DLI, EU Women20 promote Digital Equity for SDGs

On 5 May 2022 online, the Brussels-based Digital Leadership Institute and EU Women20 Delegation to the G20 jointly organized an official side-event of the UN Science, Technology and Innovation Forum on the SDGs (“STI Forum”), on the topic of “Digital Equity for Women’s Economic Agency.” The event addressed the intersecting priorities of closing the gender digital divide and promoting women’s financial independence as economic actors—namely as entrepreneurs, experts and leaders in critical STEM sectors, especially Technology—as an explicit objective of international development policy and as the surest path to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. 

Key recommendations gleaned from the gathering include the following:

  1. Prioritize development funding and programs with an explicit focus on closing the digital gender divide — i.e. through digital skills programs and actions to increase access to and use of technology and infrastructure, for girl and women beneficiaries;
  2. Prioritize development funding and programs with an explicit focus on increasing women’s economic agency through technology, e.g. by supporting women as entrepreneurs in tech-driven and tech-enabled startup, and through paid apprenticeship programs with job placement for women in emerging technology fields such as AI, cybersecurity, big data, machine learning, etc.;
  3. Increase capacity-building for the fore-mentioned activities by supporting best practice-sharing, networking building and by promoting opportunities to replicate and scale successful regional programs tackling “digital equity and women’s economic agency” in all directions and across global geographies (North-South, South-North, North-North, South-South);
  4. Increase structural support and promote a healthy ecosystem that supports women as independent economic actors by addressing underlying inequities women face as entrepreneurs and as leaders in digital fields, including by: i) setting ambitious gender-specific development program goals for reach, participation and program success; ii) collecting and sharing gender- and sex-disaggregated program data; iii) ear-marking development funds with the specific mission to close the gender digital gap for women’s economic empowerment;
  5. Take concrete action to ensure women’s equal access to and use of: i) Digital/ICT training programs and related resources, including acceleration, incubation and (IT) leadership-training programs; ii) entrepreneurship finance and investment, especially venture capital, and other resources (mentorship, coaching, financial literacy); and iii) distribution channels and supply chains, including for international trade and e-commerce, with specific targets for women’s equal participation in public sector procurement;
  6. Build and deploy programs that specifically focus on increasing technology leadership–as entrepreneurs, experts and leaders–by mature women, women in transition, migrant women and women living in rural areas.

Panel interventions reflected a broad and ambitious spectrum of key voices promoting Digital Equity and Women’s Economic Agency from around the world, including:

The Digital Equity event was streamed live on the STI Forum platform and DLI YouTube channel, and joined remotely by virtual participants. It took the form of a panel discussion moderated by Cheryl Miller, DLI Director and Co-head of EU G20 Women20 Delegation, with support from Loredana Bucseneanu, DLI Development Director, and key G20 Women20 partners including: Katharina Miller, Co-head of EU Delegation; Tamara Dancheva, EU Delegate; and Virginia Littlejohn, Co-head of US Delegation. 

A video of the event is available here (Passcode: FaPH3Yf), and inquiries about this and future events may be directed to DLI

DLI Update – Fall 2021

The DLI Board are actively involved in outreach activities with partners and stakeholders around the world that promote ESTEAM* leadership by girls and women. Find out more below about our outreach activities in Fall 2021, and for upcoming events by DLI and our partners please visit here, and have a look at our calendar.

*Entrepreneurship and Art powered by Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics

14 September – UNIDO Women and Modern Technologies Event (Online): Cheryl Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director,  contributed to a webinar organized by the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), entitled Women and modern technologies in restoring sustainability and building resilience in the aftermath of the COVID-19 crisis, which took place online on 14 September 2021. Outcomes of the webinar will be shared at the Multi-stakeholder global dialogue on emerging opportunities for women in the digital age, at the third Eurasian Women’s Forum (EAWF), on 15 October 2021 in St. Petersburg.


14-15 September – ICT Spring (Luxembourg & Online): On 14 September 2021, Cheryl Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director,  provided a keynote presentation on the subject of A Digital Spring for Women Entrepreneurs, as part of the annual ICT Spring event, taking place 14-15 September in Luxembourg and online. Complementary passes for this event may be found here.


29 September – W Closing Event (Finland & Online): DLI Founding Director, Cheryl Miller Van Dÿck, gave a keynote presentation at the closing event of the W-Power project, empowering women entrepreneurs in sparsely populated communities, taking place online on 29 September 2021 .


7 October – WEgate Summit (Brussels & Online): On 7 October, Cheryl Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director, contributed to a high-level breakfast briefing at the annual WEgate Summit, on the subject of WE are the Next Generation, taking place in Brussels and online.


