CORNWALL, Ontario – Ontario Power Generation (OPG) held the first event Women in Science Conference at the Nav Centre on Wednesday, March 6, 2019.
The conference was held in relation to International Women’s Day, which is on Friday, March 8.
Grade nine and ten students from Cornwall, Ottawa and the surrounding areas were invited to the Nav Centre in Cornwall to from women working in different fields of science including Environmental Science, Health Science, Engineering and Trades.
Canada’s Governor General Julie Payette recorded a welcoming message to the students gathered at the Nav Centre.
“Take today to learn about yourself,” she said. “Not matter your goal, you can achieve it. We live in the right country for that.”
Mayor Bernadette Clement also addressed the gathered students and welcomed them to Cornwall. Clement explained to the young students that during her recent Mayoral election campaign, she was going door-to-door with a volunteer and the volunteer’s ten-year-old daughter. The daughter had dark skin, and curly hair, just like Clement.
“She tugged my hair and said, “I’m going to run for mayor someday” and that’s why were here,” she explained.
Clement told the girls in the audience that she hoped they would consider Cornwall for their future home and as a place to work.
“Your community stands behind you,” she said.
The keynote speaker for the opening ceremony was Gina Parvaneh Cody who was the first woman to receive a PhD in Engineering from Concordia University. Cody immigrated to Canada from Iran in 1979 and after completing her studies and going on to a career in engineering she went on to become Executive Chair and the principal shareholder at CCI Group Inc., a major Canadian engineering consulting firm.
Cody sold her business in 2016, and in 2018 made a significant donation to Concordia University, which named their Faculty of Engineering after her. Cody is the first woman in Canada to have an Engineering Faculty named after her.
Cody explained that growing up in Iran, her mother told her that any woman can become independent through education.
“That’s why I always strived to get the best education I could,” she said.
“I’m here to tell you today that you are good enough, you are smart enough and you are strong enough,” Cody continued. “Perfection is not a great quality. Nobody is perfect. Making a mistake doesn’t make you a failure. If it did not one would every succeed. Go build a better future, I dare you. I know you can do it as I did.”
