Inaugural WoNDRS conference celebrates gender minorities in STEM at University of Liverpool
The inaugural Women and Non-Binary PhD Researchers in STEM (WoNDRS) conference was held on the 8th July 2024. Hosted in the Central Teaching Hub on the University of Liverpool campus, the event aimed to gather PhD researchers celebrate the work of gender minorities in STEM and build community for the PhD students in attendance.
The inspiration for WoNDRS came from the Conference for Undergraduate Women in Physics (CUWiP) that several of the WoNDRS organisers helped host in Liverpool in 2023. Following CUWiP, WoNDRS organiser Katie Ferraby noticed the lack of equivalent events for postgraduate students and so, alongside physics PhD student and QUASAR Group member Lauryn Eley and physics PhD student Beth Slater, built up an organising committee with representatives from multiple departments to help address this gap across STEM as a whole.
The format of the day-long agenda included six talks and a panel session, before moving to the Oliver Lodge building roof for a networking social event with drinks and ice cream. In total, there were 68 registered attendees and 18 contributors—with stands hosted by the Institute of Physics, the Royal Society of Chemistry, the School of Physical Science PGR Wellbeing Ambassadors, and local charity North West Women In STEM.
The speakers and panellists included a mix of academic and industry representatives, from companies including IBM and Rolls Royce, with a range of experiences and career stages. By showcasing and celebrating the fantastic research happening in these different environments, conference attendees were given opportunity to consider their own career paths and hear about the variety of options available following their PhD studies. In addition to careers and research, the sessions highlighted issues faced by gender minorities working in STEM and discussed strategies to manage these challenges. The panel discussion focussed on open conversation between the panellists and audience, drawing on both personal and professional topics.
Lauryn said: "The primary aim of WoNDRS was to build community within PhD researchers from minority groups to help combat the isolating experience that doing a PhD can be. The positive feedback we received from the event makes me feel like we did this effectively, and this is something I'm incredibly proud of myself and the committee for being able to create the opportunity to happen."
Lauryn Eley, Katie Ferraby, Jorge Romero and Beth Slater (from left to right) received the Leslie Green Prize. (Image credit: QUASAR Group)
In recognition of the impact of the event, organisers Katie, Lauryn, Beth and Jorge Romero on behalf of the WoNDRS 2024 Committee received the Leslie Green Prize from the Department of Physics, awarded for “outstanding contributions to improving the culture in and/or beyond the Department of Physics”.
The WoNDRS organisers would like to thank once again our sponsors, contributors and attendees for making the first WoNDRS conference so successful! The second WoNDRS conference will be hosted in 2025 with the intention of running as an annual event, so if you are interested in contributing or attending in future years, please get in touch – the organisers would love to discuss collaboration possibilities in all formats!
Event Website: https://www.liverpool.ac.uk/science-and-engineering/outreach/WoNDRS/
WoNDRS email: WoNDRS_conference@proton.me