable. Most of my jobs have been result of networking @mohnadhomse of @symantec #TWkz #USKZ25 @USembassyAstana
— TechWomen (@TechWomen) March 17, 2016
Networking reception
At the Marden Coworking Centre, the delegation met with the Youth Entrepreneurs Club in Astana and the businesswomen’s association to discuss the importance of girls pursuing education in science and technology and promoting women into leadership positions. In Ted-talk style presentations, mentors Andria Jones of Symantec, Jeannice Fairrer Samani of FSG, Rachel McGuigan of Mozilla and Teresa Zhang of SunEdison, along with 2015 fellows Poly El Hamad and Shodiya shared advice for women and men.
1 Take risks. Don’t be afraid to fail.
2 Be a champion for the women in your life. @andriajjones of @symantec #TWkz— TechWomen (@TechWomen) March 17, 2016
Educate women. Educate a nation. Impact a woman. She will impact at least another 10. @bshodiyabegim #TWkz
— TechWomen (@TechWomen) March 17, 2016
Don’t be afraid to fail bc failure will only bring you strategy to move forward. @jeannice #TWkz #USKZ25
— TechWomen (@TechWomen) March 17, 2016
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