PhD Student receives L'Oréal/UNESCO Women in Science Award

The L'Oréal/UNESCO Women in Science Award aims to help women scientists gain equal access to funding, publication and speaking opportunities.

Through an emphasis on equal recognition of scientific excellence, they hope to inspire younger generations of women to pursue science as a career.

Awa was chosen from over 400 applications by an expert panel of scientists and academics for her work looking at geospatial technology and artificial intelligence for coastal monitoring in West Africa.

She hopes to improve the management of floods, erosion and fisheries management in the Senegal Estuary and West Africa to help the adaptability of communities living in those areas.

Awa said, “Winning this award is a huge honour and a recognition of scientific excellence despite the intersectional discrimination I’ve experienced.

“Being a woman in science includes supporting young girls to embrace STEM fields, particularly male-dominated ones like geomorphology.

“To achieve this, we need to support and empower them more and recognise and reward their achievements.

“Things are changing with an emerging generation of African women scientists bringing innovation and inclusivity to their research, changing the narrative and contributing to the continent’s development.”

Awa also been nominated Secretary and Diaspora Deputy of the governing council of Women in GMES, a continental programme of the African Union Commission which aims to increase women’s participation in (geo)spatial sciences in Africa.

She splits her academic research between the Department and the Centre Suivi Ecologique (affiliated with the Senegalese Ministry of Environment) and is supervised by Professor Helene Burningham and Dr Moussa Sall of the West African Coastal Areas programme which deals with coastal management from Mauritania and Benin.