PUBLIC EVENT
Join us this International Women in Engineering Day (INWED) for an inspiring online webinar exploring how women in engineering are actively shaping a future-ready, inclusive engineering and technology community.
This engaging one-hour session will bring together three outstanding women engineers from around the world, who are advancing research and innovation in the UK’s critical sectors. Through a series of short lightning talks and an interactive fireside discussion, the speakers will share their personal journeys into STEM, and their insights into how we can attract and retain women engineers to help solve tomorrow’s challenges.
Tackling core issues such as cybersecurity, information processing and agricultural waste requires diverse human creativity and expertise. As such, the future of engineering depends not only on innovation, but who we inspire to solve tomorrow’s challenges.
This session will:
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Highlight the experiences of women engineering leaders working at the forefront of research and innovation
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Showcase the vital role global talent plays in strengthening the UK’s engineering ecosystem through expertise and outreach
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Offer insight into the realities of a career in STEM for women, with a focus on the UK’s critical sectors.
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Share practical perspectives on how engineers can inspire and support the next generation of talent.
Whether you’re considering a career in engineering, supporting others into STEM, or simply interested in how we can build a more inclusive, future-ready engineering community, this event will offer fresh perspectives, real stories and inspiration for the future.
Programme*
| 1.50pm | Zoom waiting room opens |
| 2.00pm | Welcome address |
| 2.05pm |
Lightning talk 1 – My journey, my impact Our speakers share their journey into engineering and the story behind their work.
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| 2.10pm |
Lightning talk 2 – My journey, my impact Our speakers share their journey into engineering and the story behind their work.
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| 2.15pm |
Lightning talk 3 – My journey, my impact Our speakers share their journey into engineering and the story behind their work.
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| 2.20pm |
Shaping the future of engineering
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| 2.45pm | Question and answer session |
| 2.55pm | Closing remarks |
| 3.0pm | Close of event |
*Programme subject to change
Recording notice
Please note this event will be recorded and published on the Royal Academy of Engineering website. Please keep your video off and your account will muted until the facilitator invites you to put your camera on and unmute yourself.
Accessibility
It is very important to the Royal Academy of Engineering that our events are accessible to all. If you have any accessibility requirements, please contact Bethany Naylor-Smith at your earliest convenience so that necessary arrangements can be made.
Diversity monitoring form
The Academy is committed to equity, diversity and inclusion and one of our goals is to develop an engineering community fit for the future. To help us achieve this, we would like to collect some basic anonymous data about the event attendees. If you would like to help, please complete the diversity monitoring form by logging into your user account on our website and completing ‘Update my D&I data’.
Dr Alma Oračević
Dr Alma Oračević is a Senior Lecturer in Cybersecurity at the University of Bristol and a member of the Bristol Cyber Security Group. Her research focuses on the security and resilience of cyber-physical systems, with particular emphasis on UAV cybersecurity, GPS-denied navigation, wireless and network security, intrusion detection, and trustworthy autonomous systems.
She is a Royal Academy of Engineering / Leverhulme Trust Research Fellow, leading the project DroneShield: Cyber Vulnerability Analysis in GPS-Denied Environments, which investigates the security of UAVs that rely on alternative navigation technologies such as LiDAR, visual SLAM, inertial sensing, and multi-sensor fusion.
Dr Oračević’s research spans UAV penetration testing, GPS spoofing and jamming, communication protocol vulnerabilities and cyber-physical system security. She collaborates with academic, industry, and government partners on the security of emerging autonomous and connected systems.
Dr Carrie Wiedner
Dr Carrie Weidner is a Senior Lecturer in Quantum Engineering Technologies at the University of Bristol, UK, where she leads a research group exploring the control and manipulation of quantum systems. Weidner did her PhD in JILA at the University of Colorado Boulder, and she worked on building inertial sensors using atoms trapped in optical lattice potentials. Weidner then moved to Aarhus University in Denmark to work on quantum simulation using quantum gas microscopy. Since moving to Bristol, Weidner's research is focused on (mostly) experimental quantum sensing, simulation, and information with atoms in optical lattice potentials.
Dr Weidner works in robust quantum control, quantum physics education, and is increasingly interested in the interplay between atomic physics and integrated optics, as well as how one can use atoms and photonics to implement scalable, sustainable, and high-speed neuromorphic computers.
Weidner is Director of the Bristol Centre for Doctoral Training in Quantum Engineering, a member of the IEEE and IOP, and a co-work-package lead and management board member for the UK's Hub in Quantum-Enabled Positioning, Navigation and Timing. When not working on quantum technologies, Weidner enjoys being in nature, reading, and slowly climbing the ranks in Brazilian jiu jitsu.
Dr Parimala Shivaprasad
Dr Parimala Shivprasad is an assistant professor in the Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering at the University of Nottingham. Her research focuses on developing low-carbon technologies that convert underutilised renewable feedstock, including horticultural and agricultural waste, into high-value chemicals for consumer products, supporting industrial decarbonisation and circular manufacturing. She works closely with horticulture farms and global consumer chemical companies to translate research into commercially relevant technologies that improve resource efficiency and reduce reliance on fossil-derived feedstocks.
Parimala is currently a DSIT Fellow seconded to the Government Office for Science, contributing to analysis on climate change and energy security. She is also a member of the EPSRC Engineering Early Career Forum and contributes to discussions on UK research and innovation strategy. Alongside her research, she actively engages in STEM outreach and public engagement activities through initiatives including Soapbox Science, Pint of Science and university outreach events, promoting wider participation in engineering and sustainability research.