19-22 October – Global Marketing Summit (Online): 19-22 October 2021, Cheryl Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director, gave a keynote presentation at the Global Marketing Summit 2021, which took place online for an audience of over 5000 participants, on the subject of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion: Building Forward Better.


27 October – Fondation Lance d’Afrique Burundi (Online): Cheryl Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director,  joined Fondation-LAB Summit on Social Enterprise for Economic Empowerment: An African Woman’s Perspective, where she provided a keynote presentation on the topic of Building Forward Better: Women, Technology & Entrepreneurship.


30-31 October – G20 Summit (Rome & Online): On 30-31 October 2021, Cheryl Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director,  joined the 2021 G20 Summit in Rome as Head of the EU W20 Delegation and Co-chair of the Digital Working Group for Women20 Italia 2021, the women’s stakeholder engagement group to the 2021 G20 meetings in Italy.


Be sure to visit our Calendar and Outreach Activities page to keep up with DLI events and activities! You can also and sign up for the DLI Newsletter and follow us on Facebook, Twitter & Instagram!

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DLI Update – Spring 2021

The DLI Board are actively involved in outreach activities with partners and stakeholders around the world that promote ESTEAM* leadership by girls and women. Find out more below about our outreach activities in Spring 2021, including election of DLI Director, Cheryl Miller Van Dÿck as new WEP Chairwoman and President. For upcoming activities by DLI and its partners please visit here, and have a look at our calendar for events organised by DLI.

*Entrepreneurship and Art powered by Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics


12 April – WEgate Community Advisory Council (Online): On 12 April, Cheryl Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director, was invited to an online meeting of the Community Advisory Council for the WEgate project, in order to matters of advocacy, the campaign for Women’s Entrepreneurship Day, and other issues central to promoting women-led entrepreneurship in Europe and beyond.


29 April – WEP General Assembly (Online): DLI Founding Director, Cheryl Miller Van Dÿck, joined the annual General Assembly of the Women Entrepreneurship Platform (WEP) as member of the WEP Board of Directors. At this meeting, Ms. Miller Van Dÿck was elected new WEP Chairwoman of the board.


7 May – EU Women20 Delegation Meeting (online): On 7 May, the EU Delegation of the Women20, women’s stakeholder engagement group to the G7/G20, gathered online for their monthly meetings in preparation of the 2021 G20 meetings in Italy. As Head of Delegation, Cheryl Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director, chaired this gathering of the 2021 EU delegation.


11 May – Italian G20 Women20 Heads of Delegation Meeting (Online): On 11 May, DLI Founding Director, Cheryl Miller Van Dÿck, joined a meeting of the Heads of Delegation for Women20 Italia 2021, the women’s stakeholder engagement group to the 2021 G20 meetings in Italy. Ms. Miller Van Dÿck participated in the meeting as Head of the EU W20 Delegation.


11 May – Delphi Economic Forum VI (Athens & Online): DLI Founding Director, Cheryl Miller Van Dÿck, joined a panel on the topic of “Female Entrepreneurship & the Financing Gap” at the Delphi Economic Forum VI, that took place in Athens and online 10-15 May 2021.


28 May – G20 Women20 Italy Plenary Meeting (Online): On 28 May, DLI Founding Director, Cheryl Miller Van Dÿck, joined a Plenary meeting of Women20 Italia 2021, the women’s stakeholder engagement group to the 2021 G20 meetings in Italy. Ms. Miller Van Dÿck participated in the meeting as Head of the EU W20 Delegation and Co-chair of the W20 Italy Digital Working Group.


Be sure to visit our Calendar and Outreach Activities page to keep up with DLI events and activities! You can also and sign up for the DLI Newsletter and follow us on Facebook, Twitter & Instagram!

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DLI Announces New EU Projects

DLI and partners of the ATHENA consortium have been awarded program funding from the EU Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund (AMIF) in order to support women of migrant backgrounds across Europe to take up entrepreneurship. Partners to the ATHENA (“Approaches To valorise the High ENtrepreneuriAl potential of migrant women”) project, which will launch in January 2021, include the following:

DLI has also been awarded Erasmus+ funding to lead the WE4Change (“Girls and Women connecting for environmental change”) project, with the mission of increasing entrepreneurship in STEM fields by girls and women through climate change activism. Members of the WE4Change project include the following organisations:

The DLI team is excited to take up these new projects that support our mission to increase entrepreneurship by girls and women, especially in science and technology fields, in 2021!

