Creative, innovative and supportive: Driving greater inclusion of women in engineering

To mark International Women’s Day 2024 and embrace the theme "Count Her In: Invest in Women. Accelerate Progress”, a panel of Monash women alumni from STEMM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics and Medicine) disciplines shared their personal experiences and explored how women can actively support each other in driving greater economic inclusion of women and girls in STEMM fields.

Georgina Catto-Smith is a water engineer who’s passionate about the social impact of engineering. In 2023 she was recognised in Out For Australia’s 30Under30 list for her work empowering LGBTQIA+ young people to be their authentic selves at work, and was nominated for the Australian Water Association's Victorian Young Water Professional of the Year.

“I think attracting more women into engineering is really a marketing issue,” Georgina said. “Engineering is often portrayed as a very technical career, but women are more likely to be drawn to it when it’s seen as a profession where they can use creativity and innovation to achieve tangible positive impacts for communities.”

Retaining women in engineering and facilitating their development and progress into leadership roles is just as important, said Georgina, and requires enlightened approaches to recruitment, flexible work practices and supportive policies.

Georgina is also a strong believer in “paying it forward” particularly through mentoring, and was an enthusiastic mentee in the inaugural cohort of Monash Engineering’s Women in Engineering Mentoring program. She encourages women in engineering to try to find mentors who not only inspire and encourage but with whom they can also be vulnerable, sharing stories and expressing concerns and frustrations.