ACM Celebrates Women's History Month, March 2024
During Women’s History Month this year, ACM will shine a spotlight on the groundbreaking accomplishments of women in computing. We will celebrate their contributions through a selection of past People of ACM interviews, ByteCast episodes, TechTalks sessions, and snippets from previous diversity panels curated by ACM and displayed on ACM’s social media accounts. Furthermore, in collaboration with Rob O’Connor’s podcast, The Machine, ACM Fellow Nuria Oliver will make a guest speaker appearance.
The Machine is a computer science podcast hosted by Rob O'Connor from South East Technology University of Ireland (SETU). Episodes of The Machine feature other faculty members, students, and alumni of SETU as they explore a variety of topics related to computing and technology. To celebrate Women's History Month and in collaboration with ACM, Rob spoke with ACM Fellow Nuria Oliver about her work, such as using big data systems to help unbanked people access credit in developing nations or combating bias in AI systems. Nuria recountered how she first became interested in computer and her career journey. They also discussed the gender imbalance in computing today and Nuria offered some thought-provoking suggestions as to how these issues might be addressed.
Host
Rob O’Connor is a lecturer in the Dept. of Computing & Mathematics at South East Technological University of Ireland (SETU). His areas of expertise include computer science, audio/visual media and content production. Since 2017, Rob has been producing and presenting academic podcasts at SETU, including The Machine, 9plus and The Nerve. This has led to an interest in Science Communication and research into the field of Podcast Studies.
Guest Speaker
Nuria Oliver is Scientific Director of the ELLIS Alicante Foundation, also known as The Institute of Humanity-Centric AI. She is co-founder and Vice-President of ELLIS and holds a PhD from the Media Lab at MIT and an Honorary Doctorate from Miguel Hernández University. Oliver is the first female computer scientist in Spain to be named both an ACM Distinguished Scientist (2015) and an ACM Fellow (2017). She is well known for her work in computational models of human behavior, human computer-interaction, mobile computing and big data for social good. According to Research.com, Oliver is the Spanish female computer scientist with the largest scientific impact (2022-2024).
ACM Celebrates Diversity in Computing & Technology
At ACM, our commitment to diversity, inclusion, and equity is fundamental to our mission. Diverse perspectives, backgrounds, and experiences enrich the ACM community and strengthen ACM’s ability to support the computing communities globally. By acknowledging and celebrating the unique qualities of diverse membership, ACM cultivates an inclusive environment where all are supported and empowered to inspire and assist others. Awareness months are a time dedicated to reflection, education, and engagement to understand and embrace the diverse backgrounds within the ACM community. We invite you to join ACM in these celebrations as we strive to create inclusive and equitable environments for all within the computing community.
How Diverse Is Your Team?
ACM's Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Council is an essential resource for SIGs, conferences, boards, and councils looking for best practices to improve diversity in their organization and develop programs with a broader reach in the computing community. Our guide provides examples of both inherent and acquired characteristics, which should be taken into consideration when looking at ways to improve the diversity of your team.
Words Matter
As part of ACM’s efforts to combat exclusion in the computing profession, ACM's Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Council has launched an effort to replace offensive or exclusionary terminology in the computing field. They have developed a list of computing terms to be avoided in professional writing and presentations and offer alternative language. The Council plans to expand this list in the future and invites the community to submit suggestions for consideration.
