International Day of Women and Girls in Science / Research today

Dübendorf, St. Gallen und Thun, 10.02.2023 - Research thrives on diversity of thought, new perspectives, talent and creativity. Empa is convinced that by involving and supporting female researchers, today's greatest challenges can be addressed and solved. To mark the International Day of Women and Girls in Science, five Empa researchers whose contributions have shaped science at the national and interna-tional level will be featured.

11 February marks the International Day of Women and Girls in Science. The initiative, estab-lished in 2015 by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), aims to encourage women and girls to consider careers in science, highlight the in-dispensable role of women in science and create role models for current and future genera-tions.

Just over a quarter of Empa's scientific staff are women, a stable proportion over the last four years - with room for improvement. "Equal opportunities are an important key to outstanding research work. We are very committed to supporting our young women and motivating them not to give up their careers, even if they start a family. For the future, we are keen to enable more women to take up leadership positions," states Empa director Tanja Zimmermann. "Empa has taken numerous measures to increase the proportion of women. Programs such as Fix the leaky Pipeline or the mentoring program feM-LEAD, as well as the support of employees return-ing after parental leave through the Restart Support are part of this. It is a pleasure to witness so many motivated women at Empa; they are a great role model for future scientists," says Me-lina Spycher, Diversity and Inclusion expert at Empa, Eawag and the Paul Scherrer Institute (PSI).

Miriam Elser, Automotive Powertrain Technologies laboratory

Throughout her career, researcher Miriam Elser has been encouraged to pursue her passion for scien-tific subjects. Today she heads the Vehicle Systems Research Group at Empa.

What do you like most about your work?
Above all I have always liked the versatility of my work; every day is different and filled with many interesting tasks: planning new projects, performing experiments, giving talks, etc. Of course there are also tasks that I like less, such as administrative work, but these are outweighed by the interesting activities.

Who inspired you to pursue a career in science?
I always liked science subjects at school, but it wasn't clear to me what career prospects they could open up for me, and this caused quite a bit of anxiety at the age of 17 when I had to de-cide on a course of study. However, my parents strongly encouraged me to pursue a major that I liked, regardless of its career prospects. So I decided to study physics, and after a PhD in air pollution, I am now leading a research group in an engineering field, something I certainly would not have imagined as a 17-year-old. But I can say with great pleasure that I have enjoyed this journey so far, and I am looking forward to the future.

What advice would you give to young women/girls?
Science jobs are creative and exciting, can be very rewarding and give you a lot of freedom to choose your research and career path. This is because the skills and knowledge you develop in the process can take you in many different directions. Working will likely be a large part of your life, so find something that you really enjoy without being limited by the system, society or oth-er preconceptions.

What are you most proud of in your work?
I am proud that our research can contribute to mitigating the environmental and energy im-pacts of road traffic, improving people's quality of life and preventing premature deaths caused by air pollution.

Amy Jenelle Knorpp, High Performance Ceramics laboratory

Empa Young Scientist Fellow Amy Jenelle Knorpp is enthusiastic about high-entropy materials. These novel materials remain stable at extremely high temperatures and can be used for energy storage, for example.

Why would you encourage girls and young women to work in science?
The many challenges that our society faces currently will require creative and holistic scientific and engineering solutions. This is an exciting time to be a part of science, and one where someone can have an important impact.

What do you particularly like about your work?
I particularly like that I get to work and collaborate with experts with similar curiosity for scien-tific research.

Who inspired you to pursue a career in science?
My father always encouraged me to ask why or how something worked, and he showed me that the discovery of understanding the world around us was a fun and exciting adventure. This en-couragement naturally led me to be a scientist.

What advice would you give to young women/girls?
As a mom to a baby girl, I hope that I can advise her to follow her passions and keep in per-spective how best to positively impact the world.

What are you particularly proud of in your work?
I am particularly proud of working with novel materials and engineering them for meaningful use in net-zero applications.

Manon Murdeu, Particles-Biology Interactions laboratory

Research in women's health is close to Manon Murdeu's heart. She is currently working on developing tests for embryotoxicity without the need for animal testing.

Why would you encourage girls and young women to work in science?
To actively take part in the change, to inspire and demonstrate to young women that science is not about gender but about minds, that our words and actions have a value. To explore new possibilities and break old walls that were built under prejudices. And not least, as a personal gratification to help the community – and society – by trying to answer some unsolved ques-tions.

