To commemorate International Girls in ICT Day, which will be celebrated on April 24th, the Centre for Information and Communication Technology Research (CITIC) at the University of A Coruña organized a special event for high school students from IES Ramón Menéndez Pidal (Zalaeta).

The session began with the lecture “Thirteen Reasons: Diversity & ICT”, delivered by researcher Susana Ladra. During her talk, Ladra addressed crucial topics such as gender diversity, background, and the inclusion of people with functional diversity in the tech field. She highlighted that although women make up around 50% of university students in Galicia, only 20% pursue careers in ICT and fewer than 20% in computer engineering. Ladra emphasized the importance of diversity in the creation and design of technologies to avoid gender bias, citing examples such as voice recognition systems that perform better with male voices. “Diversity is not only a matter of social justice, but also a source of innovation and scientific progress”, she stated.

Afterward, the students had the opportunity to visit CITIC’s technological demonstrator, where they learned about various innovative projects. The group experienced firsthand how virtual and augmented reality glasses work, and explored the robotics room, where they saw a robotic dog in action and an assistant robot designed for museum guides. They also spoke with researcher Omar Montenegro, who explained aspects of his work in facial recognition. Additionally, they were introduced to different examples of additive manufacturing through 3D printing.

In the virtual reality room, the students discovered a hand rehabilitation project led by researcher Andrea Caíña, which uses a haptic glove with sensors to track small finger movements.

This visit not only gave students a close look at the latest innovations in the ICT field but also inspired them to consider future careers in this area, highlighting the importance of diversity and inclusion in technology.