International Women’s Day

Dalia AlOurfali

Many people do not believe in female leadership due to the enormous challenges women face; such as balancing responsibilities, fear of failure and gender inequality.

My personal challenge, being a full time architect and a mother of two is balancing commitments and aiming to excel in the workplace. Overcoming everyday obstacles with passion leads to success and reminds me that there is no limit to what women can accomplish.

A promising future is awaiting women in the UAE as it is an up and coming country in gender equality in the region which paves the way for women to excel and pioneer.

Lilly Sanderson

When I began to reflect about women in the industry who had inspired me, I was surprised at how quickly my list grew.

It started with my older sister who encouraged me to join her in studying Civil Engineering at University. The large lecture theatres dominated by males was a little intimidating but joining the Women in Engineering Society I found a sense of belonging and was especially impressed by the 4th year student president who confidently led the club.

In my first job were two senior women working flexible hours. I was impressed by their work efficiency and professional manor and appreciated all the unofficial mentoring and advice I gained from them.

Here at BDP I continue to be surrounded and supported by so many amazing women. I have a female mentor and manager, both of who inspire me with their work ethic and commitment, offering me invaluable inspiration and guidance to be a better engineer, hopefully enabling me to make a greater contribution to the industry!

Being a Woman in the Construction Industry by Aula Al Khayat

Being a woman of an ethnic minority as well as an architect in the construction industry has always been the biggest challenge in my carrier. Over the last 20 years, I have worked on both small and large regeneration projects, I have always approached any challenge with an open mind, determination and a positive attitude.

In my own architectural experience, I have often been the only woman in a meeting and found it hard to be heard at times. However, I see it as an opportunity to stand out as well as a source of motivation to express my opinions with the support and encouragement I get from the BDP Team.

I believe the future in construction is very bright with the creation of modern technologies which have opened up new opportunities for women in this industry.

Karolin Schmidt

I never took much notice of being an outsider in the profession during university. I think this stemmed from my experience of a course bursting with creative female architects.

My revelation occurred when I entered the working world and was greeted by rooms, within which I am often the sole woman. This led to a sense of insecurity and difficulty to maintain my own voice.

However, I think that the world is changing for the better due to the hard work of the amazing women currently in the industry and I have great excitement about being a part of that change.

Swati Kashyap Singh

These are exciting times to be a woman in architecture. There is an increased awareness and a sense of responsibility in the profession to provide equal opportunities and pay to both women and men on similar positions. Opportunities to work from home will ensure we do not lose women in their mid-careers. Women in leadership roles need to be the torch bearers for this change.

The challenges are what women face in patriarchal societies everywhere- being patronized or ignored by other professionals in our field- especially the on-site teams. We need to work doubly hard to earn that respect.

We are still a long way off from being a truly gender neutral field but I hope we get there soon!

What is the greatest challenge and excitement of being part of the industry today? by Eddie Gough

As designers, we should be able to design a world which works for all, and therefore, all needs to be represented within the design team. The greatest challenge is that we default on our perception of all. When we imagine a doctor, architect, engineer, business tycoon, construction worker, firefighter, professor... even homo sapien, a term to denote all modern humans, we instinctively conjure an image of a man; in particular a white man.

This does not only affect our perception of what job we can apply for or who will make a good director. But in our fundamental job, to design a world for all, we are subconsciously imagining a world for men.

The greatest excitement is the growing understanding that these biases are toxic and not relevant in modern society. We are beginning to realise that diversity can enrich our working environments. Gender or race neutrality are not relevant either, as our experiences through life have made us varied and dynamic.

I am uncertain if gender equality will ever be fully realised, but I am certain that women have never been more consolidated, more ambitious, more educated, more aware of their own biases and more uncompromising on achieving change.