Reflection on 2023: A Look Ahead to Another Year of Growth and Collaboration
As we bid farewell to 2023, it’s with great pride and gratitude that we reflect on the remarkable journey we’ve undertaken together. Reflecting on the past year allows us to appreciate the strides we’ve made. This year has been marked by a series of noteworthy achievements that have propelled us forward on our journey, fresh faces joined our various groups, working committees, and standing committees. Welcoming a cohort of dedicated volunteers and witnessing the expansion of our community have been pivotal moments in our journey. ACM-W Europe’s commitment to fostering an inclusive environment for women in computing was reinforced through various initiatives, including impactful talks, workshops, and scholarship programs.
As ACM-W Europe, we try our best to inspire women in Europe and create a network between them to raise awareness and share the ideas with our events. We had a number of blog series as past chairs of our events and reflections from our scholarship awardees, the history of ACM-W Europe and so on. The first Indo European ACM Celebration of Women in Computing: A Decade Celebration was virtually held on June 22, 2023. The joint anniversary celebration with ACM-W India was a highlight, symbolizing the strength of our global collaboration. We’ve successfully laid the groundwork for further expansion into regions like Africa Celebration of Women in Computing, setting the stage for a more diverse and interconnected ACM-W.
10th Anniversary of womENcourage unfolded at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) in Trondheim, Norway, from September 20 to 22, 2023. The conference was centered around the theme “Computing Connecting Everyone.” More than 250 participants graced the conference, with 67 among them being recipients of participation scholarships. Across the three eventful days, attendees engaged in a rich array of activities, including 15 workshops, a poster session featuring 50 posters, a bustling career fair hosting 11 booths, a dynamic hackathon involving over 50 participants and guided by 11 mentors, and inspiring talks delivered by keynote speakers.
We now have chapter buddies collaborating together for their future events. Our first student chapter buddies ATU ACM-W Student Chapter which is at Atlantic Technological University, Ireland, and ACM Bilkent, which is at Bilkent University, Turkey just had their first event ACM Celebration of Women in Computing, Bean Feasa, hosted by Atlantic Technological University on November 24th , 2023. We also have one professional chapter buddies which are Trondheim ACM-W and The Greek ACM-W and their work will start in 2024.
The year concluded with a workshop dedicated to our chapters, bringing together committee members from each ACM-W Europe student and professional chapter in Brussels for our inaugural in-person meeting. The primary focus of the workshop centered on strategies for organizing local celebrations and effectively promoting the presence of women in computing through such events. Twelve individuals from various countries participated in the workshop, and we anticipate expanding our community further through the events they will organize in the near future.
As we express our gratitude to every contributor, we eagerly anticipate the year ahead, where we aim to build upon our achievements and continue championing diversity and excellence in the field of computing. Thank you for being an integral part of ACM-W Europe’s success in 2023. Here’s to a future filled with even greater accomplishments and shared aspirations!
We extend our sincere appreciation to each contributor of ACM-W Europe and especially to our volunteers. 2023 was great with all of your help and we are looking forward to the upcoming year. Our goal is to further advance our achievements and persist in advocating for diversity and excellence in the field of computing. Thank you for being part of the ACM-W Europe family and for helping us to have a successful season in 2023. Cheers to the New Year!