Hidden Figures Award

Name

Company Title

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Nour el Houda Bourbia

“Houda is a dedicated and motivating person who has encouraged me to achieve goals that I did not think I could achieve. She built me up when I didn’t believe in myself. She has given me new opportunities and introduced me to people who can help me with my goals. She believed in me when even though I did not believe in myself. She encouraged and challenged me at a time when I was trying to find myself and always kept me aware of what I could achieve in life. I could always rely on Houda. She always made time for me and listened to me and made sure I kept progressing. She voluntarily took me under her wing as her coachee and has been a strong role model for me over the last few years.

She and her sister also put this quality into practice in their NGO “Backpack2School”. They support teachers in their training so that they can teach students from all backgrounds in the best possible way. In a world where a traditional classroom is becoming more and more diverse, they have seen the importance of this aspect. As a child of migrants, I know how important it is that teachers know and understand the needs of all students. For me, Houda is not only a role model as a woman in STEM, but also as a human being in life.”

Nesrin and Houda Bourbia were born in Algeria and migrated to Switzerland at the age of eight. They experienced integration into a new society firsthand and understand the importance of inclusive classrooms. In 2018 they founded backpack2school to realize a program that aims to prepare the teachers of tomorrow for the increasingly multicultural classroom. The founders want every single child to have the opportunity to thrive in the
classroom, irrespective of their background.”

In my eyes, Houda is not aware of how much she does for society as a whole. She puts a lot of heart and soul into Backpack2School which shows a lot of grace. In addition, Houda always wants others to shine and feel great about their own achievements. It is about time that she shines and that she feels good about everything she achieved so far. An award would finally give her the recognition she deserves.

Lisa Weinzierl started her professional career in banking and auditing. Through her master’s degree in Business & Economics with a major in “Quantitative Methods” and her first programming experiences, she discovered data and its closely related IT sector for herself.

After three years of external Data & IT consulting as a data scientist, Lisa had since 2022 two roles at Swiss Post: Head of Data & Insights and Head of Artificial Intelligence. She is shaping the company-wide understanding and usability of Data & AI. With passion she is leading the topic and the strategy execution of both components in Data & AI.

Tanja Vainio is originally from Finland and holds a degree in mechanical engineering from Tampere University of Technology and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) as well as an MBA from MIT. In addition to her work at Schneider Electric, she has also been a member of the Board of Directors at Franke Group since 2021. Tanja Vainio is married and has three children. 

As a member of the Fossil Foundation Innovation Committee, Christine maintains close relationships with charities worldwide, supporting their missions and the communities they serve. Over the years, she has played a pivotal role in mentoring programs focused on empowering girls, women, and underserved youth, consistently sharing her expertise and insights to nurture the next generation of changemakers.

Beyond her professional responsibilities, Christine is a dedicated ally in diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), committed to creating a fairer and better future for all.

Anna Maria Blengino

Note from the nominator:

Eleonore Poli

Note from the nominator:

Dr. Eleonore Poli is a material scientist and engineer, with top scientific skills, possesses true leadership and management genius, and the utmost passion. She is a strong, motivated, empathetic and funny person, who is curious about everything and everyone around her. I met Eleonore when she was creating her own organisation, CHASM, for which I am nominating her, and completing her PhD. She wished to collaborate with Mars Society UK to help in setting a conference and she had contacted me – and we worked together for several years following that. She showed true diligence, motivation, incredible organisational skills and versatility and was a pleasure to work with. She spends most of her time working, learning and pushing boundaries forward. Since I met her, 3 years ago, she has gone through difficult times but always persevered, and has completed her PhD, created several organisations, taught classes and developed new classes and even done missions and expeditions. She is an inspiration for all, from her passion but also her incredible motivation skill set, and energy to share and bring everyone forwards with her.

Edith Schnapper

Note from the nominator:

Edith is a passionate and dynamic woman dedicated to bridging gaps and fostering connections across various fields. Her commitment to inspiring the next generation of women in technology is unparalleled.

Edith leads the Swiss TecLadies program, an initiative aimed at attracting more young girls to technical and IT careers. Her innovative approach has transformed the landscape, encouraging a new wave of female talent in STEM fields.

Through her mentorship program, Edith and her dedicated team provide individualized support to girls aged 14 to 19. Each mentee is paired with an active female mentor in a scientific or technical profession, ensuring personalized guidance and inspiration.

Edith’s passion for connecting people from diverse backgrounds is evident in her work. She creates a supportive community that empowers young women to explore and excel in technical fields, fostering a sense of belonging and confidence.

Olivia Menzi

Note from the nominator:

Olivia is a game-changer. For days, she helped out at her grandparents’ dairy farm – she was particularly fascinated by processes, mechanics, and technology. Since there was no agricultural machinery mechanic nearby, she opted instead for an apprenticeship as a polytechnic. Later in her career, Olivia founded several companies, successfully designed digital solutions, and managed to save 25.8 tons of bananas on the side. Bringing the right people to the table, thinking outside the box, finding solutions together, and implementing them – these are still the qualities that define Olivia as a managing director of the food-tech start-up and NPO Circunis today.

