Looking Back on the JKU ACM Celebration of Women in Computing 2026
by Anna Szlavi
Be the Change You Want to See!
Early June the ACM Celebration of Women in Computing went to Linz, Austria. Johannes Kepler University (JKU) hosted its first ever ACM
Celebration of Women in Computing event since the 3rd womENcourage, which was organized in Linz in 2016. After a long hiatus of ten years, the JKU ACM Celebration of Women in Computing came back to Austria, showcasing intervention projects designed and implemented by students who wanted to bring a positive change for women in computing and beyond.
This two-day celebration was opened by former ACM president and main organizer of the 3rd womENcourage, Professor Gabriele Kotsis. After the heartfelt and inspiring intro, we listened to more than 30 student projects which were meant to raise awareness about issues that hinder diversity, equity, and inclusion in the broader context of STEM, while also attempting to make a positive impact on students’ own study environments. JKU has one of the lowest representations of women in STEM in all of Austria, with 28% at the bachelor level and only 10% at the professorial level.
The elevator-pitch style presentations gave insights into intervention projects, ranging from social media campaigns through websites to workshops and treasure hunts. Although their approaches were refreshingly different, the projects all had the same goal: all of the student intervention projects were dedicated to finding ways to tackle specific challenges about gender and inclusion in STEM, from gender bias in AI and software systems through gender-based challenges in STEM leadership to the lack of relatable female role models across the field. 
The audience was impressed by the multitude of creative and collaborative solutions, which celebrated women’s achievements or called for women’s better involvement in computing and broadly STEM. As an example, one of the intervention projects was centered on a treasure hunt on the university campus, in which participants could discover the lives and achievements of women role models in different fields of science, while solving riddles and enjoying tasty rewards such as fruits or home-baked cookies. What was truly amazing about this project was students’ STEAM approach, ie. integrating art into the process of raising awareness about science. For each stand in the treasure hunt, the students designed a poster, wrote a poem, and hand-made rewards such as stickers or keychains connected to the women role model featured at that stand.
The topic of role models was recurring among the talks and projects. Studies show that having role models who are relatable to us helps overcome impostor syndrome and support the retention of minorities, such as women in computing and STEM. Some of the intervention projects created social media campaigns to raise awareness about lesser known role models, while others focused on celebrating non-linear pathways in STEM through examples of women who made it, and even others designed a website to spread the word about diverse women role models in computing, with an emphasis of intersectionality.
Although the event is over now, you can still get a glimpse of the intervention projects it showcased. You can actually listen to students themselves talk about their projects, what it meant for them and what they hoped they would achieve.
Watch this short video: Students Making an Impact in STEM
It was an inspiring event which showed that students have incredible creative power to make their environments better, transforming computing – and broadly STEM – into an inclusive place for all. We are grateful for ACM for making this possible.