Sotira Georgiou is a Structural Engineer at Ramboll and is the Lead of Ramboll UK STEM Network as part of the Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Committee. As a passionate and enthusiastic STEM Ambassador, Sotira has an active role in inspiring the younger generation on the importance of STEM subjects.
Ramboll’s STEM network is focussed on addressing the skills shortage and diversity and inclusion agenda within the construction industry. It has a social responsibility to promote the skills needed for a sustainable career in the industry, especially to those who are currently underrepresented in it.
The network promotes the construction industry and the take-up of science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) subjects and target schools, colleges and universities as they are integral in shaping students career paths.
"The STEM network’s activities are integral in creating a gender-balanced, diverse and inclusive industry. We talk to students at an age where they are deciding their future and we make it clear that every opportunity is open to everyone."
We engage with thousands of students every year, through presentations at local schools, colleges and universities, and at national career fairs such as Big Bang, which attracted over 11,000 students alone. We promote careers in engineering and ensure that our presence, physically and through materials, represents engineering as a gender balanced, diverse and inclusive industry. Furthermore, we do tutorials for university students and help them to develop their projects.
We make sure that students interested in engineering understand that their gender identity need not impact their career and development. The STEM network’s activities are integral in creating a gender-balanced, diverse and inclusive industry. We talk to students at an age where they are deciding their future and we make it clear that every opportunity is open to everyone.
The Ramboll STEM Network currently has 50 STEM Ambassadors with an aim to promote engineering to the younger generation by giving presentations to schools, colleges and universities and share knowledge and experience from taking part in STEM activities.
The network is growing rapidly and now able to support a wide range of industry events. In September 2018, we organised the STEM network launch party to introduce the network to the company and we raised £436 for the charity Career Ready, which prepares young people for the world of work.
By 2020, the Ramboll STEM network is aiming to increase the number of STEM Ambassador days to 150. This will significantly increase the regional reach of the network, the number of events we are able to attend and, therefore, the number of individuals we are able to influence.
Find out more about STEM Ambassadors