On 9 October, coinciding with the celebration of Ada Lovelace Day, the engineer considered to have been the first programmer in history, the Department of Information and Communication Technologies (DTIC) at UPF, María de Maeztu Unit of Excellence, announced the third edition of the Wisibilízalas competition. As Anna Freire, a researcher and teacher of the DTIC and organizer mentions:  “We must highlight the significant growth experienced by this initiative which is increasingly known about and anticipated. This year, the number of participants has almost tripled”.

“We must highlight the significant growth experienced by this initiative which is increasingly known about and anticipated. This year, the number of participants has almost tripled”.

For this third edition there was a total of 692 students; Spanish from centres in Andalusia, Cantabria, Catalonia, Valencia, Galicia, the Balearic Islands and Navarre; as well as Latin American, from Ecuador, Mexico and Venezuela.

The aim of the competition is to combat gender stereotypes that lead scientific and technological tasks to be associated with men. The purpose is to give visibility to the role of women in the field of information and communication technologies. For this reason, participants must create a website where they outline the professional career of at least two contemporary women from Spain or Latin America in this area.

“More than 240 new profiles of women who are working in the field of technology in Spain and Latin America have been brought to light”

For this third edition of Wisibilízalas, “more than 240 new profiles of women who are working in the field of technology in Spain and Latin America have been brought to light”, explains Freire.

The first prize was won by a proposal by a Venezuelan centre

On Saturday 1 June, on UPF’s Poblenou campus and within the framework of activities related to Women in Technology Day 2019, the competition prizes were awarded. This year the first prize went to Instituto Educacional Asociado - El Peñón de Venezuela, whose members developed a website to publicize Venezuelan women working in the ICT field and thus promote scientific careers among young women.

The prizes for the winning teams consisted of a first, a second and a third prize of 1,000, 600 and 400 euros respectively as well as one prize for impact on social networks, worth 500 euros. These amounts were granted in the form of Ultra-lab  vouchers to be exchanged for 3D printers, technology games, computer equipment, etc.

Wisibilízalas is open to participation by any educational institution in Spain and Latin America in teams of students aged 12 to 18 years. Children under 12 can enter for the special Wisibilízalas Junior prize. This year’s competition included a new category, a special prize for impact on social networks.

The Wisibilízalas competition is funded by Nae, as the main sponsor, as well as Google and Zurich Technology Delivery Center, and is supported by 500 Women Scientist Madrid, Wikimujeres, Principa, Ultra-lab, MTech and UPF Equality.

Winning teams by category and honourable mentions

Junior category

1^st Prize: IEA - El Peñón, Venezuela

2^nd Prize: CEIP Huerta del Carmen, Sevilla

3^rd Prize: Colegio Ártica, Madrid 

Senior category

1^st Prize: Shakespeare School, Ecuador 

2^nd Prize: IES Brión, A Coruña 

3^rd Prize: Colegio Maria Immaculada de Tremp, Lleida

Social Networks Impact Award 

Single prize: IES Monte das Moas, A Coruña

Honorary mentions 

Best Web Design: Equidarios (Mexico) 

Greatest number of profiles: Institut Gorgs, Barcelona 

Dissemination in multiple media: IES l’Estació, Valencia 

Internationalization: Colegio San José de la Montaña, Palma de Mallorca