Best Of The Wwest

Danniele speaks with Gordana Pejic, a software engineer originally from Serbia, who immigrated to Canada to receive a masters degree in Software Systems. She fills us in on her volunteer work with the Society for Canadian Women in Science and Engineering (SCWIST), her future plans, and her exciting work developing software for autonomous vehicles. Make sure to listen for the lightning round, where she reveals what she wishes her superpower could be, and the one food she would eat for the rest of her life! Gordana Pejic received her B.Sc in Electrical Engineering from the University of Novi Sad, Serbia and her Master of Software Systems from the University of British Columbia. She works as a Software Engineer for Wenco International Mining Systems designing fleet management software for Hitachi's autonomous trucks. For a full transcription of this episode, click here. Links: Argentine Tango in Vancouver Ballard Power Systems fSONA Communications Make Possible Océ Display Graphics Systems Press release on Hit

Recently, WWEST Chairholder Dr. Lesley Shannon took a trip to the Yukon to visit women engineers who are part of an initiative called 30 by 30, a commitment made by Engineers Canada, in collaboration with the 12 provincial and territorial engineering regulators, to raise the percentage of newly licensed engineers who are women to 30% by the year 2030. Women make up more than half of the Canadian population, but are significantly under-represented in the engineering profession; less than 12% of practicing licensed engineers are women. Join Dr. Shannon as she speaks with two successful women engineers, Sandra MacDougall and Alison Anderson, in a special on-location Best of the WWEST interview in Whitehorse, YT. You'll learn some Yukon history, hear about how climate change is affecting their region, and discover the Yukon's role in the 30 by 30 initiative. For a full transcription of this episode, click here. Links: 30 by 30 Engineers Canada Engineers Yukon Highways and Public Works - Government of Yukon Min

Best of the WWEST host Danniele interviews Christiana Cheng, PhD, Research Associate at the Rick Hansen Institute. Christiana talks about her undergraduate and graduate degrees in biology at Simon Fraser University and fellowship in Japan, lets us in on the favourite parts of her field (hint: it involves a strong network between provinces and hospitals), offers advice for students of science (take your time!), parents of scientists (give your kids equal opportunities), and future scientists alike; and reveals her tips for dealing with stress. Christiana is a Research Associate at the Rick Hansen Institute where she works to improve the health of people with spinal cord injury by understanding the current status of care services for spinal cord injury, and using evidence to optimize timing and access to care. For a full transcription of this episode, click here. Links: Chinese New Year Coursera Japan Society for the Promotion of Science Journal of Neurotrauma The Rick Hansen Institute Society for Canadian Wo

Join WWEST Manager Danniele Livengood and Creating Connections 5.0 Coordinator Jenna Anderson for a re-cap of the biennial Creating Connections 5.0 conference. The conference aims to engage industry, the community, and students in BC and the Yukon to increase the regional awareness and participation of women and other under-represented groups in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM). The Creating Connections conference series hopes to facilitate meaningful dialogue, creating a space where everyone can explore and participate in STEM to better our world. In this re-cap, hear about the special guests and panel topics, and experience a mini interview with panelist Edoye Porbeni, CEO of Future Health Ventures, Inc. For a full transcription of this episode, click here. For more from Westcoast Women in Engineering, Science and Technology, you can follow us on Twitter at @WWEST_SFU, on Facebook at @WWEST.SFU, and subscribe to our biweekly newsletter at wwest.ca.

This week, we speak with Justine Munich, a PhD student in physics at Simon Fraser University who also works with the ALPHA Collaboration at CERN (the European Organization for Nuclear Research). Justine fills us in on the truth about life in academia from the perspective of a woman in STEM. She candidly tells us about her struggles, but also about her successes and proudest moments. Find out what furry friend she hangs out with in her spare time, what her favourite book is, and how her career is relating to the world at large. Justine is a PhD student in the physics department at SFU. She works with the Antihydrogen Laser Physics Apparatus (ALPHA) Collaboration, a group of about 40 scientists that is based at CERN. For a full transcription of this episode, click here. Links:   The European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) The Antihydrogen Laser Physics Apparatus (ALPHA) Collaboration David Griffiths Firebringer by David Clement-Davies (please note: this is a correction from the book mentioned in the

On the very first episode of Best of the WWEST, host Danniele talks to Cole Brown, lead front-end web developer at iamota, about how she got into web development, some of the challenges she faced breaking into the tech industry, and her secret superpowers (which include sewing, cat training, and swimming)! Cole is the lead front-end web developer at iamota, a full service digital agency recognized as one of BC’s fastest growing companies. She has worked in the industry for over 15 years, and is passionate about empowering technology users while they browse the web.  For a full transcription of this episode, click here. Links: Raised Eyebrow edX Udemy A List Apart and A Book Apart Smashing Magazine The Asexual Visibility & Education Network Chris Coyier Guest: Cole Brown (@nmebrown) Hosted by: Danniele Livengood (@livengood) Theme Music: “Positive and Fun” by Scott Holmes Produced by: Natalie Lim, Vanessa Reich-Shackelford For more from Westcoast Women in Engineering, Science and Technology, you can fol