The Turnbull Government is providing $8 million to support women in science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM), and Entrepreneurship.
Applications are now open for grants of up to $250,000 to support outreach projects aimed at girls and women to foster interest in STEM and entrepreneurship, to develop innovation and entrepreneurial skills, and to build professional networks.
The Women in STEM and Entrepreneurship programme will contribute to gender equality and economic growth by driving systemic change and improving career opportunities and pathways for women.
We want to promote and support women as entrepreneurs and innovators.
We know that women are still under-represented in many STEM areas.
Only one in four IT graduates and fewer than one in ten engineering graduates are women.
Women occupy fewer than one in five senior researcher positions in Australian universities and research institutes, and only make up around one quarter of the STEM workforce overall.
The Women in STEM and Entrepreneurship programme provides funding for eligible organisations and consortia to develop and deliver programmes that open doors for women.
It also provides funding to identify and celebrate STEM role models in science and research, entrepreneurship and corporate leadership to inspire school-age girls.
The $8 million programme builds on other National Innovation and Science Agenda initiatives designed to support girls and women.
The Government will provide a further $2 million over the next three years to support an expansion of the Science in Australia Gender Equity project (SAGE), led by the Australian Academy of Science and the Australian Academy of Technological Science and Engineering.
Over time SAGE will drive cultural change in universities and other research organisations by helping to eliminate gender bias and develop an inclusive culture.
Another $2 million has been committed to a new project based on the Male Champions of Change model and aimed at STEM-based and entrepreneurial industries.
Organisations or consortiums that have an interest in supporting women in STEM and entrepreneurship can find more information on the grants, including application forms at www.business.gov.au