For years, Olivia has been advocating for the meaningful use of technology and turning good ideas into reality when the time is right. She is a true game changer, as evidenced by Circunis.ch. She has what it takes to make an impact and set the wheels in motion.

Marion Schleifer

Note from the nominator:

Marion Schleifer is an exceptional leader and mentor in the technology industry. Her work focuses on empowering women in developing countries to achieve their dreams in technology. As the co-founder of Code Blossom, she created a non-profit organization that provides a free certification program to help women find jobs in the tech industry. Her technical skills combined with her passion for teaching and community involvement make her an inspiring role model. Marion is not only a dedicated and experienced professional but also has strong leadership qualities and is always ready to support and encourage those around her.

Marion Schleifer is one of the founders of Code Blossom – a non-profit organization that focuses on technology education and women’s empowerment in developing countries. Code Blossom provides a free certification program aimed at women in these regions. Code Blossom’s mission is to provide women with marketable skills by empowering them to become full-stack developers through comprehensive training that includes hands-on experience.

Upon completion of the program, Code Blossom helps graduates find internships or jobs, launching them into technology careers. The organization believes in empowerment through education, preparing women for the job market by teaching them the most in-demand technologies. Code Blossom also emphasizes equality through education, giving women in developing countries the autonomy and independence to thrive in often male-dominated cultures. Additionally, the organization fosters a sense of community by encouraging women to support each other while providing targeted mentorship to support the next generation of women in technology. This holistic approach not only equips women with technical skills but also creates a support network that promotes ongoing growth and empowerment.

Ute Drechsler

Note from the nominator:

Ute is an essential member of the Operations Team of the BRNC cleanroom, a shared facility between ETH Zurich and IBM Research. 
She is a nanofabrication expert with decades of experience in both production and research cleanrooms and has enabled groundbreaking research and technologies throughout the years. 
The Operations Team has the role to keep the cleanroom running smoothly and Ute does this excellently by driving innovative technological processes, handling energetically her day-to-day tasks and taking great care not only of the equipment and infrastructure, but also of all its users and their requests. She has helped, guided and inspired hundreds of students and researchers at different levels of their careers, with technical and professional advice. Her real strength is in using her technical skills to innovate and support users, constantly being available and helping them also in challenging projects while updating her skills to meet their needs. She enjoys her work and is always present in the cleanroom, where she comes up with innovative nanofabrication processes, makes sure that everything is in order and quickly addresses any issue that comes up, often bringing new ideas to improve the workflow. She loves nanofabrication and treats the cleanroom like her own home, always on the lookout to help others. 
Ute has mentored many women in various stages of their careers with encouragement, practical advice and no-nonsense attitude. She has empowered several women in the founding and growing phases of start-ups, by providing open and gentle reality checks on the planned fabrication. Critically, she went out of her way to minimize the fabrication steps (therefore costs and complexity) for start-up products, often working behind the scenes to leverage common material purchases and fabrication steps to help start-ups. This was only possible due to her warm personality, affection towards innovative young people, and optimistic attitude. Her combination of the helpful and communicative personality is a role model to many women who want to offer their expertise while establishing healthy boundaries.

Nina Habicht

Note from the nominator:

Nina is a prominent female AI tech entrepreneur in CH, having successfully bootstrapped two AI companies. With her extensive experience as an AI Product Director at UBS and builder of chatbots for SBB, local search, Swiss Post and more she is recognized AI expert. She trains over 300 people/month on Gen.AI, from strategy to prompt engineering. Dedicated to educating about AI’s opportunities, risks, and biases, she contributes significantly to a more inclusive and secure AI future.

Laura Tocmacov

Note from the nominator:

She’s one of the world’s most innovative, curious and clever women. As Wonderwoman she fights for a better world, dignity, knowledge and good mental health. She is Wonderwan!

She works in innovation, especially AI about adopting new technology, “ethic” diversity and inclusion through the workplace.

Elsa Callini

Note from the nominator:

Dr. Elsa Callini is a physicist by training, but an innovator, connector, and empowerHER at heart. She uses her vast academic (EMPA & EPFL) and industry experience (Business Development & Sales @ ebeam Technologies & METAS) to support researchers and students on their 1st entrepreneurial steps as an integral part of the Innovation Office of the University of Bern.
In addition, being a woman in the STEM field, she experienced first-hand which struggles and challenges females are going through and knows what would have been helpful and empowHERing in these moments.

This is how “Women who start up – bring your idea to life” was born. The urge to make sure current and future generations of women in STEM, and specifically those choosing to move forward into academic entrepreneurship, find a place of exchange and inspiration.
On top of all that, Elsa is a great person to work with and be surrounded by: Always having an open ear, thoughtful questions to broaden your horizon, or tips to make it through a challenging situation.