Empowering Tomorrow’s Innovators: Samsung Celebrates International Girls in ICT Day

(L-R) Yashasvi Parthavi, Aditi Taparia and Sonal Aggarwal

In a world powered by technology, the importance of gender diversity in the tech industry is crucial.  International Girls in ICT Day is dedicated to encouraging girls and young women to pursue careers in the field of Information and Communications Technology (ICT). The day also aims to address the gender gap in the tech industry and inspire girls to achieve their full potential in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM).

On Girls in ICT Day– marked annually on the fourth Thursday in April – the United Nations International Telecommunication Union (ITU) highlights the need to promote technology career opportunities for girls and women in one of world’s fastest growing sector.

Recognizing this, Samsung celebrates International Girls in ICT Day with a commitment to fostering the next generation of innovators through its Samsung Solve for Tomorrow program and Samsung Innovation Campus.

Here are some inspiring stories of young women in STEM who are being empowered at Samsung Solve for Tomorrow and Samsung Innovation Campus:

Aditi Taparia: Cleaning Beaches with a Robot

The Solve for Tomorrow team of Aditi Tapariya, Harshil Mistry and Vaibhav Gupta from Surat, Gujarat is out to address the accumulation of harmful waste on beaches and its impact on the environment and marine ecosystems. The team has developed an automated beach-cleaning robot called Sweep.

This programmable robot is equipped with optimum sensors that can detect, identify and segregate different kinds of waste materials based on their recyclability. The robot will be capable of traversing difficult terrains and autonomously navigate through a specified area at regular intervals.

“I could enhance our design in a customer-oriented manner or even work on a tech product like Sweep only because I studied STEM. Solve for Tomorrow helped us make the required changes in our mechanism and in the backend algorithms while making it more precise in its operations.  At Solve for Tomorrow, we worked on our solution and do ground-level testing and analyze results for Sweep. We will sweep all the garbage on the beaches to build a more beautiful world for the generations to come. Together for tomorrow, we will make it happen,” said Aditi.

Sonal Agarwal: Winning one battle at a time with STEM

Sonal hails from Bahal in Haryana. The only woman ever to learn STEM at school and college level in her family. Her dreams of innovation echoed so loud that her everyone who wanted her to study humanities took a step back and allowed her to take her own path.

Sonal’s journey began with spark fueled by relentless curiosity to unravel the mysteries of technology. Venturing into the realm of computer science, Sonal encountered obstacles in male dominated field but her unwavering belief in herself kept her going. From her college, she landed an opportunity at Samsung Innovation Campus where she studied a course in Artificial Intelligence.

“I always loved studying STEM but it was Samsung Innovation Campus that took my love for it to the next level. The challenges that campus programme threw at me on a regular basis helped me learn better about Artificial Intelligence,” said Sonal.

“Through the Samsung Innovation Campus, I got access to cutting-edge resources, mentorship programs, and hands-on learning experiences designed to equip girls with the skills and confidence needed to thrive in the tech industry. My dream of becoming an engineer looks easier to achieve now,” added Sonal.

Yashasvi Parthavi: Beyond the Possibilities of Artificial Intelligence

Moradabad in Uttar Pradesh is famous for its brass artwork, but Yashasvi Parthavi believes that someday it could also be famous for her innovations in Artificial Intelligence.

Yashasvi is a Samsung Innovation Campus student from Moradabad who gets thrilled the moment you ask her about AI and her career plans. Her journey with Artificial Intelligence began at Samsung Innovation Campus when she joined the course. “I love Mathematics and I didn’t know one day it would help me land me in a course that would transform my life,” said Yashasvi.

“I didn’t know the importance of STEM but all that I really enjoyed studying was Mathematics at school level. During my engineering, I explored the different branches of STEM and them came Samsung Innovation campus which made me believe that I could aim to become an AI scientist. Today I am able to look beyond the possibilities of Artificial Intelligence.

At Samsung, our CSR vision is ‘Together for Tomorrow! Enabling People’. We believe true progress happens only when everyone is empowered. In India, our Citizenship programs are inspired by our corporate vision of ‘Powering Digital India’. India is a vibrant and young country with soaring aspirations, and to give wings to every dream our CSR efforts are focused on two domains: Smart Education and Skilling Youth. All our CSR programs aim to provide people equal access to the knowledge, skills, and the resources required to shape a better future for the community.