DLI Update – Winter 2020

The DLI Board are actively involved in outreach activities with partners and stakeholders around the world that promote ESTEAM* leadership by girls and women. Find out more about our outreach activities in Winter 2020-21 below, including the WEgate Summit on women’s enterpreneurship at which our Director contributed to a Call to Action on tech entrepreneurship by women. For upcoming activities by DLI and its partners please visit here, and have a look at our calendar for events organised by DLI.

*STEM powered by Entrepreneurship and Arts

3 November – WEgate Community Council Meeting (Online): On 3 November, the WEgate project launched its Community Council with participation by Che Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director, as a member of the advisory organization supporting implementation of the WEgate project promoting women-led entrepreneurship in Europe.


30 November – WEP Board of Directors Meeting (Online): DLI Founding Director, Che Miller Van Dÿck, joined the quarterly Board of Directors meeting of the Women Entrepreneurship Platform, taking place on 30 November online.


3 December – MIF+ Project Meeting (Online): On 3 December, Katja Legisa, DLI Entrepreneurship Director, joined a project meeting for MoveItForwardPlus (MIF+), an EU ERASMUS+ project promoting uptake of digital and entrepreneurship skills among women, of which DLI is a member.


10 December – WEgate Summit (Online): On 10 December, the WEgate project organised its first summit on “A New Vision for Women Entrepreneurs in Europe,” with support from Loredana Bucseneanu, DLI Development Director. Che Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director, also contributed to a “Call for Action” series on topics of EU policy, financial inclusion, and digital transformation priorities for women in entrepreneurship.


10 December – R&I PEERS Project Meeting (Online): On 10 December, Katja Legisa, DLI Entrepreneurship Director, joined a project meeting of R&I PEERS, an EU Horizon 2020 project promoting “pilot experiences for improving gender equality in research organisations,” of which DLI is a member.


17 December – Leadership as A Vehicle for Youth Participation (Online): On 17 December, Katja Legisa, DLI Entrepreneurship Director, gave a presentation on DLI’s Move It Forward program as part of an online training on the subject of “Leadership as a Vehicle for Youth Participation,” hosted by the Youth Board of Cyprus.


21 December – WEP Board Meeting and General Assembly (Online): On 21 December, Che Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director, joined the annual General Assembly and a meeting of the Board of Directors of the Women Entrepreneurship Platform taking place online.


Be sure to visit our Calendar and Outreach Activities page to keep up with DLI events and activities! You can also and sign up for the DLI Newsletter and follow us on Facebook, Twitter & Instagram!

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DLI Update – Autumn 2020

The DLI Board are actively involved in outreach activities with partners and stakeholders around the world that promote ESTEAM* leadership by girls and women. Find out more about our outreach activities in Autumn 2020 below, including an awesome high-level panel on global best practices for women’s enterpreneurship which took place as part of the Women20 event of the 2020 G20 meetings in Saudi Arabia. Please visit our calendar for events organised by DLI.

*STEM powered by Entrepreneurship and Arts


19 August – AWS Cloud Ambassador Quarterly Meeting (Online): On 19 August, Che Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director,  joined an online meeting of the 2020 global cohort of AWS Cloud Ambassadors.


16 September – European Digital Academy Strategic Seminar (Online): On 16 September, Che Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director and Loredana Bucseneanu, DLI Director of Development, contributed to a strategic seminar to scope and define the work of the forthcoming European Digital Academy, a European Project project led by European SchoolNet, the association of European Ministries of Education.


6 October – SHERPA Project Stakeholder Board Meeting (Online): On 6 October 2020, Che Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director, joined the second annual meeting of the SHERPA Stakeholder Board Meeting, taking place online. The mission of the SHERPA Project is to analyse how AI and big data analytics impact ethics and human rights


20-22 October – W20 Saudi Arabia Meetings (Online and in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia): On 20-22 October, Che Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director, contributed to the W20 Saudi Arabia 2020 meetings of the G20 Saudi Arabia 2020 process, as EU delegation member, expert to the Digital Inclusion Working Group, and Co-chair of the Digital Entrepreneurship task force of the Women’s Entrepreneurship WG. On 21 October, Che also contributed to a Women20 panel on best practices supporting Women’s Entrepreneurship on the topic of Digital Inclusion.


Be sure to visit our Calendar and Outreach Activities page to keep up with DLI events and activities! You can also and sign up for the DLI Newsletter and follow us on Facebook, Twitter & Instagram!

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DLI Update Summer 2020

The DLI Board are actively involved in outreach activities with partners and stakeholders around the world that promote ESTEAM* leadership by girls and women. Find out more about our outreach activities of Summer 2020 below, and please visit our calendar for events organised by DLI, many of which are still going forward, if with a slight delay, online.

