Official Blog
Insights from Googlers into our products, technology, and the Google culture
Connect. Create. Celebrate women in technology.
March 7, 2015
Ask Liz Liao what accomplishment she’s most proud of, and she’ll tell you it’s not her master’s degree in robotics from Carnegie Mellon University, her numerous published articles, or even the autonomous industrial robot she helped develop as a senior software engineer at Seegrid. Nope—according to Liz, her greatest achievement is co-founding
Girl Develop It Minneapolis
, a chapter in the national non-profit
Girl Develop It
, which provides hands-on programs and a network of support to women interested in learning web and software development.
3D imaging from the industrial robot, designed and built by Liz and her team
Source:
“Seegrid Vision Guided Vehicle: Pallet Truck”
Liz often remembers being the only woman engineer on her team, but it wasn’t until she moved to a new city and spent more time working remotely that she began to feel isolated—and realized how important it was for her to have a community of like-minded people to connect with. She started volunteering with a few local organizations and started the local Girl Develop It chapter in 2014. In just seven months, her chapter has more than 500 members and Liz has found a network of people she can connect to.
There are many women like Liz who never find that sense of community and instead end up leaving tech permanently. Not only does that mean our industry is less diverse than it should be, but it also leads to less innovative products. That’s why it’s so important for Google to do our part in creating environments, programs and policies that help women in technology thrive. We’ve partnered with organizations like
Girl Develop It
,
Women Who Code
,
Anita Borg Institute
and the
National Center for Women & Information Technology
to create a more supportive environment for women in tech. And this International Women’s Day, we’re building on our efforts to empower women to become makers of technology. Here’s a look at what we’re up to:
Women Techmakers
Last year, Google started our Women Techmakers program to provide visibility, resources and a community for women in technology worldwide. This month we kicked off our second annual
Women Techmakers Global Event Series
, and we encourage you to attend an event to meet incredible women from around the world who are leading the technology industry. Create the future of wearables at a summit or from home with a brand new
Android Wear Watch Face Codelab
, and engage with the community using our hashtag #WTM15. For event highlights, photos and more check out Women Techmakers on
Twitter
and
YouTube
.
Share your wisdom with a #DearMe video letter
For many young girls, the path to finding themselves is filled with uncertainty. It’s hard to figure out what you want to do or who you want to be when you’re dealing with gossip, self-doubt and pressure from all sides. As part of our International Women’s Day celebration, we’re encouraging you to think back on the advice you wish you’d gotten when you were a young, and to share those words of wisdom with today’s teenage girls. Submit a video letter on YouTube tagged with #DearMe telling your younger self what you wish someone had told you. We’re looking forward to what you have to say.
A Doodle honoring women who transform the world
Finally, we couldn’t let International Women’s Day pass without a Doodle. So our homepage today celebrates the many ways women scientists, engineers, athletes, doctors, artists, explorers and more are changing the world.
Happy International Women’s Day!
Posted by Pavni Diwanji, VP of Engineering
Labels
accessibility
41
acquisition
26
ads
131
Africa
19
Android
59
apps
419
April 1
4
Asia
39
books + book search
48
commerce
12
computing history
7
crisis response
33
culture
12
developers
120
diversity
35
doodles
68
education and research
144
entrepreneurs at Google
14
Europe
46
faster web
16
free expression
61
google.org
73
googleplus
50
googlers and culture
203
green
102
Latin America
18
maps and earth
194
mobile
125
online safety
19
open source
19
photos
39
policy and issues
139
politics
71
privacy
66
recruiting and hiring
32
scholarships
31
search
505
search quality
24
search trends
118
security
36
small business
31
user experience and usability
41
youtube and video
140
Archive
2016
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2015
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2014
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2013
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2012
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2011
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2010
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2009
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2008
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2007
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2006
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2005
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2004
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Feed
Google
on
Follow @google
Follow
Give us feedback in our
Product Forums
.
Follow
