At Pioneers we’re conscious of some of the ongoing imbalances inherent in the world of tech innovation. This is the inspiration behind the Diversity in Tech initiative, which will aim to inspire the broader tech innovation community across three key verticals: Access, Community and Education.
The first pillar of the initiative, Education, aims to inform a wider audience about the challenges increasing diversity. As part of this drive we’re pleased that Jordan Axt of Project Implicit, a non-profit based at Harvard University, will be running a workshop that draws on Project Implicit’s particular specialities, entitled What to do about your unconscious bias and addressing diversity in your workplace.
Access is essentially about removing barriers for those with diverse backgrounds. That’s why we’ll be giving free tickets to Pioneers’18 (May 24th-25th) to selected individuals who have overcome diversity to get to where they are today.
It could be those with the right skills to become founders and who could get just the necessary push from exposure to the inspiration, networking and opportunities on offer at our flagship event. The passes might also go to those who narrowly missed out on this year’s Pioneers500 program, but deserve the chance to be inspired because they have the potential to make it in years to come.
The Access opportunities will be distributed through the communities around our Diversity Networking Partners. These include Techfugees, The Entrepreneurial Refugee Network (TERN) and Refugees{code}, all of whom focus on bringing refugees into tech innovation. We’ll also be working with PwC’s Scale | Female Founders, StartHer and Female Founders, which specialize in bringing more women into the tech space. Finally, there’s WisR, which helps retired or elderly people gain inclusion in the tech ecosystem.
Our Community focus entails building a network and facilitating connections around the topic of diversity. We’ll host a Diversity in Tech breakfast, co-hosted by Female Founders, at the Hofburg on the first morning of the Pioneers’18. The 50 recipients of the Diversity in Tech tickets are invited to come together and share stories about overcoming diversity to achieve success in tech, participate in an educational workshop and make valuable contacts.
Returning to education, we’re not forgetting the next generation of tech pioneers at Pioneers’18 either. So we’re excited to welcome Robo Wunderkind’s workshops to the Hofburg for the first time. Running on both afternoons, these 60-minute sessions are specifically designed for kids between five and 12 to create real, functioning robots out of building blocks whilst learning to code.
“We’re boosting the kids’ imaginations and providing them with exciting and immersive tech experiences,” says Robo Wunderkind CEO Anna Iarotska. “Forget flimsy constructions and long, boring manuals – our modular robots can easily be snapped together in a few minutes.This leaves the kids more time and space to embark on the exciting adventure of coding and robotics!”
Are you the parent of a budding pioneer? If you already have your Pioneers’18 ticket you can sign up your kids for the workshops via our Side Events page here.
Meanwhile at GovTech.Pioneers, which goes ahead one day before Pioneers’18, Gapsquare co-founder Zara Nanu will bring her profound diversity insights to the main stage.
Nanu has 10 years worth of experience in driving positive change for women, having established Gapsquare to increase women’s engagement in the economy and tech. Her company aims to close the gender pay gap by bringing together technology, diversity and inclusion experience.
She will take part in the Lessons Learnt From Dealing With Governments panel discussion after lunch at GovTech.Pioneers. Joining her in the chat will be Nitika Agarwal from Apolitical, Chris Jagers from Learning Machine and Fotis Talantzis of novoville.
Read more about Pioneers’18 and GovTech.Pioneers here.