*STEM powered by Entrepreneurship and Arts


28 May – AWS Cloud Ambassador Quarterly Meeting (Online): On 28 May, Che Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director, joined an online meeting of the 2020 global cohort of AWS Cloud Ambassadors.


28 May – “Women and Tech: Key Solutions Beyond the Crisis” at Brussels Women Code Festival (Online): On 28 May, Loredana Bucseneanu, DLI Development Director, and Katja Legisa, DLI Entrepreneurship Director, joined an online panel discussion on “Women and Tech: Key Solutions Beyond the Crisis,” as part of the third annual Brussels Women Code Festival. In the meeting, they also presented DLI’s new Cloud Angels study group for “women starters in the cloud,” launching Summer 2020.


28 May – “Women Leading in the Digital Age” with IE Law School  (Online):   At the invitation of the IE Law School Compliance Club in Madrid, Che Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director, presented the subject of “Women Leading in the Digital Age” – addressing risks related to low participation of women in digital sectors, areas that require urgent action, and effective approaches for improving the situation on 28 May at 18:00CET online.


8 June – Digital SME Live: Women in Cybersecurity (Online): On 8 June at 14:00CET, Che Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director,  joined an online panel discussing “Untapped Potential: Women in Cybersecurity,” hosted by the European Digital SME Alliance.


22-23 June – Italian Tech Week (Online):   At the invitation of the Turin Chamber of Commerce Women in Business Committee, Che Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director, participated in an online fireside chat with Carla Bertuzzi on the subject of “digital skills for girls.” The discussion took place in the context of several activities promoting Girls in STEM and women-led entrepreneurship as part of Italian Tech Week on 22 and 23 June.


6-8 July – Chatham House Gender & Growth Forum (London):  DLI Founding Director, Che Miller Van Dÿck, joined the Chatham House Gender & Growth Forum in London on 6-7 July, followed by a one-day round-table hosted by the W20 Saudi Arabia 2020 Secretariat to the G20 2020 meetings


8 July – Virtual Café on “Empowering Women Entrepreneurs to Drive Economic Growth”: On 8 July, Che Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director, joined a Virtual Café hosted by the UN Women WE EMPOWER programme, in order to connect with women’s business associations across the G7 and EU. The information shared will be used to inform an advocacy tool on women’s entrepreneurship.


10 July – Digital Economy & E-commerce Solutions (Online): As part of a week-long WE EMPOWER program on “Empowering Women Entrepreneurs to Drive Economic Growth,” Che Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director, facilitated an online discussion on “Digital Economy and E-commerce Solutions” at 12:00 EST on 10 July.


16 July – WE EMPOWER (UN Women & G7) “Skills Development amid COVID-19: Have Your Say” Panel (Online): In celebration of World Youth Skills Day, to celebrate the strategic importance of equipping young people with skills for employment, decent work and entrepreneurship, Che Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director, joined an online panel hosted by the WE EMPOWER program of UN Women and G7, that showcased public and private sectors’ roles in facilitating young and prospective employees’ access to the skills required in the digital economy.


8 August – Project CS GIRLS 2020 Gala Panel (Online): On 8 August, Che Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director, joined an online “Women in Tech” panel celebrating the 2020 cohort of the ProjectCSGIRLS Competition for Middle School Girls, the oldest and largest computer science competition for middle school girls in the United States.


Be sure to visit our Calendar and Outreach Activities page to keep up with DLI events and activities! You can also and sign up for the DLI Newsletter and follow us on Facebook, Twitter & Instagram!

DLI Update Spring 2020

2020 has been an extraordinary year for everyone, and the DLI team is no exception. The year started off routinely enough, but then activity around the world halted in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic. When we started  to regain our bearings, the DLI Executive Team decided to tackle the present challenge in the same way in which we believe every challenge facing society should be tackled: By giving girls and women the community, skills, support and mission to address the challenge themselves.

From this vision, the world’s first global #WomenVsCOVID19 event was born! On 24-26 April, DLI and its partners organized “Move It Forward for Women versus COVID19” as part of the #EUvsVirus hackathon, and in celebration of Girls in ICT Day 2020. As we learned from this experience, the future of our species, fellow creatures and planet is safe in the hands of our girls and women.  In the words of European Commissioner Mariya Gabriel, our shared “solidarity, creativity and determination” will permit us to emerge together–stronger and better –from the current crisis. In the meantime, our profound love and sincerest wishes for continued health, hope and safety are with you, our dear DLI community!

