‘Her’ strength, life without limits

With the development of the times, more and more women are not afraid to pursue their ideals in life, and they gradually break the shackles and shine in their respective fields. From ancient times to the present, women have never lacked the power and poetry of looking up at the stars. While the STEM field has been growing at a rapid rate, the level of female representation in the sector continues to be low. According to World Economic Forum (2018), women still account for 22% of STEM professionals. The figures may be weak, but they are strong and soft; There may be more challenges, but they persevere.

 Ye Shuhua, astronomer, academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, China's first female director of the Astronomical Observatory, is one of the founders of the field of astronomical geodynamics research in China. She served as Vice President of the International Astronomical Union. According to CCTV news (2022), at that time, the 80% researchers in the lab were males, while she stood out and shouldered the significant assignment. She is not only the leader of the observatory, but also the pioneer of Aerospace industry. Needless to say, she is the heroines in the field of spaceflight. Ye is also greatly concerned about women's education and women's participation in economic and social development. At the forum, she faced the world's top scientists who are almost males, voicing: "Breaking the gender 'glass ceiling' and the hammer is in every woman's hand." Today, there are growing groups of women motivated by her, setting their feet into the field of astronomy.

Ye is one of the numerous figures, having strong female role models can help address the gender imbalance and drive change, as they encourage, we girls to pursue STEM subjects at school, and later, a career in technology.

[1]     Global Gender Gap Report 2018. World Economic Forum. 2018.

[2]     My Family and My Country | Exclusive interview with Ye Shuhua, the "Mother of Time in Beijing", CCTV news, 2022,01. http://content-static.cctvnews.cctv.com/snow-book/index.html?item_id=17104697791740832072