Better diversity = better outcomes, better economics, better morale, and a better environment.

If the SXSW EDU conference in Austin, Texas, in early March had not been cancelled due to COVID-19 public health concerns, the U.S. Department of Energy, NASA, and the U.S. State Department would have been joining forces in an expo booth and a panel. But we didn’t want the change of plans to keep us from our conversation.

Register for the SXSW EDU virtual session now, and join us on May 19, 2pm EDT, to talk about actionable ways to engage girls in STEM (and STEAM!).

We’ll be unpacking what the Energy Department is doing to engage girls in STEM, how the State Department engages girls in STEAM globally through public-private partnerships, and how NASA's broad STEM outreach opportunities can be tailored to support girls in STEM to become the future women leading the way in STEM discoveries, policies, and careers.

At the Energy Department, we have programs to inspire girls to pursue STEM like one-day workshops, week-long summer camps, STEM competitions, and digital content like our 100+ profiles of women in STEM on www.energy.gov/women.

This year, the Energy Department partnered with Discovery Education and the American Nuclear Society to launch Navigating Nuclear, a virtual field trip experience to our Idaho National Laboratory that comes with an immersive Educator Guide. We also have scholarships, research, and internship experiences for High School, Undergrad, and Graduate women in STEM, and programs to support women in the energy workforce like the U.S. Clean Energy Education Empowerment (C3E) Initiative, and C3E International, run through the International Energy Agency and the Clean Energy Ministerial.

At NASA, the agency invests in the nation’s future workforce by providing unique STEM opportunities for students, educators, and institutions, and connecting NASA experts to learners and educators. There’s a long list of educator resources at their STEM website here, like the NASA STEM Educator’s Page and NASA STEM on Station page of lessons filmed aboard the orbiting lab.

Make sure to follow NASA on STEM social media, like their Pinterest board, Facebook page for Students, and their YouTube Channel.

And of course there’s more. The State Department’s Office of Global Partnerships host an outstanding summer experience called WiSci (Women in Science) STEAM Camps for high school girls to learn about STEAM disciplines and career opportunities, learn leadership skills from the UN Foundation’s Girl Up program, and meet experts in STEM from corporate and public sector efforts, like from the MCC agency. The State Department is also the lead agency for the Women’s Global Development & Prosperity initiative, which aims to reach 50 million women in developing nations to support their economic empowerment through entrepreneurship, workforce equity, and legal and policy improvements.  

Make sure to register today for our virtual session on May 19, 2pm ET.

Learn more about our work supporting girls and women in STEM at www.energy.gov/women