The Smart Women – Smart State Strategy: A Policy on Women’s Participation in Science, Engineering and Technology in Queensland, Australia

Abstract

Despite growing demand for skilled workers, women remain under-represented in science, engineering and technology industries. Limited opportunities for women not only impacts upon individual women’s access to the workforce and economic security, but also means that the State does not have the appropriate skills for future growth. In Australia, the Queensland State Government developed and implemented a strategy to promote science, engineering and technology to women and girls, and to retain women in these fields of education and work. The strategy involved a range of methods, including policy and program delivery, to engage women and girls at different points of their lives. This chapter gives an overview of the Smart Women – Smart State Strategy and the initiatives delivered as part of the strategy, and finishes by highlighting the need for ongoing strategies to effect social and attitudinal change. This overview highlights the importance of policy development and delivery that is gender sensitive, as well as the broader social and economic benefits of women’s equitable participation in science, engineering and technology.