Our names are Tolu Adesanya, Ifeoluwa Aigbiniode, Oluwabusola Dada, Ruona Akpokiniovo, and Ruth Mfon-Uko, and we are members of FGC2020 representing Nigeria at this year’s FIRST Global Challenge (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology), and our mentor is Mrs Oluremi Willoughby assisted by coaches Afariogun Sunday and Adeniyi Talabi.
The FIRST Global Challenge is an annual robotics competition which started in 2017 and takes place in a different nation each year. Nigeria has been represented in the annual competition since its inception themed around the greatest challenges facing our planet, including the 14 Grand Challenges of Engineering identified by the National Academy of Engineering. Each year a different challenge takes centre stage in an effort to foster understanding and cooperation among the youth of the world as we use our skills and knowledge to solve the world’s greatest problems. The 2020 FIRST Global Challenge is being hosted virtually this year due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and has the theme of “Connecting Communities”. The 2020 FIRST Global Challenge has been a very fun and insightful experience for us so far. We have engaged in different social media and technical challenges, we’ve also had the opportunity to participate in technical training sessions hosted by REV Robotics, and we have gained valuable knowledge from attending STEM talks and interviews of seasoned professionals in STEM. This year by participating in FIRST Global Challenge we have been able to organize a webinar aimed at creating awareness on violence against women and its connection with gender inequality. We also engaged in enlightening young people in our community in different ways they can contribute to the fight against gender inequality. Furthermore, we completed a challenge where we reached out to the Governor of Lagos State, His Excellency Sanwo-Olu, and provided detailed suggestions on how access to STEM education in the state can be improved. These are just some of the exciting challenges we’ve completed. We built meaningful connections with alumni of Team Nigeria and gained first-hand accounts on how impactful this competition is on the lives of participants. Majority of the alumni are currently studying engineering courses at top universities in Nigeria and overseas. FIRST Global has helped to provide them with skills they need to be successful in STEM fields and it has also helped them develop a deeper passion for STEM. They hope to return to Nigeria where they’ll be able to play important and impactful roles in the technological advancement of the nation. As we all know, we live in a world where the rate of technology advancement is extremely high; whether we like or not, in the next 5-10 years the world would have changed drastically from what it is now, implementing more and more automation- hence, we have to keep up! As they say, children are the leaders of tomorrow- we would be the ones in careers, we would be the ones solving significant world problems, and we would be the ones to lead the nation. This is why education in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics is so important. FIRST Global Challenge has made us realize that we need STEM in our day- to –day activities through the various challenges we are being tasked with. Moreover, FIRST Global Challenge is more than just a competition: it is an avenue to prepare us for the future- a future where we would have to think, a future where we would need skills and expertise, a future where we would have to build and innovate, a future where we would have to collaborate with people across the globe to solve globally prominent problems. In Summary, STEM is the future; the world is moving towards this direction. We need to move with it so that we won’t be left behind.
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Michelle Obama once said, ‘The difference between a broken community and a thriving one is the presence of women who are valued.’ Before now, I had written a piece titled We Should All Be Feminist, which was inspired by observing the world through the lenses of Author Chimamanda Ngozie. I was stricken as I realized the danger of our unconscious biases towards females. Unconscious biases are ingrained stereotypes influencing our thoughts, beliefs, and perceptions. We instantly feel unremorseful when we exhibit such biases due to their inherent nature. These biases are everywhere - from our community to our relationships. If you have a brain, you most definitely have, entrenched in your beliefs, these unconscious biases. In the past, these biases were used as survival skills. The cavemen decidedly insinuated what’s dangerous based on pre-existing information stored in their beliefs. Today, unconscious biases have spread to several areas of human life, and prominently has been a significant bane in the workforce. We see an enthusiastic 2-year old girl as ‘too active’ and see her male counterpart as ‘a leader in making.’ We have every notion to believe that Class Monitors should be boys, not girls because boys tend to be better leaders - according to us. We consider women to be ‘kitchen buddies’ and neglect the fact that the majority of chefs in the world are men. When we teach girls to sit right, dress appropriately, we forget to teach boys to develop good morals. We teach girls to be good ‘wife material.’ At the same time, we forget to teach boys to not only be excellent but amazing complements. Chivalry is the requirement for a boy to prove his masculinity to society. When two students a boy and a girl, each having the same pocket money visit a vendor, the boy is often expected to show his masculinity by paying for the goods. Little wonder boys have a higher tendency to steal. An excerpt from We Should All Be Feminist by Author Chimamanda Ngozie Adichie reads this: ‘We are more likely to know our son’s girlfriend, but heaven will fall on earth knowing our daughter’s boyfriend.’ ‘We teach girls to aspire to marriage but forget to teach boys the same. An unmarried woman at a certain age is considered a failure. Conversely, an unmarried man is seen as one yet to find a befitting partner - as though the decision of the best partner is dependent solely on men’. We raise men to see marriage as ownership and not as a partnership. We raise boys to see kitchens as hellfire and to see clubs, viewing centers, and night houses as heaven. What is most saddening, annoying, and shaming is that we raise boys to put their nourishment in the hands of another person. We raise girls to be ambitious but not ‘too ambitious’ so as not to emasculate their husbands. Little wonder there are more women than men in the world today, yet men hold more leadership positions than women. Our girls have been held inherently guilty of being born ‘female.’ It goes without saying that in the past, and unfortunately today, in some parts of Nigeria and the world at large, some still believe giving birth to a girl is the mother’s guilt. I’m sure you’ll most likely approach a man than you would a woman should you have the cause to change your tires by the roadside. Perhaps we don’t understand that the guilt of a female being born is laid, yet, on another female. How many more years do we have left before we begin to see these things? I hesitate to remind the ignoramus jurists of the scientific evidence that the gender of a baby is dependent on the chromosome the father releases. Might I also include the fact that it’s beyond the father’s scope of control? We teach boys to abhor fear, equip them with so-called ‘masculine’ features. Rather than educate them to embrace their weaknesses and humanity, we teach them to be mannequins whose feelings are lacking. The list seems to be endless. To deal with the unconscious biases, all we need is to be conscious of our moral perceptions. What if, instead of teaching our females to be the sole adopters of good morals, we educate boys on the need to shun every form of the immoral acts? What if we teach boys to grow to see women as partners and not possessions? What if the responsibility to pay for goods and services isn’t necessarily attached to a particular gender but to whoever is financially capable? What if a boy isn't expected to show his "masculinity" but his real "humanity"? What if we fault the oppressive perpetrators instead of blaming the victims of gender and domestic violence for their freedoms? Primarily, gender and domestic violence don't arise when perpetrators lose control, but due to their lust for power. What if, instead of attributing a single-story to females, we begin to consider their whole identity in society? It's high time we broke from the single-story of females that's inherent in us, the story of girls being inherently guilty of being born ‘females.’ The danger of a single story is that it creates stereotypes. While these stereotypes may be true (according to some cultural beliefs and not personal notions), these stereotypes are incomplete. Although it’s an inherent stereotype that females are inferior to males, the fact remains that the birth of a male child depends on the presence of the female character. Additionally, the beauty of a particular culture lies not only in its preservation (another single story) but in its advancement and continuity. The answer to gender and domestic violence, sexism, anti-feminism, or any other gender-based violence isn't in politicking, killing and maiming, shaming, and oppressing. It lies in erasing these biases that have been entrenched in our beliefs over the years. In essence, when a farmer sees an unhealthy tree, he doesn't look at the branches for diagnosis; he looks at the root. And like that farmer, we look at the root, not at the branches of humanity, most of whom have never felt the horror of being a victim. The problem isn't rape, sexism, inequality, or any other gender-based violence. The problem is us, caused by us, and symptoms of us. It's due to our desire for masculinity over humanity, oppression over protection, competition over collaboration. So time is of the essence, and only together can we erase those biases. As Lasana Harris, a Neuroscientist at the University College London, said, ‘We all can control that (unconscious bias)". A clichè but true: BE THE CHANGE YOU WANT TO SEE. Pioneers of feminism led the change they desired to achieve gender equality. They attended schools because they wanted