The Centre for Advanced Photonics & Process Analysis (CAPPA) was delighted to take part in Munster Technological University (MTU) inaugural internal women’s day event on eighth of March 2021 titled “MTU Empowering Women 2021.” This virtual event aimed to encourage, inspire and support the female students, staff, alumni and wider MTU community in celebration of International Women’s Day 2021. There was over 850 virtual attendees on the day.
This year MTU wanted to incorporate a celebration of their current dynamic, diverse and inspirational female community within MTU; both students and staff alike. In this regard, they profiled a number of ‘MTU 2021 IWD AMBASSADORS’ throughout the University, with representation from as many disciplines as possible. Dr Maria Kotlyar, Dr Sharon Butler, Taynara Oliveria and Danielle Burke from CAPPA were selected to be part of the MTU brand ambassadors for the event. Each of the brand ambassadors shared their journey so far at MTU, in addition to their vision for the future and how it feels to be a female in their respective fields.
The event also highlighted the efforts of the wider MTU community in the fight against COVID-19. During this, the CAPPA centre was highlighted for their work on the MASK project. CAPPA was part of the MTU Cork SFI project titled MASK which focuses on Making Aerosol Safety Known (MASK) which conducted research into barrier masks to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic. The aim of the project was to quantitatively determine how well commonly available facemask materials suppress the transmission of exhaled droplets. Full details of the project can be found here.
CAPPA is committed to diversity in the workplace. One of the centre’s aims is to get more women involved in STEM subjects particularly physics. While there has been great advances in recent years, there is still a gender imbalance in this sector. We are working towards this imbalance at CAPPA and we currently have a 50:50 ratio of male to female PhD students in the centre.
You can see the videos from the international women’s day event here.