The DLI Board are actively involved in outreach activities with partners and stakeholders around the world that promote ESTEAM* leadership by girls and women. Find out more about our outreach activities of early 2020 below, and please visit our calendar for events organised by DLI, many of which are still going forward, if with a slight delay, online.

*STEM powered by Entrepreneurship and Arts


22 January 2020 – Uber “Diversity & Inclusion in a Changing World of Work” Luncheon Roundtable (Brussels): Che Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director,  joined a 22 January luncheon roundtable in Brussels on “Diversity & Inclusion in a Changing World of Work,” hosted by Mr. Tony West, Chief Legal Officer, of Uber.


22 January 2020 – ESBA “New Brand. New Direction” Reception (Brussels): On 22 January in Brussels, Che Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director joined a reception for organisations and individuals interested in “helping entrepreneurs and promoting a culture of enterprise across Europe,” hosted by the European Small Business Alliance.


23 January 2020 – Women Political Leaders “Rejkjavik Index for Leadership” Breakfast (Davos): Che Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director,  was invited to a 23 January breakfast on the “Rejkjavik Index for Leadership,” which revealed that everyday beliefs and behaviours influence participation of women in boardrooms and differences in the wages between men and women. The event was hosted by Women Political Leaders in Davos, Switzerland.


27-28 January – W20 Saudi Arabia 2020 Launch (Riyadh): In the capacity of EU Delegation member, DLI Founding Director, Che Miller Van Dÿck  was invited to the 27-28 January inception and launch of the W20 Saudi Arabia 2020 meetings, taking place in Riyadh as part of the G20 Saudi Arabia 2020 process.


4 February – EIB Annual Board of Directors Seminar with Civil Society 2020 (Luxembourg): On 4 February, Che Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director, was invited to the European Investment Bank annual Board of Directors seminar with civil society 2020 in Luxembourg. The two themes for the meeting this year were “The European Green Deal and the EU Climate Bank: addressing the critical decade ahead” and “Supporting development through quality employment.”


5 February – Digital Skills and Jobs Coalition Governing Board Meeting (Brussels): On 5 February, Che Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director,  joined the semi-annual meeting of the Governing Board of the European Commission’s Digital Skills and Jobs Coalition, of which Van Dÿck has been a member since 2017.


11 February – Women in Science Day 2020 (Ghent, Belgium): Katja Legisa, DLI Entrepreneurship Director,  joined a panel on Climbing the Gender-Balance Ladder in STEM as part of the Women in Science Day 2020 celebrations organised by Be4Diversity and the Faculty of Bio-Science Engineering at Ghent University. DLI also hosted a stand showcasing #womeninSTEM work by DLI and the R&I PEERs Project.


17-18 February – Global Women’s Forum Dubai, We-Fi MENA Summit (Dubai, UAE): On 16-17 February in Dubai, UAE, Che Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director,  was invited to the Global Women’s Forum Dubai and We-Fi (Women Entrepreneurs Finance Initiative) MENA Summit, an initiative of the World Bank for advancing initiatives and policies that tackle finance and market obstacles faced by women entrepreneurs.


24-27 February – GSMA Mobile World Congress Women4Tech Summit (Barcelona): On 24-27 February, Che Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director,  was invited to attend the Ministerial Programme and speak at the Connected Women and Women4Tech events taking place as part of the annual Mobile World Congress in Barcelona.  These events were subsequently cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.


6 March – EuroNEXT Bell-ringing & Women in Finance Roundtable (Brussels): In celebration of International Women’s Day 2020, on 6 March in Brussels, the DLI Executive Team had planned to joined a Bell-ringing Ceremony at EuroNEXT stock exchange as guests of Bank of New York Mellon and the Association of Women in Finance. The ceremony was to be followed by a round table discussion on Women in Finance, but the entire event was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.


13-14 March – 64th Commission on the Status of Women – Beijing+25 (New York, New York): Che Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director,  planned to join the 13 March W20 engagement group side-event of the 64th Commission on the Status of Women – Beijing+25 and 14 March round-table hosted by the W20 Saudi Arabia 2020 Secretariat to the G20 2020 meetings. The CSW meetings were scaled down significantly and the G20 meeting took place online due to the COVID-19 pandemic.


23 March – SHERPA Stakeholder Board Meeting (Brussels): On 23 March in Brussels, Che Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director,  had planned to join the stakeholder board meeting of the SHERPA, an EU project exploring ethics in AI and big data, for which she is an advisor. The event took place online due to the COVID-19 pandemic.


23 April – Brussels Region Digital Strategy Launch (Brussels): On 23 April, the DLI Executive Team  joined the launch of the new Digital Strategy of the Brussels Region at the Google Atelier in Brussels.