females to attend schools. They took jobs simply because they wanted other females to have significant places in the economy. They fought for suffrage because they wanted more female participation in governance. By demonstrating, through our actions, how that school of thought is wrong and unconventional, we can influence many minds. The bottom line is if we wish to amplify the voices of females, then we should take the lead and actively voice our concerns. Data from the UNESCO Institute of Statistics suggests that women make up 60% of college graduates, yet they make up less than 30% of STEM professions. If you want more women in politics, be a woman that is known for political activism. If you want more women in the STEM field, be a woman pursuing Math and Sciences. If you want more women as CEOs of businesses, start a business. Well, if you also want female firefighters, please be one. That makes you a real activist. We won't achieve gender equality by merely drawing on the thoughts, beliefs, and conspiracy theories of others from the corner of a room. When we think of gender equality activists, what pops up shouldn't be the moral grandstanders who use social media as a podium for their activism. More importantly, In the process of fighting shame, oppression, and marginalization, activists should not shame, oppress, and marginalize those who are contradictory to their beliefs. To really nip these biases in the bud, we have to take the bull by the horn. Education, they say, is a powerful weapon to change the world. The only way to gradually erase these unconscious biases is to LEARN, UNLEARN, and RELEARN the premises on which the unconscious biases are built. Essentially, we UNLEARN the unconscious biases inherent in our beliefs, LEARN to deal with the biases personally to reflect equality, and RELEARN what is right rather than what we’re told is right. Lastly, history remembers every social vice in two ways. The first is how we respond to the crisis when it's ‘trending.’ The other is how we live on when it's no longer trending. It’s worth remembering that once we stop fighting for what we want, what we don't want will automatically become our lot. In conclusion, if we desire to eradicate these unconscious biases, and remake the true heritage of humanity, it is entirely up to us. AuthorAbdulrasaq Amolegbe. Fun fact: Planet Earth is 4.5 billion years. Present humans evolved about 200,000 years ago. Civilization? Just 6000 years ago. If we compress 4.5 billion years into one year, that means 144 years would be equal to 1s. In other words, mankind has only been here for – wait for it- 3 seconds. Three seconds!!! Look at what we have done. Species that were here before us and with us are now leaving / have left because of us. Experts have said between 200-2000 species become extinct all during our 3 seconds stay. Leopards are gone, Gorillas, Sea Turtles, Orangutan all gone! Elephant, Rhinos, Chimpanzees gone! We named ourselves “homo sapiens” but with evidence like this, we must ask, are we really wise in our making or we are wise to design paths to our destruction? Fine, we designed machines that gave the earth a new form. We built industries whose exhausts pipes have become source of gases that not only affect humans but innocent plants. Too “wise” to notice the ocean is rising, too “wise” to notice the earth is burning. Too “wise” to know the artic is melting. To “wise” to notice that the ocean is more polluted than ever. Too “wise” to sense the air is more unclean than ever. Too wise to place present profit above the future That’s not wisdom. There’s no time better than now to distinguish between wisdom and intelligence. While intelligence speaks, wisdom listens. While there are speculations on the impact of the current pandemic on global emissions, it’s basically a halt in emission buttons and not delete. In fact, emissions are basically reduced not eradicated. While the “wise” men may be battling the novel coronavirus, we should be prepared for the inevitable consequences of climate actions. Interestingly, weeks or days after the pandemic ends, emissions could double due to the proposed increase in emissions, arising from industrial activities (Quartz news) Three months into the first lockdown in the world, the average concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere was 416.21 parts per million (ppm), the highest since measurements began in Hawaii in 1958. Despite the sarcastic reduction in emissions, the increased quest for electricity should remind us that we are burning more fossil fuel. 64 per cent of the global electricity energy mix comes from fossil fuels (coal: 38 per cent, gas: 23 per cent, oil: 3 per cent), according to the World Energy Outlook 2019. Heating systems have been functioning as before COVID-19. None of the fundamentals have changed (such as the shift to renewable energy, public transport, deforestation). For the world to rally below the 1.5°c, what is needed is not a halt in emissions but a net zero emission as soon as possible. It is extremely far from it that 3 months of slight reductions in emission would make up for the existential threats of climate change. Let's be reminded that even under the governance of a