International Women’s Day - Trailblazing Women

 

This year for International Women’s Day and for Women’s History Month, we’re celebrating the trailblazing women of the past who have made invaluable contributions to the world we live in. From architecture to civil engineering ,and from solar energy to ecology, women have significantly impacted our environment, but many of their works go unrecognised.   

 

Marion Mahony Griffin, Architect

One of the world’s first licensed female architects, Marion Mahony Griffin was born in 1871 in Chicago, Illinois, and went on to study architecture at MIT, making her the second woman ever to graduate from the university. In 1895, she worked for renowned architect, Frank Lloyd Wright, and began designing buildings, furniture, stained glass windows and decorative panels. Her work became so outstanding that architectural writer, Reyner Banham, described her as the "greatest architectural delineator of her generation."

Over the span of her career, Marion Mahony Griffin designed a great many developments including the infamous Prairie School buildings in the US, the David Amberg Residence and oversaw the construction of Canberra in Australia. 

 

Enedina Alves Marques, Civil Engineer

The only girl of ten children, Enedina Alves Marques was born in Parana, Brazil in January 1913, and became the first black woman in the country to receive an engineering degree at the age of 32. In 1946, she left teaching and housekeeping to become an engineering assistant to the State Secretary of Transport and Public Works before transferring to the State Department of Water and Electric Power to work as an inspector of public works. Here, she worked on a number of high-profile projects including the construction of the Capivari-Cachoeira Plant (now known as the Governador Pedro Viriato Parigot de Souza Plant), which is the largest underground hydroelectric plant in the south of Brazil.

Today, her name is inscribed alongside 53 other Brazilian women on the Memorial to Pioneering Women in Curitiba, and has a school named in her honour, the Instituto de Mulheres Negras Enedina Alves Marques, in Maringá.

 

Dr. Maria Telkes, Biophysicist, Scientist, Investor - Solar Energy

Nicknamed, “the Sun Queen,” due to her impactful work in solar energy, Dr. Maria Telkes earned her B.A. and Ph.D. from the University of Budapest where she was born and raised. In 1925, she moved to the US where she worked for several years as a biophysicist with George Washington Crile, a renowned surgeon, and aided in the development of a photoelectric device to measure brain waves.

Upon becoming an American citizen in 1939, Dr. Maria Telkes, joined MIT where she began her career in solar energy. As war broke out, her work on developing a solar-powered heating system was put on hold, and it was here that she invented, and patented, an emergency kit that used solar power to make seawater drinkable for pilots and sailors stranded at sea.

After the war, she developed the first solar-powered home heating system, which included solar power storage, the first solar-powered oven and worked with the US Department of Energy to create the first ever solar-electric residence.

 

Wangari Maathai, Environmentalist - Ecology

Born in Kenya in 1940, Wangari Maathai was an influential environmentalist and social and political activist who founded the Green Belt Movement. 

Amongst her many achievements fighting for women’s rights, land grabbing and conservation, Wangari Maathai founded the Green Belt Movement, an indigenous, grassroots, non-governmental organisation focused on environmental conservation and fight against deforestation. A multi-faceted organisation, the movement still works today and uses community education to reverse oppression and help women access resources, education, grow their own food and to take on leadership roles within the movement itself. 

Since its inception, the Green Belt Movement has planted over 51 million trees and created 6,500 tree planting sites in Kenya alone. In 2004, Wangari Maathai became the first African woman to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for her contribution to sustainable development, democracy and peace. 

 

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London Wildlife Trust.

We are proud partners of The London Wildlife Trust, a charity dedicated to protecting the wildlife and wild spaces of London by driving environmental projects throughout the city. Our team often get involved at ground level in Wild Workdays by helping to maintain and restore treasured spaces and land… we love to get our hands dirty! We also run multiple interactive workshops, providing their conservation trainees with invaluable career advice and insights into the environmental sector to prepare them for employment. Most recently, we worked with young people taking part in their Keeping it Wild programme, which engages young people from backgrounds currently under-represented in nature conservation.



Royal Town Planning Institute.

The RTPI represents planning professionals in the UK and Ireland and aims to encourage the development of vibrant and prosperous places and communities. Our Senior Consultant Freddie enthusiastically attends the annual Planning Convention, and we host several events throughout the year to show our support, including drinks networking and a literal pub quiz. We also keep in close contact with our friends down under, at the Planning Institute Australia and New Zealand Planning Institute. In addition, we sponsor the London Planning Summit, an event designed to address the biggest challenges facing the industry. This is our opportunity to stay on top of the latest changes in town planning by meeting with other key professionals in the sector, while celebrating our achievements.



Land Securities Group Plc.

One of our clients, LandSec, are the clever people behind Girls Can Do It Too, an initiative designed to encourage girls to consider a career in construction. Currently, only 11% of the construction workforce are female, and LandSec are attempting to increase this number by providing education and engagement projects and workshops for girls aged 11-13. Featuring workshops on demolition and tower building, as well as challenging the girls to design a planning project of their own (with a focus on budgeting and environmental considerations), LandSec have proven their dedication to addressing the need for diversity in this very male dominated industry. Ruth assists the project by sharing her fascinating insights into the industry and is even on the project judging panel!



Urban Land Institute.

In partnership with Urban Land Institute we are able to play an imperative role in creating a larger and more diverse pool of candidates within the planning & property professions. Working in schools we take part in the Urban Plan Educational workshops programme, which has now reached more than 2,500 pupils in 100 schools since its launch. Alongside more than 200 industry volunteers engaged across the country, we provide invaluable industry & careers advice to students while guiding them through their workshops and helping judge their presentations.



Carbon Footprint.

Carbon FootprintTM works to help organisations offset their CO2 through tree planting and community projects worldwide. By partnering with Carbon FootprintTM, we have planted native trees and shrubs such as Whitebeam, Hazel, Field Maple, Silver Birch, Rowan, Beech, Blackthorn, Holly and Dog Rose to create a Mattinson Forest that spreads across South East England. Carbon FootprintTM work in conjunction with the Florestal Santa Maria Project (FSM-Redd Project), designed to reduce deforestation in the Amazonian Rainforest. So, for every tree we plant in the UK we guarantee a tonne of CO₂ offset in Brazil too. Carbon FootprintTM have allowed us to not only do our bit for the environment but also commemorate moments of growth for our clients and candidates.