'There are so many outstanding women in science not getting the recognition they deserve'

On International Day of Women and Girls in Science, we place a spotlight on Physicist Dr Jess Wade, 30, who takes time out of her day job to edit the Wikipedia profiles of unknown female scientists for all to see

Having now amassed a portfolio of more than 900 new pages over two years, Dr Wade, who is a research associate at Imperial College London, remains dedicated to improving representation of not only women in STEM, but also people of colour and LGBTQ+ scientists via Wikipedia

Lift others as you climb. I love celebrating the achievements of others, both online and offline. If you see someone doing something outstanding, nominate them for an award, or tell them they’re fantastic. Don’t be afraid of asking for help, either. Find a mentor who will advocate for your brilliance.

Make time for what’s important. Working in research means you’re always on your toes. There’s lots of lab time, meetings and data analysis and because of this, I do my Wiki profile work out of hours. There are so many outstanding people doing wonderful things in science but not getting the recognition they deserve – it is an immense privilege to document their stories.

Never stop reading. A life-changing event for me was reading Angela Saini’s book, Inferior: How Science Got Women Wrong – And The New Research That’s Rewriting The Story. It looks at how biased researchers have used bad science to make claims about women’s inferiority. Angela’s book taught me how wrong they were, but also about the women who, throughout history, have called them out. This inspired my Wikipedia editing, and I took it all over the world to give to scientists I met, before starting my campaign.

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