What do you particularly like about your work?
I can directly contribute to research regarding women's health by being part of an open-minded community, which allows me to acquire new knowledge to create a strong foundation for future scientific breakthroughs.

Who inspired you to pursue a career in science?
Since I was small I wanted to be a researcher, to be the Rita Levi Montalcini* of my time – not because of the Nobel Prize, but because of the impact she had on both society and the scien-tific community. Also, I was inspired by my family. And although they didn't work in a scientific environment, they inspired me to not be afraid to try new things and encouraged me to be cu-rious and discover the unknown.

What advice would you give to young women/girls?
Get out of your comfort zone, try new things, be curious and don't be afraid to share your thoughts and ideas. You will be surprised of how a few words or a small action can change the world around us.

What are you particularly proud of in your work?
I am directly involved in women's health research and I can contribute to improving women's quality of life. I can meet and create connections with people of different backgrounds with the common goal to find solutions for a better world. I am proud of being able to talk about what is considered a taboo and try to break the barrier between science and society. Starting from my "bubble", my work and its results can expand further and create awareness of the possibilities and the power their ideas can have.

* Rita Levi Montalcini (*1909, †2012) was an Italian-born physician and neurobiologist. In 1986, she was awarded the Nobel Prize in Medicine and Physiology, together with the American biochemist Stanley Cohen, for her discoveries of important principles in neuroscience and of the nerve growth factor NGF. Montalcini was considered an icon at the time when there were almost no women in re-search.

Kerstin Thorwarth, Coating Competence Center

Researcher Kerstin Thorwarth deveoped a smart drill for cochlear implants, which are inserted into the inner ear of a hearing-impaired person.

Why would you encourage girls and young women to work in science?
Working in science is incredibly multifaceted – unfortunately, you often don't realize what op-portunities are open to you until you're a student. Successful research requires creativity, imagi-nation and teamwork – and has nothing to do with the image of the lonely nerd that unfortu-nately still persists in people's minds.

What do you particularly like about your work?
The teamwork and the international, open and creative environment is very enriching. Without this, successful research is not possible.

Who inspired you to pursue a scientific career?
My physics teacher certainly played a major role at the time. He was an enthusiastic amateur as-tronomer and offered additional courses such as astronomy and chaos theory. He shared his enthusiasm for science with us and didn't teach physics as a purely academic subject. Physics is embedded everywhere.

What advice would you give to young women/girls?
It is important to get involved with new things and not to be deterred by apparent hurdles. The image of the lonely nerd is just plain wrong!

Antonia Neels, Center for X-Ray Analytics

Researcher Antonia Neels heads the Center for X-Ray Analytics. Her material samples, called "metal-lic glasses," were studied in microgravity on the International Space Station (ISS).

Why would you encourage girls and young women to work in science?
Science is exciting and innovative every day. Stick with it after your Master's degree and make your ideas a reality!

What do you like most about your work?
I am involved in analytical research, which is indispensable for innovations in materials science. Materials science, in turn, is enormously called on today to meet the challenges of our time in terms of environment, energy and health. It is extremely rewarding for me to work on solving these issues.

Who inspired you to pursue a career in science?
First of all, my family: my father is a chemist, my grandfather was a crystallographer. Then my teachers at school, who encouraged my scientific inclinations. Later, after my chemistry studies, my mentors at the University of Neuchâtel, CSEM and Empa motivated me enormously.

What advice would you give to young women/girls?
Stay on top of your game, pursue your goals and get advice, support and inspiration from fami-ly, friends and your professional environment!

What are you most proud of in your work?
I am particularly proud of a strong team and an open, stimulating scientific exchange.

Address for enquiries

Miriam Elser
Automotive Powertrain Technologies
Phone +41 58 765 47 74
miriam.elser@empa.ch

Amy Jenelle Knorpp
High Performance Ceramics
Phone +41 58 765 60 33
amy.knorpp@empa.ch

Manon Murdeu
Particles-Biology Interactions Lab
Phone +41 58 765 70 37
manon.murdeu@empa.ch

Kerstin Thorwarth
Surface Science and Coating Technologies
Phone +41 58 765 45 47
kerstin.thorwarth@empa.ch

Antonia Neels
Center for X-ray Analytics
Phone +41 58 765 45 07
antonia.neels@empa.ch