Building a more equitable future: supporting women in engineering

From research and prototyping to process development and startup support, its open-access model enables rapid innovation across disciplines – from AI to quantum technologies.

However, technical advancement alone is not enough. For photonics to realise its full potential, it must also be inclusive, drawing on a diverse range of perspectives, skills, and lived experiences. Supporting women in engineering is central to that vision. This International Women in Engineering Day Q&A explores building a more equitable future for women in engineering with insights from Professor Averil Macdonald OBE (Physicist and EDI Lead), Ruth Churchill (Impact Manager), Lakshmi Sree Nath (Engagement Officer), and Pearl John (Public Engagement Leader Physics and Astronomy) at the CORNERSTONE Photonics Innovation Centre (C-PIC).

Here, they reflect on career lessons, discuss the strengths women bring to the field, and propose concrete steps for the global engineering community to better support and elevate contributions from outside the male sphere. This discussion highlights the importance of recognising diverse talents, fostering collaboration, and actively working towards a more inclusive and equitable future.

Reflecting on your journey, what is one thing you wish you had known or been told earlier in your career?

AM: I wish it had been clear to me that it’s not just all about academic qualifications, that we all have a range of talents and aptitudes that can’t be measured by exams but that we should recognise in ourselves and in others as these skills make a huge difference. For example, I’ve learnt that my tendency to have ideas to improve things and to be able to work out how to implement those ideas isn’t standard behaviour in everyone and is actually quite special. We all have special talents and aptitudes, and we need to recognise and value them.

RC: Starting out in linguistics, it never occurred to me to look for a job in engineering, let alone apply for it. I hadn't studied physics or maths and thought there were certain sectors that just wouldn't be an option. I've learned that there are so many roles in engineering – and many that need different skillsets, like mine. Don't discount opportunities based on preconceptions of where you think you should fit. You may

just end up building a great career in a job you never knew existed, in a field you had never heard of.

LSN: I wish I’d known that confidence doesn’t always come before the leap – it often follows it. I started in pharmacy and felt boxed in by that path, thinking I needed to be more qualified or ‘ready’ to move in a new direction.

But your degree doesn’t define your potential. Some of the most valuable skills – like curiosity, adaptability and empathy – aren’t on a certificate.

Growth comes from doing, asking questions, and being open to where experience takes you. That’s what led me to a fulfilling career.

PJ: You only have to do really well about 70% of the time. Don’t burn yourself out trying to do things perfectly. Otherwise: Focus! Work strategically. Get a mentor.

What unique strengths or perspectives do you believe women bring to engineering teams more often than men?

AM: I’m not sure we can generalise that women bring unique strengths or perspectives that men don’t have or vice versa. However, on a pragmatic level, women can recognise what female users of devices, gadgets, or systems need that men might overlook – this might be simple things like the fact that women have shorter arms or smaller feet.

Conversely, girls are brought up to be more collaborative (think about them playing clapping games) whereas boys are directed to be more competitive (think about them playing fighting games), so as adults, women are likely to seek a collaborative environment and identify solutions through collaboration rather than feeling the need to be the ‘star’.

LSN: Support has to be proactive, not performative. That means amplifying women’s work consistently – not just during awareness days – and making sure structures exist where women can lead, be heard, and be backed when they speak up.

Real change is built through everyday allyship and accountability.

PJ: Well, women aren’t a monolith – we are all different! But, as a minority, I think we are canaries in the coalmine – perhaps more impacted by things that aren’t being done well or fairly in an organisation. If people aren’t following rules, doing required paperwork, doing what they ought to do, or managing others poorly, we’ll notice. And perhaps try to change things. If our complaints are listened to, the company will flourish.

How can the global engineering community better support and elevate the work and contributions of women in engineering?

AM: Every opportunity should be taken to showcase women’s contributions and successes. But, more significantly, the collaborative, team-based approach should be held up as the ideal across all science and engineering disciplines. All successes, even Nobel Prizes, are the result of work in teams.

Perhaps the issue is to demonstrate that ‘group think’ that can result from homogeneous groups, whether all male or all female, is seriously damaging to science and engineering creativity and progress.

PJ: Be committed to closing the gender pay gap within the next 10 years.

As silicon photonics continues to evolve and find relevance across an expanding range of applications, supporting people to grow will be essential – because it is people who will ultimately carry the technology forward and connect it to new domains. Those at the CORNERSTONE Photonics Innovation Centre believe that creating space for, and supporting, women in engineering is not only a matter of fairness, but a prerequisite for sustaining innovation that is robust, inclusive and enduring.