Kate Vyvyan
A web site called Swim with Dragons? I wonder what that is about? That is exactly what we wanted young women to think. How easy to take a quick peek and then be further drawn in by the evocative home page picture. Once in, one’s natural curiosity keeps you clicking through, especially as it is primarily about people, real people, real women. Women you would not normally hear about but who are out there trying to make a difference. Lost? Or can’t relate to the profiles highlighted - there is even an opportunity to input a little about yourself and have the search facility find women to match you. There are lots of reasons to read further in the site.
Swimwithdragons.com.au is a site about Western Australian Women in Science. The core of it is a searchable database of profiles of female scientists from a host of disciplines and jobs. The profiles are constructed from questionnaires initially sent out by email to scientists listed on university web sites, through company email and association email lists. Once the web site went online it became possible for scientists to add their own profile. The site recognises leading Western Australian Women in Science from the past and present, and, women with Science backgrounds who have become leaders in other ways. The site also shows how certain example tertiary qualifications available in Western Australia can lead to many different and quite varied career paths.
The Dragons? Something intriguing to lure young women to explore the site, get them past the possibly off putting ‘Science’ label. The site is aimed at young women probably at High School who have subject and career decisions to make. The site hopes to illustrate through example the variety and wealth of jobs in Science and provide a human face, contacts and also possible role models. All the women who generously contributed their profiles and time to complete them obviously felt this was something worth contributing too. (Each icon actually has some very far fetched anagram for example Dragon and Fish are “Doing it Right Are Girls On the Net” and “Famous in Science’s House” which ultimately were only useful to myself. Vaguely the use of the Sea Dragon was because it is almost uniquely Western Australian, feminine, usually hidden, but intriguing and entrenched in its own environment.)
The web site came about because the WA Government (Women’s policy office) were offering grants for projects to celebrate the Centenary of Women’s Suffrage in Western Australia. Strong advocate for Women and Science and then CEO of Scitech Discovery Centre (WA’s interactive Science Centre) Ann Ghisalberti asked Volunteer Coordinator Melissa Booth to come up with an idea of a project and write the proposal. Melissa with the technical backing of volunteer Gihan Pereira of First Step Communications suggested a web site of contacts of Women in Science in WA, a poster to go out to schools and a launch/celebration. The grant duly won and the project grew into what you can see today. A launch was held in May 1999 and postcards, with further backing, went out to the High School girls.
There are several
by-products from the existence of this web site. There are its uses to those
other than for which it was specifically aimed, such as teachers,
career counselors, journalists and scientists. There is this database with a
wealth of information about female scientists, their interests, their
ambitions, and their outlook. I don’t know about my intended audience but
every time I read a profile I would be touched by the generosity of the
individual in contributing to an unknown but potentially vast audience a bit
of themselves. I was amazed at the science jobs out there and I was fascinated
by what these women had in common and by how they were different. I got the
impression that in many areas Science is the new Women’s work (like nursing
and teaching) and that women in many ways have the attributes and skills
suited to the jobs. But that is a whole different area of discussion….?
I hope that I have enticed you all enough to go and have a look at the site, and maybe even add your own profile (you don’t have to be Western Australian, that was just an initial focus.)
Note: as of June 2002 the website "Swimwithdragons.com.au" was not accessible.