Monika Tcheufa created the association Sciences for Girls in Tours. Its aim is to highlight the careers of women scientists to introduce these professions to young girls.
Making science known to everyone. And especially to all women. This is what the Tours-based association, Sciences for Girls, promotes. It all stems from an observation made by Monika Tcheufa when she was a student in the field of science: few girls are interested in or even know the extent of scientific professions. “I realized this when I tried to explain my job to my sister,” comments the 25-year-old woman.
Now an engineer in renewable energies, she continues: “I then created a platform that I would have liked to have when I was young.” In 2019, she started publishing on what was initially her blog. It was in June 2022 that Sciences for Girls officially became an association. Monika Tcheufa is the president. She felt the need to “carry out concrete actions in the field.”
“it all Started in Tours”
A student in the city of Tours in 2022, she made her first intervention at Vaucanson high school. “It all started with a meeting with a biology teacher during a carpooling ride. I told her about my project and it resonated with her. She asked me to come to her high school. Everything started in Tours”, the engineer simply explains.
During this intervention, she discusses her career path with the students and asks them to name a well-known female scientist “other than Marie Curie”. Silence. “It’s always the case”, she recounts. The association’s goal is then to present “in a fun way” their career paths and show that there has always been a woman who has made history in the field of science.
Being Able to Identify
These portraits of historical scientists are one of the association’s areas of work. Additionally, Sciences for Girls conducts monthly interviews with two scientists. “They will explain to us their job, their career path, their school”, the young woman elaborates. With this, the association reaches “different profiles”.
In addition, there are interventions in schools. “It’s always passionate women who come to present their profession. The goal is for girls to be able to identify with them and ask their questions”, continues the association’s president. At the end of these actions, some students “ask if they can do internships” in the mentioned professions. A victory for Science for Girls, which would like to “put more emphasis on interventions”.
Making an Informed Choice
“The goal of the association is not for everyone to become a scientist, but for young girls to make their choice with full knowledge”, reminds the engineer. She also wants to show that women have their place in these environments, often predominantly male.
At the start of the school year, the association – which now has six permanent members and about forty volunteers – will move to the Île-de-France region. “We would like to have partnerships to regularly intervene in schools”, Monika Tcheufa wishes.