Be sure to visit our Calendar and Outreach Activities page to keep up with DLI events and activities! You can also and sign up for the DLI Newsletter and follow us on Facebook, Twitter & Instagram!

DLI Update – Winter 2019

Happy new year from the Digital Leadership Institute!

The DLI team closed out a fabulous 2019 in Berlin at an Internet Governance Forum award ceremony where we received UN recognition for our global leadership in promoting greater participation of girls and women in digital sectors around the world! 

Our Board and Executive Team are actively involved in outreach activities with partners and stakeholders around the world that promote ESTEAM* leadership by girls and women. Find out more about our outreach activities of Winter 2019 below, and please visit our calendar for events organised by DLI.

*STEM powered by Entrepreneurship and Arts


24 September 2019 – Geena Davis Institute on Gender and Media Global Symposium (New York): Ms. Che Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director,  joined a 24 September Global Symposium organised by the Geena Davis Institute on the Status of Equity and Inclusion in Children’s Television at Google in New York. DLI is a long-time advocate for Equity in Media, and member of the Global Alliance on Media and Gender and the Geena Davis Institute.


25 September 2019 – Financial Inclusion for Development: Building on 10 years of Progress (New York): On 25 September at UN Headquarters in New York, Ms. Che Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director,  joined an official side-event of the 74th Session of the UN General Assembly, on invite of Queen Màxima of Holland, in recognition of her successes over the past ten years in advancing financial inclusion around the world, and its role in achieving the 2030 Agenda. Contributing to the event were UN Secretary General António Guterres, Ms. Melinda Gates, and the CEOs of Paypal and Microsoft, among others.


7-14 October 2019 – Women Code Festival (Brussels): The Third Annual Women Code Festival, organized by WomenInTech.brussels, took place 7-14 October in Brussels. Ms. Che Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director,  moderated the Festival opening event on 7 October, and the 6th Annual European Ada Awards ceremony, that took place at the Google Atelier in Brussels on 16 October, was an official side-event of the Festival.


14-15 October 2019 – INNOVEIT 2019 Conference (Budapest): On 14-15 October in Budapest,Ms. Che Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director, contributed to the 2019 edition of the INNOVEIT conference, organized by the European Institute of Innovation and Technology, as guest of honor and jury member for the EIT Woman Award 2019.


23 October 2019 – Mobile World Congress – Women4Tech Summit (Los Angeles): On 23 October at the Mobile World Congress Los Angeles, Ms. Che Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director,  joined a Women4Tech Summit panel on increasing diversity in STEM careers, including AI, big data and cyber security


15-16 November 2019 – Women’s Entrepreneurship Day: DLI  joined global celebrations of 2019 Women’s Entrepreneurship Day, that took place around the world with flagship summit in New York City on 15-16 November. Ms. Che Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director, has been Women’s Entrepreneurship Ambassador for Belgium since 2016.


21-22 November 2019 – 4IR Conference (Madrid): On 21-22 November in Madrid, Ms. Che Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director,  contributed to a conference on “Ethics and the Fourth Industrial Revolution (“4IR”), with a talk on “Inclusive Digital Transformation.”


22 November 2019 – SheDIDIT Closing Event (Ghent, Belgium): Ms. Che Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director,  joined the closing event of the #SheDIDIT campaign promoting Belgian women entrepreneurs from diverse origins, for which she has been a role model and mentor for the past year.


27 November 2019 – UN EQUALS Award Ceremony at Internet Governance Forum 2019 (Berlin)As part of the 2019 Internet Governance Forum in Berlin, the DLI Team had the honour of joining a 27 November UN EQUALS ceremony recognising initiatives around the world that promote greater participation of girls and women in digital sectors.  DLI was recognised in the global Leadership category by the UN EQUALS partnership which includes the UN ITU, UN Women, GSMA and EY.


25-27 November 2019 – SME Assembly (Helsinki): Ms. Che Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director, was invited to join to the annual SME Assembly for Europe as a delegate promoting women-led (tech) startup. The SME Assembly is the flagship event of European SME Week, an event of the 2019 Finnish Presidency of the EU Council.


2 December 2019 – Work-Life Balance Conference (Brussels): Ms. Loredana Bucseneanu, DLI Development Director,  joined a panel on “digitalisation and work-life balance” at the Work-Life Balance Conference taking place on 2 December in Brussels, organized by the Global Wo.Men Hub, of which DLI is a member.


Be sure to visit our Calendar and Outreach Activities page, and sign up for the DLI Newsletter in order to keep up with DLI events and activities!

