STEM: robotics workshop held for 7th and 8th grade girls

With the aim of promoting education as a key tool for the development of the territories, Compañía Minera del Pacífico (CMP), in collaboration with the company Finning, launched the Educational Robotics Workshop aimed at 7th and 8th grade girls from different schools in the provinces of Huasco and Elqui, in the regions of Atacama and Coquimbo, respectively.

The objective of the dynamics was to strengthen skills and knowledge in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), so that from an early age they can consider new areas of professional development in the main productive industries of the country, without gender bias.

This becomes relevant in light of statistics presented by UN Women in 2020, which indicate that in Chile less than 34% of researchers are women, only 12% of female graduates specialize in careers related to Information and Communication Technologies (ICT), and 17% are engineers.

"From CMP we consider education to be a fundamental pillar to progress in this direction. Through our skills development program, in collaboration with the Alfadeca project, the Local Public Education Service and the Vinculo project, we are bringing science, engineering, technology and mathematics closer to the next generations. We want this experience to be memorable and pave the way for more women to join STEM specialties and incorporate them into their lives, so that they can achieve academic and professional development in the future," said CMP's People Manager, Carolina Lomuscio.

The workshops were carried out by the Universidad Católica del Norte, benefiting a total of 42 students between 12 and 14 years old, from schools in Huasco, Freirina, Vallenar, Domeyko and Coquimbo, who showed great interest in learning how to program the movements of a robot.

Through these trainings, the students experienced cognitive growth and acquired tools that brought them closer to scientific thinking. In addition, they had the opportunity to meet women leaders, who shared their personal experiences on professional development in the mining sector.

In parallel, the company developed the Unconscious Bias Workshop aimed at parents and teachers who are part of the participants' environment, with the purpose of supporting the promotion of a life with fewer gender gaps and stereotypes and, in turn, to understand the integral role that parents and schools have in the female impulse for STEM careers.