Gender inequality in STEAM careers caused by entrenched stereotypes, limited exposure to female role models, and unequal access to inclusive learning, mentoring, and career development opportunities.
Girls in STEAM Academy is a non-profit initiative by Be an Ally Foundation, launched in 2021 to bridge the gender gap in STEAM with a specific focus on ICT. Our mission is to empower girls and young women with the skills, confidence and support systems necessary to thrive in the future STEAM and digital economy.
Our approach is holistic and grounded in inclusive design principles. We do not treat technology as an end in itself, but as a creative and empowering tool for designing solutions to real-world challenges. Girls in STEAM Academy is built around three strategic pillars that ensure long-term and systemic impact:
Education: We design immersive learning experiences and educational programs where girls acquire both technical tools (like web design) and essential soft skills, including leadership, teamwork, and gender equality awareness. Beyond this, we also offer educational workshops to schools, educators, and parents all around Cyprus, helping shift mindsets at community level.
Networking: We cultivate a supportive ecosystem that bridges the gap between education and the professional world, connecting girls and young women with mentors, peers, and role models in STEAM. These connections foster confidence, aspiration, and sustained engagement beyond programme participation.
Awareness: Through dissemination and awareness actions such as articles, podcasts, media appearances and public events, we aim to actively challenge gender stereotypes and raise awareness about the structural barriers that limit girls’ participation in STEAM, contributing to broader cultural change. Our flagship initiative, BridgeSTEAM, is a free, intensive two-day program designed for girls aged 14-16. Participants with no prior experience learn the fundamentals of web design and how to code, leading in the creation and publication of their own personalised websites from scratch. Beyond technical skills, the curriculum is carefully designed in a way that integrates the UN SDGs through practical workshops, gender equality workshops (addressing SDG5 – Gender Equality in more depth), and career counseling. A key feature of BridgeSTEAM is the direct engagement with female role models who share personal stories to break down stereotypes and give advice to the young girls. This contact with female role models in STEAM has proven very useful for the participants, as they get inspired and help break down barriers on what it means to be successful, what lessons they can learn from them and imagine themselves in similar roles.
To support transition into the labour market, we launched “ΕΤΟΙΜΕΣ”(translated to READY) in 2024, a program for university students and graduates designed to equip young women with the skills to enter the labour market with confidence. ETOIMES combines two phases: the first phase is comprised by a series of practical employability workshops covering: job finding techniques, preparing a CV and a cover letter, developing skills for a successful interview, developing presentation and public speaking skills, growth mindset and life-long learning, and gender equality topics in the labour market. In the first phase, we also organise a networking event, bringing together the participants of the program with female role models in STEAM, in order to gain advice and support from women. The second phase is a personalised 6-month mentoring program where participants are matched with female role models in STEAM. This phase is designed to provide tailored guidance, helping young women navigate the early stages of their careers.
We operate primarily in Cyprus but maintain strong EU-level partnerships. To date, we have trained 300 girls across 19 programs (18 BridgeSTEAM, 1 cycle of ETOIMES), prioritising those from rural areas, refugee backgrounds (including Ukrainian girls), and Turkish Cypriot communities. Short-term impact and evaluation survey results show that 92% of participants report increased interest in STEAM careers, while 89% report improved self-confidence and 72% said that the program showed them new career paths or studies that they did not know before had thought about (2025).
The support we provide does not end at graduation. We recognise that young women need continuous support in order to maintain and grow their confidence and interest in STEAM, and this is the reason why we provide various opportunities for them to get involved and become an integral part of our community. Our alumnae network benefits from year-round opportunities, including a job shadowing summer program in STEAM-related companies in Cyprus,participation in the “SheSpeaks” podcast as hosts, to practice public speaking, and participation in European and international events.
We recognise that designing systemic change cannot be achieved in isolation. We place immense value on synergies and have developed a robust collaborative ecosystem to support our vision. We maintain strong partnerships with key stakeholders including the Commissioner’s Office for Gender Equality in Cyprus, PwC Cyprus, CodeWeek Cyprus, UCLan Cyprus, Women in Tech, Youth Board of Cyprus, the Deputy Ministry of Research and Innovation, MetLife, and others, alongside a dedicated network of educators and other organisations that share our vision and values. These alliances allow us to co-design impactful initiatives and ensure our work remains relevant.
Our project was recognised as a Best Practice by Connecting Women in Digital in 2025 and was a Finalist in the Digital Skills Awards by the Digital Skills and Jobs Platform of the EU Commission. This European achievement is a strong impetus for us to continue our actions and gives us the opportunity to continue striving to achieve our goal in the future.
Design Equality with Innovation Award_Girls in STEAM Academy.pdf