Arrow Electronics Supports Robotics Design Challenge To Attract More Young Women To STEM
CENTENNIAL, Colo., February 7, 2024 /3BL/ - To help reduce the digital gender gap in Europe, Arrow Electronics teamed with Girls Go Circular’s Women and Girls in STEM Forum to fund a Green Robot Challenge. The event, held in Brussels, attracted 270 school-aged girls from across Europe, comprising a total of 90 teams from 19 countries.
A team from Malta won the competition for developing an eco-friendly robot that removes carbon dioxide from the air using the process of enhanced weathering, an effective way of decreasing greenhouse gases to mitigate the impact of climate change. Selected by a combined public and jury vote, the winning team earned an entry into the FIRST Tech Challenge Benelux Scrimmage in late February.
“We believe these learning opportunities play a critical role in cultivating female STEM leaders in the communities we serve,” said Christina Frantz, director of corporate affairs of Arrow. “Girls Go Circular is on the front lines of this effort, and we are proud to support the program’s work.”
Arrow helped connect GirlsGoCircular with FIRST Robotics, an Arrow STEM partner, which hosts international engineering events that tasks teams with building and programming industrial-size robots. Alumni of FIRST programs gain access to exclusive scholarships, internships and other opportunities that create connections and open pathways to a wide variety of careers.
The Women and Girls in STEM Forum gathered over 1,200 policymakers, industry leaders, students, and educators together to champion gender equality in STEM and information and communications technology (ICT).
Arrow invests in programs globally that expand access to STEM education for girls, with an emphasis on instilling confidence and leadership skills. Facilitated by the European Commission and the European Institute of Innovation and Technology, Girls Go Circular equipped nearly 40,000 schoolgirls aged 14-19 throughout Europe with digital and entrepreneurial skills. The initiative aims to reach out to thousands more young girls, empowering them to embrace STEM and ICT studies and careers.
About Arrow Electronics
Arrow Electronics guides innovation forward for over 220,000 leading technology manufacturers and service providers. With 2022 sales of $37.1 billion, Arrow develops technology solutions that help improve business and daily life. Learn more at arrow.com.
About EIT RawMaterials
EIT RawMaterials is the leading European raw materials partnership established in 2015 to advance Europe’s transition into a sustainable economy. It is EIT RawMaterials’ mission to secure a sustainable raw materials supply for Europe, close materials loops and design products solutions to ultimately develop raw materials into a major strength for Europe by driving innovation, education and entrepreneurship. EIT RawMaterials is also the largest network in the raw materials sector worldwide with over 300 members across the entire raw materials value chain. EIT RawMaterials is one of the nine innovation communities supported by the European Institute of Innovation and Technology, a body of the European Union.
About Girls Go Circular
Girls Go Circular is an EU-funded education programme that equips girls aged 14-19 across Europe with digital and entrepreneurial skills through an online learning platform on the circular economy. Girls Go Circular supports closing the gender gap in STEM and ICT by empowering girls to become agents of change in the digital and green transition. Thus, the programme contributes to gender equality policy objectives, specifically the Digital Education Action Plan 2021-2027 (Action 13) and the New European Innovation Agenda. Girls Go Circular is coordinated by EIT RawMaterials and supported by the education community within the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) and the Directorate-General for Education, Youth, Sport, and Culture (DG EAC).
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