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Europe Recognises Top Girls and Women in Digital Fields

“We are girls! We are women! We are strong!” – European Commissioner Gabriel to winners of the 2019 European Ada Awards recognising top female digital talent in Europe

“Take all challenges as opportunities,” advised Ms. Mariya Gabriel, European Commissioner for the Digital Economy and Society, to a group of wide-eyed finalists at the sixth European Ada Awards ceremony organised on 16 October 2019 in Brussels as part of European Code Week and the WomenInTech.Brussels Women Code Festival. The Ada Awards, founded in 2012 by Brussels-based Digital Leadership Institute, promote top girls and women in digital fields in Europe in an effort to increase their numbers, a long-term priority for Commissioner Gabriel that she will carry into her new mission as European Commissioner for Youth and Innovation starting next month.

Commissioner Gabriel officially opened this year’s celebration of the Ada Awards, affectionately named for Countess Ada Lovelace, the world’s first-ever computer programmer, with a message that technology is “a strategic tool for the empowerment of citizens—of women and of men—that we must continue to use to advance ourselves,” she said. The Commissioner counseled those present to spend less time on embellishments and to focus on taking action when a door is opened, saying she would both hold them to task, and committed to supporting them along the way. The Commissioner closed her message praising the hard work and talent demonstrated by the Ada Award finalists and winners, underscoring: “We are girls! We are women! We are strong!”

Following her remarks, Commissioner Gabriel and Ada Award partners from civil society and private sector recognised the 2019 European Ada Award-winners.

2019 European Digital Woman of the Year Award

The 2019 European Ada Award for Digital Woman of the Year was presented by Ms. Kelly Dorekens, CRM Director at Deloitte Belgium, who shared that “diversity in a group matters as much as ability and brainpower,” adding that Deloitte “actively encourages women to embrace science, technology, engineering and math through selected partnerships and events, like the Ada Awards.”

Ms. Dee Saigal, United Kingdom – 2019 European Digital Woman of the Year
Ms. Dee Saigal is Founder, CEO and Creative Director of Erase All Kittens, an adventure game designed to give girls the confidence to code, whilst teaching digital and 21st century skills. Dee’s goal is for EAK is to transform the way children perceive coding and engineering, and empower millions of girls worldwide with transferable, digital skills. Dee shared that her biggest challenge so far, aside from being a woman in tech, has been fundraising for research and development. Her message to other women and girls is to not think tech is for boys or that it is “geeky.” “There are so many amazing careers in tech that are both interesting and challenging,” says Saigal. Now that Erase All Kittens has 150,000 players, her next step is to raise investment in order to be able to build more educational and gamified version to launch globally. Her team is raising £500,000, and are already at twenty percent of that goal.

2019 European Digital Girl of the Year Award

“10 Years and Under” Category:
The 2019 European Ada Award for Digital Girl of the Year in the “10 Years and Under” category was presented by Ms. Afke Schaart, VP and Head of Europe, GSMA. Winner in this category was Tayra, from Bulgaria.

Tayra, from Bulgaria – 2019 European Digital Girl of the Year “10 Years and Under”
Tayra is ten years old and was born in Sofia. She loves coding, and most recently won a special prize at Softunjada Kids with her Scratch project “three bears fairytale,” using sign language for kids. Tayra says the projects she is most proud of are her webpage and her robots. In ten years, she hopes to be a programmer. Her message to other girls who are interested in tech is: “I believe that girls have a power, and the power of technology can change the world for the better, no matter who we are. It is never too late or too early to get involved in tech,” Tayra says.

“11-14 Years Old” Category:

The 2019 European Ada Award for Digital Girl of the Year in the “11-14 Years Old” category was presented by Ms. Christine Marlet, Board Member, Global Wo.Man Hub. Marlet expressed her awe of the candidates saying “the Ada Awards grant the participants the perfect opportunity to enhance their digital dreams. It encourages them to take risks along the way in order to achieve their digital goals because they believe that their objectives are attainable.” She added: “Belief in yourself stems from belief in your role models.” Winner in this category was Selin, from Turkey.

Selin, from Turkey – 2019 European Digital Girl of the Year “11-14 Years Old”
Selin is thirteen years old and loves building robots, coding, animals and travelling. She wants to study robotics and eventually build a humanoid. Selin shared that she was inspired to build her robot dog when her childhood dog passed away. She said “I knew that blind people especially have a strong connection with their dogs. I wanted to help them out, and felt like this was a great way of doing that.” She spends her free time on the weekends working on and improving her robotic guide dog. Looking forward, Selin says “I am currently developing the second version of my dog, and this one will be able to sit, lay down, bark, and it will even do ‘heart eyes’ towards my mom. Currently it’s only programmed to understand English, but I’m hoping for it to learn Chinese soon!”

