Women and non-binary individuals are woefully underrepresented as speakers at professional technology events as shown by recent research in Washington, DC and Austin. This lack of representation can have far-reaching effects. Marginalized groups miss out on opportunities to be presented as leaders or experts in their fields. They are less likely to feel welcome to such groups, missing out on valuable learning and networking opportunities.
http://wespeaktoo.org/ hopes to help close that gap.
It is a list of women and non-binary people in participating cities who are interested in speaking at professional data and tech events. Please share this website and encourage women and non-binary people in your life to add themselves!
You can fork this repo and add your name directly to the speaker.json in your city's folder. You can also check the your city's webpage and email the main contact your information.
Public speaking is a great skill to have. Speaking at a professional event can help establish yourself in the field, expand your skill base, make new connections, and looks great on a resume to boot. Giving a talk is also one of the best ways to solidify knowledge. Beyond personal benefits, the very presence of women and non-binary speakers at professional events can help promote diversity, dispel notions of what an "expert" looks like, and encourage others to join the field or take a more visible role.
- You don't need to be an expert to speak on a subject. In fact, sometimes it's the best way to learn something new! You might not even have found your footing yet. One recent tech meetup was a fresh-out-of-undergrad giving a talk on finding a job and his way in the industry.
- You don't need to have every column filled to be on this list. Don't have a twitter account? Don't have a language or software to add? That's okay!
- There is no baseline for a talk to be "techy" enough. Don't think your talk or knowledge is "techy" enough? Nonsense! There are many, many backgrounds fit for a good data or tech talk - project management, media, design, and more.
- Public speaking isn't as scary as you think, and you might even like it. I promise! Practice can prove that. Start where you like, maybe a smaller meetup or roundtable discussion. It definitely won't be a nightmare; you definitely won't be naked. You can do it!
This project took shape over a weekend in Washington, DC. Unfortunately, the gender speaker gap is in no way limited to DC. The research and website are both open source and easily reproducible for your city. The most important element is local advocate(s) to engage the city's tech community. If you think that's you send me an email at datalensdc@gmail.com.