Empowering Women in Science Workshop 2024: Exploring Science and Technology at Elettra Sincrotrone Trieste

01/13

On April 17th 2024, Elettra welcomed the 24 fellows winners of of the 24Th OWSD Early Career Fellowship award. The program supports outstanding early career women scientists to lead important research projects and establish research teams, in those countries which have been identified as especially lacking in scientific and technological resources. During two years of the fellowship, female researchers receive specific training to strengthen their leadership and management skills and develop connections with a variety of public and private sector partners to convert their research into marketable products or ensure its impact on a larger scale. OWSD is hosted by The World Academy of Sciences for the advancement of science in developing countries (TWAS), a UNESCO Programme based in Trieste, Italy. Part of the training program also featured a dedicated visit at Elettra Sincrotrone Trieste. After the welcome and a brief overview by Cristina Modolo of the Industrial Liaison Office, and Lara Gigli, researcher at MCX beamline, the participants toured the facility lingering on few beamlines with Elena Longo, researcher at SYRMEP, Federica Piccirilli, researcher at SISSI and Alessandra Gianoncelli, Head of the TwinMic beamline. They also visited the Protein Production Facility with Marta Semrau, researcher at the Protein Facility, and Silvia Onesti Head of the Structural Biology Laboratory, as well as the Nanoinnovation laboratory with the researcher Ana Svetic. By supporting an increasing number of Early Career fellows, OWSD is creating a network of outstanding women scientists who can provide mentorship and be role models for the next generation of women leaders in STEM. The OWSD Early Career Fellowship programme is administered by OWSD with funds generously provided by the International Development Research Centre.