Paula Gonzalez-Figueroa was fascinated with science from an early age. But when she began her studies to become a biomedical researcher, she was shocked by the industry's blindspot when it came to representing women. Subscribe now for unlimited access .
Login or signup to continue reading $ 0 / $ NaN /year All articles from our website & app The digital version of Today's Paper Breaking news alerts direct to your inbox Interactive Crosswords, Sudoku and Trivia All articles from the other regional websites in your area Continue That was why she dedicated her afternoon to participate in a Wikipedia "edit-a-thon". "Wikipedia is something we all rely on," Ms Gonzalez-Figueroa said. "I think it's really important to raise the profile of women so we can set these role models for girls who want to work in this space.
" Hosted by Franklin Women, an organisation that supports women entering and working in science, technology, engineering, maths and medicine, the event trained 30 women to become Wikipedia editors, or "wikimedians". Over a four hour session in the Shine Dome, women of varied ages, career stages and disciplines were trained in creating and editing profiles to boost the representation of STEMM women online. Out of all the profiles on Wikipedia, only 19 per cent of them are about women, while only 10 per cent of Wikipedia editors are women.
Franklin Women founder and medical researcher Dr Melina Georgousakis said this training was critical to resolving the sector's gender bias. "With Wikipedia [being] the world's fifth most used website any bias feeds into all the information that we use," Dr Georgousakis said. "It really skews the information that's being added, and the perspectives and experiences influencing the content online.
" Dr Georgousakis said the event was "all about recognition and increasing the visibility of the very diverse and brilliant women who contribute to our sector". The organisation was named after Dr Rosalind Franklin - a British chemist whose research was critical to the discovery of DNA and, coincidentally, whose birthday the event was held on. Along with Dr Franklin, the idea for the event was sparked in 2019 when British physicist Dr Jess Wade announced her mission to create a Wikipedia page for one woman scientist per day.
"We said let's do something about it and that year was the first Franklin Women Wikipedia edit-a-thon," Dr Georgousakis said. Frankling Women founder Dr Melina Georgousakis, hosts their annual Wikipedia Edit aThon at Shine Dome. Picture by Elesa Kurtz Thursday's event was the first in Canberra and the third in Australia.
Dr Georgousakis said the event was an example of collective impact. "We crowdsourced a list of women in our sector who should have a page, so these women would not be on this list unless someone nominated them," she said. "These women are not getting anything out of it.
They have taken half a day from their work to write pages that lifts up one of their peers. "I think that's just beautiful." Wikimedia Australia executive officer Belinda Spry said the event highlighted the diverse community behind the platform.
"While a lot of people think of Wikipedia as a technical platform, its actually made up of millions of volunteers around the world who spend their time editing," Ms Spry said. "Everyone comes along with different skills and it all helps towards building Wikipedia and adding really important information about women. "They feel like they can actually do some actions themselves to make some change.
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