(Montreal) The Order of the White Rose, awarded in honor of the victims of feminicide at Polytechnique Montreal, was awarded to Willow Dew, who followed in her mother’s footsteps in chemical engineering. The University of Alberta graduate finds that there are still barriers for women in engineering, even 32 years after the tragedy of December 6, 1989.
The 23-year-old recipient says she herself faced sexism during her studies. The student remembers an internship where she was refused the opportunity to go to the field, on the pretext that it was not a place for women.
“So I didn’t have this opportunity to learn. It is this kind of thing which is not always very aggressive like barrier, but which prevents us from feeling welcome in the world of the genius ”, told the Albertaine in French, to The Canadian Press.
“I think people accept more that women can be engineers, […] that our gender does not determine our future. But it takes time and work, ”added Mme Dew, on the sidelines of a ceremony Thursday where she was awarded a $ 30,000 scholarship.
The prejudices she faced are far from having discouraged Willow Dew from pursuing her path in engineering. She decided to undertake a master’s degree in France in the field of biological and chemical engineering for a sustainable bioeconomy.
“These are the biological processes to meet the needs of our society, either in terms of energy or products,” she explained. What interests me most is energy based on plants, biomass. I think this is the future of energy and non-oil and gas based products. ”
She then wants to pursue a doctorate and focus on research to develop technologies related to renewable energy.
The student was quickly introduced to the world of engineering thanks to her two engineering parents. “They made me see the world through the eyes of an engineer. Even when I was 10 or 12, I think I knew I wanted to be an engineer later, ”she said.
A source of inspiration and confidence, his mother was also an engineering student when the Polytechnique Montreal massacre occurred, killing 14 women.
Mme Dew finds it “moving” to have been decorated with the Order of the White Rose in memory of these victims. “It is essential as an engineer to honor those students who were in our place before us,” said Ms.me Dew in his address.
The seventh recipient encourages young women to get into engineering despite the barriers and intolerance still present. She argues that more than 50% of the population must be able to be part of the reflection on climate change.
The awarding of the Order of the White Rose is part of a week of commemoration of the killing. The memory of the 14 victims is honored in a series of activities that ends on December 6, the day of the anti-feminist attack.
At 8:30 a.m. next Monday, representatives and student associations from Polytechnique Montréal will come and lay wreaths of white roses in front of the commemorative plaque located outside the establishment.
In the evening at 5:10 p.m., the time at which the first shots were fired, 14 light beams will be lit skyward a few seconds apart, from Mount Royal. However, no gathering will take place due to the pandemic, but Polytechnique Montréal is planning a live broadcast on its social networks.
The public is also invited to observe a minute of silence during the event.
This article has been produced with the financial support of the Facebook Stock Exchanges and The Canadian Press for News.