Now 18, she is involved in space projects with other young women through the Sat initiative of Shakthi and she would like to explore the intersection between computer technology and science, in particular artificial intelligence (AI), autonomous robotics and embedded systems that control satellites, drones and missiles.
“I learn things that I once dreamed of, and we are going to launch our own satellite. How cool is that!” She told One news.
But the prospects at home in Nepal, an impoverished nation with an emerging space industry, are very limited.
“Our parents usually do not want us to pursue ‘risky’ careers,” she said.
‘My interest is to make people multiplanetary’
As a little girl who grew up in Hasselt, Belgium thought, Kaat Degros thought it would be an astronaut in the very competitive, men -dominated space field would never happen.
Today, at the age of 15, she has already designed her own sustainable research base on Mars, praised by the Oxford Academy of Excellence.
“My interest is to make people multiplicetary,” she said.
Demystifying Space Careers
A new partnership between the Space4Women Project from the UN office for the space on the space (Unoosa) And the Cosmic Girls Foundation brings together young women and girls such as Mrs. Maharjan and Mrs. Degros all over the world to investigate how they can form the future of space and thrive in different roles, of space economy and rights to engineering, policy and innovation.
More than 30 girls participated in one Worldwide webinar At the end of July on “Demystifying Space Careers: not only astronauts”, the first in a series of collaborations that the global reach of Unoosa and Cosmic Girls’ Grassroots Network United.
Two female leaders, a space -economist at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and Legal Officer at the Kenya Space Agency, shared practical advice on how to enter the sector, regardless of the background and questions about academic and professional paths, networks, access and dealing with rejection.
© NASA
NASA Astronauts Tracy Caldwell Dyson, Dorothy Metcalf-Lindenburger, Naoko Yamazaki and Stephanie Wilson pose for a photo at the international space station.
Build a space -ecosystem
The girls left with different messages: Be your own cheerleader, look for mentors and allies, stay disciplined but follow your passion and become a member of space communities.
“We are building an ecosystem that rests girls worldwide with voice skills, astronaut training and the mindset to innovate for the future of humanity among the stars,” said Mindy Howard, founder and chief executive officer of the Netherlands and US Foundation.
The partnership will influence policymakers to adopt a new vision of the room sector where men and women are the same partners, said Unoosa program employee Anne-Claire Grossias.
“It is a very focused project. Because of this connection we can continue to gender equality,” she explained.
Landmark study: Space sector still gender blind
Despite the progress in recent years, women are still considerably under -represented in the field, especially in leadership roles. Only 11 percent of astronauts have been women and they represent only 30 percent of the workforce in organizations for the public space sector, according to the 2024 of the Space4Women project milestone study About gender equality.
Ensuring a meaningful role for women not only feeds productivity and profit; It leads to greater global cooperation, consensus structure and permanent peace, according to the study.
The idea for the survey was conceived during the Space4Women Expert meeting 2023. The meeting United Global Experts to prepare the first of the UN Gender mainstreaming toolkit To help space organizations to dismantle gender prejudices and discriminatory practices and to create environments where women can succeed in addition to male colleagues in space science, technology, innovation and exploration.
Promoting the female astronaut pipeline
Since its foundation in 2017, the Space4Women project has collaborated with professionals of dedicated space sector mentor More than 270 girls from 68 countries.
Mrs Howard, a mentor since 2020, has brought together almost 1,000 girls from 139 countries through her Cosmic Girls Educational and Networking Forum. With program partners in Africa, Asia, Europe, America and Oceania, the Cosmic Girls Foundation has launched the first global competition to train six girls, one from every continent, with the rocket -scientific knowledge, life skills and mental utensils to become astronauts. The main prize for one will be a trip to space.
“The competition is such a dream come true,” said Mrs. Degros. “It gave me hope that I will succeed as a astronaut and astrophysicist.”
Build trust in a safe environment
Supporting girls at a young age in a hospitable, caring environment is crucial to help them gradually test the waters and bring the much needed female properties and collaborative approaches to solve problems, Mrs. Howard said.
“Girls are often told by their parents that they are not good enough, not smart enough. This is a safe environment for them to sharpen their skills, which will help them later,” she said.
They already feel confident.
“This feels like something extraordinary – a real step in the direction of a future that I once thought was out of reach,” said Mrs. Maharjan.
“I think there will be equality in the space exploration in not so long,” Mr. Degros added.
#Cosmic #Girls #cherishes #generation #space #professionals