RWTH: Brigitte Gilles Prize Presented

The award is named after RWTH’s first women’s representative and it goes to initiatives that improve the conditions for women’s study, teaching and research at the University. These initiatives are intended to help increase the number of female scientists and students in courses that have a low proportion of women. Professor Sabine Brück-Dürkop, Vice-Rector for Human Resources Management and Development, presented the certificates in a ceremony befitting the occasion.

With the “Woman Career Lunch”, Professor Erika Ábrahám from the Department of Hybrid Systems Theory aims to increase the proportion of women among doctoral students in STEM subjects. She is supported by Professor Christina Büsing and Helen Bolke-Hermanns from Computer Science as well as Kaja Köhnle from the Equal Opportunities Office. The team developed a program that has been providing female students with comprehensive information about career paths since February 2022. Eight modules are now offered, to which external speakers are also invited.

The online learning module “Climate-neutral Hospitals of the Future – Saving Lives the Circular Way” was developed at the Department of Anesthesiology at Uniklinik RWTH Aachen and the Center for Circular Economy. The target group is schoolgirls in Europe. They learn about the links between climate change and health, track a patient in a virtual hospital, and ultimately develop a plan to reduce the hospital’s carbon footprint. The project is part of the “Girls Go Circular” initiative, which combines STEM fields with the circular economy and aims to empower female students to create a more equal and climate-neutral society. Dr. Linda Grüßer and Dr. Julia Wallqvist designed the module. Medical student Maike Köllner was heavily involved in the project, along with Hannah Hartmann, also a medical student, and Dr. Mohammad Chehadé of the Center for Circular Economy.