“15-17 Years Old” Category:
The 2019 European Ada Award for Digital Girl of the Year in the “15-17 Years Old” category was presented by Ms. Viola Pinzi from European Schoolnet. There were two winner in this category: Anne, from Belgium, and Alai-Miranda, from Spain.

Anne, from Belgium – 2019 European Digital Girl of the Year “15-17 Years Old”
Anne is a fifteen-year-old girl who created Clinicoders, an initiative to bring technology and programming to children in hospitals. One of the goals of this project is to encourage children to create solutions for permanently disabled children. Anne said her next steps for Clinicoders are to bring it to a hospital in Antwerp, as it is only currently in Ghent, Belgium. “My dad wants to help bring it to other countries as well. So we’ll see where it goes,” she said. Over time, Clinicoders has developed from an application for children into something for adults too. “We shared this application called ‘Mindstorms’ to adult hospital animators, and it has been a real success.” In terms of her own future, Anne plans on studying law, but definitely wants to continue engaging hospital patients with Clinicoders.

Alai-Miranda from Spain – 2019 European Digital Girl of the Year “15-17 Years Old”
Alai-Miranda’s passion for STEM began when she was seven years old, and it has yet to fade. Most recently, she was invited to speak at the Amazon Web Services Summit in Madrid to discuss her experience as a girl in technology. Alai-Miranda shared about a new project she has begun to work on called “EsVuela.” A combination of the Spanish words “escuela” (school) and “volar” (to fly), the project will educate children on how to fly and program drones. As far as where Alai-Mirand sees herself in ten years, she says: “Hopefully I will have graduated from MIT and will be working in technology at a company, or maybe I will have even started my own company at that point. I hope to be either in the U.S., or maybe in Europe, maybe even still in Spain – somewhere!” As for her experience at the Ada Awards, she said that she feels “inspired to continue talking about and learning technology.”

 

“Gender-Equality and Europe: Fit for the Digital Era?” Panel

The 2019 European Ada Awards ceremony was preceded by a high-level panel on “Gender Equality and Europe: Fit for the Digital Era,” moderated by Cheryl Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director, and including panelists Miss Manon Van Hoorebeke, 2014-2015 Ada Award-winner for European Digital Girl of the Year, Mr. Christian Veske, Stakeholder Relations Coordinator at the European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE), Ms. Annick Breton Elias, Partner of Deloitte Luxembourg, and Ms. Afke Schaart, Vice President and Head of Europe at GSMA, a global trade association for the mobile industry.

Christian Veske kicked off the panel with a discussion of EIGE’s 2019 Gender Equality Index released this week, the factors contributing to Europe’s score of 67 out of 100, and the increasing importance of promoting gender balance in digital fields. “Women won’t achieve equality until there is digital equality,” agreed Schaart from the GSMA. “Right now, women hold less than twenty percent of jobs in the tech industry, which is why GSMA expanded our Tech4Girls program this year.”

 

At sixteen, Manon Van Hoorebeke shared that winning the Digital Girl of the Year award at eleven years old has played a significant role in guiding her life choices since then, and that she is now studying Physics at university. Van Hoorebeke also admitted that a lack of confidence with technology is a barrier to getting more young women into the field, and even despite her accomplishements, that she sometimes faces self-doubt. Elias concurred that this patter appears in professional contexts as well for which reason, she said, Deloitte works to identfy high-potential women in digital fields and starts conversations with them on leadership. “Because it is often unlikely that women will initiate these discussions themselves,” she said.

 

Formal welcome for the 2019 European Ada Awards Ceremony was provided by Ms. Loubna Azhgoud, COO of Women in Business and WomenInTech.Brussels @1819 Hub, and by Ms. Audrey Scozzaro Ferrazzi, Senior European Policy Manager at Google. Azhgoud congratulated Ada Award finalists and highlighted the event in the context of the third-annual Women Code Festival organised by the Brussels Region, which succeeded this year in reaching 2300 participants, eighty percent female, to encourage them into digital fields. Scozzaro Ferrazzi also welcomed guests with a rousing speech expressing her awe and admiration for gathered laurates who, like her, are pursuing digital fields.

Following the ceremony, WomenInTech.Brussels provided a lovely reception for the finalists and winners of the 2019 European Ada Awards and all their friends, families and supporters.

Congratulations to the 2019 European Ada Award winners, finalists and nominees for their amazing leadership in digital fields across Europe!

Thank you to our Ada Awards sponsors and supporters!

You can find more pictures from the 2019 European Ada Awards ceremony here.