The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed significant gender gaps in women’s and girls’ rights. Not only has the pandemic put their education, livelihoods, health, and well-being at risk, but it has also revealed systemic inequities in a new light. The heavy load of paid and unpaid care work carried out by women and girls is cast into stark relief as they struggle to cope with work inside and outside of the household. One of the survival mechanisms for women is to start their own businesses. This session will explore the efficacy of MOOCs for gender inclusion and how female entrepreneurs can be resilient and embrace technology as they navigate the road to full recovery and entrepreneurial success. You are invited to join our session to:

  • explore the skills necessary for women to become successful entrepreneurs.
  • encourage women and girls to embrace their inner strength and to enhance their technology skills to support their careers as future female innovators.
  • share experiences from girls and young women who have succeeded with their own SMEs.
  • discuss lessons learnt from the impact of COVID-19 for women across the Commonwealth, in the context.

Date & Time

Monday, 19 May 2021
17:30 GMT/18:30 BST/10:30am PDT

Download the Brochure

Moderator

Professor Asha Kanwar
President and CEP Commonwealth of Learning

Panelists

Ms Alexis Carr, Monitoring & Evaluation Manager, COL

Alexis Carr is a research, monitoring and evaluation specialist in the corporate, education and international development sectors. Alexis manages monitoring and evaluation for COL and has supported various studies to examine the impact of open, distance and technology-enabled learning on employment and entrepreneurship, particularly for women. As a co-developer and facilitator of the training program ‘Women in ICT: The future of work in the age of Artificial Intelligence (AI)’ with the Ministry of Education, The Bahamas, she supported capacity building for Caribbean women in emerging technologies.

She has authored numerous publications including articles and book chapters on lifelong learning, women’s empowerment, and economic outcomes of informal learning. She is also the author of the ‘Measuring Empowerment Toolkit’ launched by COL and UN Women and used by development partners in more than 7 countries and serves as the Working Group Leader for Monitoring in the UNESCO OER Dynamic Coalition.

Frances Ferreira

Ms Frances Ferriera, Education Specialist: Gender, COL

Frances Ferreira has more than 14 years’ experience working in developing contexts and more than 25 years’ experience in education management. Frances is leading COL’s multi-country GIRLS Inspire project and the Gender portfolio which include the Commonwealth Wise Women mentorship project.

She has a vast range of experience in leadership, change management, monitoring and evaluation, and project planning. Frances is the founding Director of the Namibian College of Open Learning, was one of the first female mayors in Namibia and represented Namibia at the World Conference on Women in Beijing in the same capacity in 1995. She has co-authored and co-edited various publications including: Perspectives on Distance Education – Open Schooling in the 21st Century (2009); Open Schooling with Open Educational Resources: Opening doors, creating opportunities (2013) and Women and Leadership in Open and Distance Learning and Development (2013).

 

Ms Nazrene Mannie, Executive Director of GAN Global (gan-global.org)

Nazrene is a specialist in the field of social policy focusing on youth employment, future of work strategies and skills development.

Nazrene works closely with organisations such as the ILO, OECD, EU, Commonwealth, private sector companies and international development entities to drive forward the agenda for agile workforce development within the context of the future of work. The focus on an inclusive recovery and sustainable solutions for the Future of Work are key issues for Nazrene and the GAN. As a UN Gender Champion in the Geneva Chapter, ensuring diversity and addressing the gender balance are priority focus areas.

Ms. Lauren Shea, TeenTech Gold Ambassador and TeenTech Young Person Advisory Board Member

Lauren Shea BEM is a third-year student at Cardiff University studying for her Masters in Mechanical Engineering. She participated in the TeenTech Award programme as a 14 year old teenager, winning the People’s Choice category. She then acted as a powerful ambassador both in UK schools and beyond, being responsible for launching the TeenTech international programme by mentoring students in Spain.

She was awarded the BBC’s inaugural Make It Digital Teen Hero Award for this work and has also been presented with a British Empire Medal for her work encouraging young people, especially girls to consider careers in tech and engineering.

Lauren was an Arkwright Scholar and in 2017 she was named in The Telegraph as one of the Top Women in Engineering under 35. At the time she was the only schoolgirl on the list. Lauren is currently on her placement year for university working for Flowserve, a company that design and manufactures valves and pumps. Lauren says, ‘I strongly believe in the Teen Tech initiative and what it can offer to students. It’s a brilliant platform whether you want to develop entrepreneurship skills or start a career in STEM’.