Hi #smartcommunity friends! In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast I have a really great conversation with Hannah Beder. Hannah is a technology lead, educator, and NSW Young Woman of the Year 2020. Hannah spends her time developing technology curriculums and education products which promote entrepreneurship, encourage creative expression through technology, and prepare young people for the future of work. In this episode Hannah starts by telling us about her background in software engineering, her current work as a technology educator, and her passion for women in tech. Hannah then shares with us how she came to be a software engineer and we discuss the importance of changing the narrative around STEM conversations, so young people feel more confident to pursue STEM careers. Hannah then shares a bit about some of the projects she has been working on, before she discusses some of the factors she sees deterring women from STEM careers, and we talk about the importance of creative flexibility in Smart Communities. We finish our chat discussing the emerging trends of how people are starting to discover what really matters to them and how they impact the world through their work. As always, we hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as we enjoyed making it!

Listen here: 

What we cover in this episode:

• Hannah’s background in software engineering and her current work as a technology educator 
• Her passion for women in tech and preparing young people for the future of work 
• What a Smart Community means to Hannah 
• How Hannah became to be a software engineer 
• The importance of changing the narrative around STEM conversations so young people feel more confident to pursue STEM careers 
• A bit about some of the projects Hannah has been working on at her current company Creatable 
• Some of the factors deterring women from STEM careers 
• The importance of creative flexibility in Smart Communities 
• The emerging trends of finding meaning in life, and how people are starting to discover what really matters to them and how they impact the world through their work 

Quotes: 

“I’m passionate about women in technology specifically, and the future of work and how young people can prepare for it.”

“A Smart Community is one that is able to thrive together. For me, the emphasis is on the community, rather than the smart, because ‘smart’ is an enhancement on top of something that already exists.”

“Me being good at maths doesn’t make me good at all this problem solving and teamwork and, you know, creativity, there’s a lot more that goes into it. And I wish that people knew that careers are much more diverse than the courses you take at school or university. Things are very siloed. And Smart Communities is a perfect example of the nexus of many different things.”

“We taught hundreds of students over the last couple of years. Creatables has been running that programme since 2016, or 2017. So we’re actually starting to see the return in that past students approaching us asking, if we have work experience available, they’re coming to us and seeing if we are able to advise them on their decisions for what degrees to take at university. You know, when it sticks, it really sticks, which is amazing.”

“There’s a lot of documented research about perceived maths ability and confidence. And when technology is presented as this inherently mathematical process, it means those two things can converge in a way that is detrimental to women and other minorities who are susceptible to feeling left out.”

“In technology, it’s really a process of constantly learning new things, the landscape changes, the tech moves on, new frameworks come out. The only way to be able to stay on top is to be a quick and effective learner.”

“The trend that I’m seeing is people starting to admit to themselves, what makes them tick, what makes them get out of bed in the morning, and search for a job where they can combine skills that they have with an impact on the world.”

“As the world opens up again, and as we find ourselves having more varied experiences available to us, maybe again, jobs don’t need to be what fulfills you. And that’s totally fine as well.”

Links: 

Creatable 

Connect:

Find the full show notes at: www.mysmart.community 

Connect with Hannah via LinkedIn 

Connect with me via email: hello@mysmart.community  

Connect with My Smart Community via LinkedIn or Twitter and watch on YouTube

The Smart Community Podcast is produced by Perk Digital