On 11 February, CERN celebrates the International Day of Women and Girls in Science. To celebrate diversity and representation in STEM-related fields, we asked six female scientists from CERN to share their stories and their advice for the future generation of scientists.

Irene is a Spanish theoretical physicist working in the Theory department at CERN. Her research interests include string theory, theoretical cosmology and particle physics.

Sofia is a Greek accelerator physicist with a background in engineering, working at the CERN Control Centre – the nerve centre of the CERN beam systems.

Eva comes from Austria and is currently the run coordinator of the CLOUD experiment, which studies atmospheric and climate science.

Maria is a Spanish computer engineer in the IT department and a member of the steering committee of Women in Technology at CERN.

Asar is Palestinian and she’s a non-Member State doctoral student at ISOLDE, which studies the properties of atomic nuclei, with applications in fundamental studies, astrophysics and material and life sciences.

Marta is a Hungarian and Romanian engineer and leads the work package for the High-Luminosity LHC (HL-LHC) Inner Triplet String.

The Future Circular Collider (FCC) Feasibility Study has also been highlighting the essential role of women in science in a series of 12 videos featuring female scientists, from physicists tackling fundamental theoretical questions to engineers developing cutting-edge detector technologies and more. By highlighting their backgrounds, expertise and passion, this series seeks to inspire the next generation of scientists while highlighting the importance of diversity and inclusion in scientific research.

The European Intergovernmental Research Organisation Forum (EIROforum) is a consortium that unites eight of Europe’s largest intergovernmental research organisations to promote the quality and impact of European research. CERN joined EIROforum in 2001 and has since made concerted efforts to promote science education and inspire young people to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). To celebrate the International Day of Women and Girls in Science, the EIROforum members participated in the social media #PassThePhone challenge to showcase the incredible work that nine women are doing across STEM fields.

CERN is celebrating the International Day of Women and Girls in Science by shedding light on the variety of career paths for women in STEM. It is an opportunity to remind ourselves that further efforts are needed to ensure gender equality in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

In 2021, the CERN Diversity & Inclusion programme launched the “25 by ’25” strategy, an aspirational target-based initiative to boost the gender and nationality diversity of CERN’s staff and fellow population by 2025. Find out more about 25 by ’25 here.