Come on, girls!

Without consulting or knowing each other, in 2016, they decided to become sponsors of the association «Elles bougent». Aim: to reach out to high school students to encourage them to do scientific and technical studies. Marie Planckaert, a reservoir engineer, returned to CSTJF (Pau) in 2015, after two expatriations, in Norway and CanadaPays CanadaShow more. Blandine Cailly, head of DATAGATE for IGR, was recruited by Total in 2014, after several missions for the Group in Nigeria, Scotland and Congo. Both are graduates of the Ecole Nationale Supérieure de Géologie in Nancy. Together, they tackle gender stereotypes that have a hard life, regardless of social background!

“In 15 years, almost nothing has changed”
“At the end of my studies, I was thinking about parity,” explains Marie Planckaert, who is preparing her next expatriation in QatarPays QatarShow more. “If there is no more discrimination in hiring, ten years later, with equal experience, the barrier to promotion remains real for women. The famous glass ceiling! After 15 years in the Group, I note that the scale still weighs heavily on the side of men who access more easily, more quickly and to a greater number of positions with responsibilities. This photograph of another time made me want to act! The presentation of the association «Elles bougent» at the CSTJF by the sponsors of the Safran group was decisive. I was seduced by the idea of promoting engineering in schools through my experience.”

"The weight of family, teachers and society”
“One of the challenges of our action is that tomorrow there will be many more women in positions of responsibility,” tells Blandine Cailly. Parity in management functions is essential so that the profession of engineer is not considered only as masculine, and to avoid the reproduction of a pattern still rooted in mentalities. For simplicity, men tend to choose men…As sponsors, we meet high school students aged 14 to 18. I am surprised – in 2019 – to see the obstacles that these young girls are talking about – the length and difficulty of engineering studies, the fear of failure, engineer as a man’s job, the compatibility with family life, a choice that is not recommended by parents or…teachers, the fear of going abroad... Clearly, at the age of 15, boys see themselves as masters of the world while girls often project themselves into domestic tasks! However, girls are as many as boys to complete an S baccalaureate and attain better results.”

"Models for Encouraging Vocations”
Behind every sponsor, “Elles bougent”, there is a model, a success story, a story of a woman who found her place in society with science. Passionate engineers who want to share their career in a very concrete way. During the 2018-2019 school year, we went to several high schools (Tarbes, Pau, Mont-de-Marsan, Bayonne) for the Feminist Engineer Science Day and as part of career guidance. We also met with the 3rd grader of Jeanne d'Albret College in Pau and hosted a “Elles bougent” stand on the occasion of the Open House Days of the CSTJF… We raised all subjects: orientation, studies, schools, pathways, job market, trades, qualifications, wages, hours, family life… Measuring the impact of our action is complex, we shake up conventional thinking, and we encourage young girls to ask questions and move beyond “clichés”. Sometimes boys are associated, because change also happens through them, sometimes we only meet girls to preserve their freedom of expression.”

• “Elles bougent ” is backed by the internal TWICE network
• 25 active sponsors at CSTJF (Pau)