Here is a very timely article on this topic:
http://news.mentornet.net/content/why-getting-women-stem-matters
Note, this is from an organization that is focused on getting diversity in
engineering and science, so for those interested in more information on
this topic, there are many, many other articles on that website.
I also agree with Thomas and others that IETF would definitely benefit as a
whole by setting up a mentor program. There is information on how an
organization can get involved with mentor net to setup a mentoring program
here:
http://www.mentornet.net/societies.aspx
Note, that ISOC already has some programs in place that encourage new
leaders in the industry as well as participation from developing developing
countries:
- Next Generation Leaders Program:
http://www.internetsociety.org/what-we-do/leadership-programmes/next-generation-leaders-ngl-programme
- the IETF Fellowship Program:
http://www.internetsociety.org/what-we-do/education-and-leadership-programmes
I personally was not at all aware of the NGL program. As I understand it,
the Fellowship Program is already setup to assign a mentor to each of the 5
individuals.
So, it may be worth discussing whether this ought to be part of the ISOC
programs (or an enhancement to the NGL program) or something that does fall
directly under the IETF similar to the newcomer events.
Regards,
Mary.