radically aggressive emission, the Carbon in the air has its inevitable consequences. The climate fight is not to prevent the catastrophe but to reduce the level of the inevitable damages. Come to think of it, man has evolved to devise several means of fighting enemy attacks. Let's see what nuclear bomb could be used when fighting the climate menace. Humans may evade or bypass constitutional justice, climate justice is unavoidable! As the world looks towards the post-pandemic era, it is important that we critically consider the type of world we would return to. Several economists are pushing for the end to the lockdown and industries are pleading for a great return. While the hues and cries have been to return to “normal, ” we should, in actual fact, and with a huge sense of humanity consider returning to a greener world. We should no longer return to the normal! We can no longer return to “normal”! The normal where we blinded our eyes to the cries of mother nature. The normal where we closed our eyes to tears of mother earth. The normal where we listened to those who polluted our air and gave excuses for doing so. Should we return to the normal where we were so caught up in our doings, doing nothing? Albeit the normal where placed the rule of gold above the golden rule? I’m not sure it would be okay to return to the normal where what we earned was more important that what we learned from past climate crises. Returning to the normal has far more unimaginable consequences because not only would the rate of emissions increase but accelerate. It goes without saying that the rate of unemployment is becoming its worst in decades and the coming days are laden with uncertainty. With businesses and offices closed, the struggle for a better economy has become a concern among nations. Well accepted and noted! But while returning to a “normal” economy has its set backs on climate policies, it’s been pretty established that a sustainable economy is worth about $12 trillion USD and can create more than 380 million jobs every year (Unilever). Meanwhile, continuing on the current track of emissions could unleash something greater but in the reverse direction. In certain places, six climate- driven natural disasters could strike simultaneously, and, globally, damages could pass $600 trillion—more than twice the wealth that exists in the world today. The pandemic should act as the struggle between returning to the “normal” world and transitioning to a “greener world.” In an attempt to control the effects of the pandemic, governments have plans underway to release stimulus packages. Yet, the stimulus packages, if not properly administered, will strengthen a future pandemic. One that will exceed the capabilities of the government. The stimulus packages, especially the ones given to industries, have the tendency to make industries return to the “normal” and accelerate global emissions. Already, industries are requesting for relaxation of laws enforcing emissions and even as the world plans to reopen, the requests have been granted (EPA). While the Coronavirus pandemic should be a period of reevaluating climate policies, re-integrating climate laws and reconciliation of climate conflicts between countries, it is saddening that some industries see this period as bargains. Hence, this has called for the stimulus package of most governments to be a bridge between fighting the Coronavirus and Climate Change. President Emmanuel Macron recently announce stimulus plans to aid the French aviation industry. This, however, laid great example as the new funding was tied to carbon reduction (Air France). Chile has plans to peak emission by 2025 with strengthened climate policies. The plan includes phasing out coal power, proliferating electric vehicles, increased tree-planting, and reduced tree-cutting. (Chile Climate News.) Although, these actions come at a cost especially during this period of uncertainty, the benefits extend to the future. Hence, it is imperative that as the world battles and prepares for the post-pandemic era, leaders at various level should strike the balance between returning to the “normal,” and transitioning to a greener world. The coronavirus has reminded us that prevention is rather better than cure and we shouldn’t wait to see the effects of any pandemic before we respond. Both the Coronavirus and Climate change are global issues. But even as the world leaves the trap of the virus, climate justice has turned out to be inevitable. The beginning of the post-covid era shouldn’t mark the end of climate policies. Let’s be reminded that climate change is a global crisis that has called for a global response. As a result, in order to prevent global suffering, we must assume global responsibility. Because the problem isn’t environmental destruction, deforestation, animal extinction or global warming. The problem is US! Caused by US! Symptoms of US! By-products of US! Then, no matter what we are fighting for –be it terrorism, racism, feminism, gay rights or any form of equality, it won’t matter if we don’t all work to save mother nature, we would all be extinct. Happy World Environmental Day Celebration!! AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview.
A man by the name Mark Twain once said “My schooling doesn’t have to get in my way of education” In recent times, evidence has shown that while schools claim to prepare students for the future, schools are merely preparing students for the past. In the future, most jobs will become automated and the ones who succeed will have to be innovative, curious, creative, with the ability to adapt to rising changes. In the future, most people won't be hired because of what they know because who cares what facts and data you’ve memorized? In the future, people will be hired because of what they can do with their knowledge. Can they solve devise new solutions to real-life questions and not just bubble in multiple-choice answers? Fun fact: the leading criteria for employment in the future would be the acquisition of soft skills. There’s a hard reason why employees are placing focus on soft skills. In my opinion, it's because soft skills cannot be replaced by automation. Machines can’t compete with emotional intelligence, creativity, and curiosity. Hence, there's a need for students to bring such skills to their skill board if students are to be prepared for the future and not the past. The following are 10 tips for HS students.
2 Embrace Collaboration. In a report by Salesforce, 86% of employees and executives cite a lack of collaboration or ineffective communication for workplace failures. Small businesses lose tens of thousands of income when there’s no collaboration. Lack of collaboration has greatly affected companies that they are on the lookout to hire the right team members. An African proverb says “if there’s no enemy within then the enemy outside can do us no harm. With the increasing pace and pressure of today’s workplace, collaborating with others is an indispensable skill that new workers need to possess before getting on the job and continue to develop while they are there. 3. Develop Good Time Management Skills. Usually, schools should equip students with skills that are useful not just on the test day but for a lifetime. It’s quite unfortunate that most students manage time wisely when it comes to bubbling in multiple-choice questions but fail woefully at the test of time in real-life issues. Yes! Time waits for no man- not even the wealthiest in the world. Time is a constant factor in everyday life. No matter the day of the week, there will always be 24 hours in a day. Striking a balance between the increasing workload and the constant number of hours portrays good time management skills. 4. Give Room For Flexibility. In fact, an important skill necessary to thrive in future jobs is flexibility. Flexibility means the ability to adapt to changes and the potential to manage those changes. Otherwise termed adaptability, flexibility revolves round most soft skills. As changes in everyday life occur, responding and adjusting to such changes might sound harsh but it’s way more important than we think. 5 Have a Vision For Yourself: The beginning of a powerful transformation starts with developing a mental blueprint with the exact specification of how you want your life to look. It’s often said that someone without a vision will end up in a state of confusion. Having a vision helps you to develop your mindset and to explore the realm of unlimited possibilities. What kind of life do you want to live? What kind of friends do you want to keep? How do you want your finances to look? The people without a vision often end up in confusion, especially during hard situations. Everything that has been in existence was once in a state of imagination so everything that will be, most likely have to be products of imagination. Do I need to remind you that you can receive whatever it is you can conceive? A cliché but true. Until people laugh at you because of your vision, you haven’t really envisioned something great. Why? People won’t laugh at you if you plan to do something small. Just so you know that someone else’s opinion about you doesn’t have to become your reality. 6. Seek and Engage in valuable extracurricular activities. Experience is an important criterion often considered in workplaces. Someone who has gained traction by volunteering at a research laboratory would have an edge when applying for a research job in the future. As a high school student, identify your passion and build your extra-curricular activities around your passion. The high school period is a great time to build fantastic extras. Do you want to work at NASA but feel no urge to even join the JETS club in your school? Perhaps, you desire to be a topnotch artist but you have never visited the studio in your school? The book of life says do not despise days of little beginning. Remember that it is better to be prepared for an opportunity and not have it at the moment than to have an opportunity and not be prepared. 7. Read About Your Role Models. It is often said that nothing new is under the sun. Identify major personages in your field and try to find a way to reach them. Should there be difficulty in reaching them, read about them. Stories often inspire one to aspire beyond the owner of the story. An error does not become a mistake until you refuse to correct it. Make attempts to identify the errors of leading people in your field and work your way to avoid those errors. Finally, bear in mind that life’s not a bed of roses. In life, disasters, tragedies, and crises are everywhere. The beginning of disaster is not the moment you aren’t achieving your dreams or goals. Rather, disaster is having no goal to achieve. The tragedy of life doesn’t occur when you aren’t at par with your dreams. Real tragedy occurs when you have no dreams to accomplish. Crises don't befall you when you aren’t securing the bag. A real crisis occurs when you have no bag to secure. |