Paula Todd is a Brazilian-born STEM Star with Chilean parents, who immigrated to the U.S. at age nine, and was called to engineering and pharmaceuticals, learning all in her second language of English. She has achieved in so many ways as a woman of color and she did so without role models of diverse women who could light her path. Now, she is lighting the path for those who follow her as the trail blazer and opportunity-maker that she is. Enjoy her inspiring story and sign up for the Career Fair today with a focus on Science and Health where you will meet luminaries Iike Paula.
You will also be able to see Paula in action at the GlobalMindED 2021 event where she is featured with the NSF Includes leaders during the first week of June. To contact Paula, you can follow her IG: @WatchMeSTEM
Upcoming Events:
- The Virtual Career Fair with partners at Diverse Talent starts today and includes national companies in Health, Tech, Engineering, Legal, and Business as well as Career Prep and Coaching and a Diversity Theatrical Performance by the Pillsbury House Theater, details below.
- The Benefits of Global Internships Friday at 8:00MT/10:00ET with Adrian Rosado; President, Zion Leadership Group, Mara Luna; Director, TRIO Upward Bound Univ. of Puerto Rico, Mitzi Damazo-Sabando; CEO, TinkerHouse Inc. Manila, Philippines, Tree Xu; Community Manager, Education First Wuxi, China, Erika Aquino; Executive Director, Infinit-O Group Foundation, sign up below
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Paula, after working at Dow Chemical, DuPont, and now International Flavors and Fragrances; can you share your personal story and how you got to where you are today?
I grew up in a family of engineers. I remember my dad drawing machines on the back of paper napkins at dinner as he worked through a problem that still rattled in his brain from his work day. As a young child, I didn’t know all the details involved in being an engineer, but I had a very clear idea that engineers solved problems and I knew I could make a difference as an engineer. I was always asked what type of engineer I wanted to be and what types of problems I wanted to solve. It felt natural to look at engineering as a career – but it wasn’t until I graduated that it really dawned on me that I’m the first FEMALE engineer in my family…
My passion for pharmaceuticals led me to pursue chemical engineering and has taken me through many jobs across many locations (Michigan, Chicago, Philadelphia, Atlanta). My current business is focused on providing drug delivery technologies to pharmaceutical companies around the world by specializing in polymers and other chemistries commonly found in medicine. I have worked as a process engineer in chemical plants, manufacturing pharmaceutical products under strict regulatory conditions. I have created new polymer solutions for drug delivery challenges in Research & Development labs, having 3 patents granted on my innovations. I have traveled all over the globe to help pharmaceutical scientists overcome issues with formulations and drug manufacturing processes. My efforts and expertise have led to various product launches that help drug delivery for patients around the globe – and I’ve never been happier to know that I can such an impact on society.
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You are originally from Brazil and received a Bachelor of Science and Master's of Science in Chemical Engineering from Pennsylvania State University. How has the foundation of science and education launched your success?
It’s hard to imagine that this little girl who moved from Brazil to the United States at the age of 9 without knowing a word of English would grow to become an engineer. My parents are from Chile, they happened to be living in Brazil when I was born. Having a mixed cultural background has been a blessing, but for a long time I struggled to find a sense of belonging. Once you realize that everyone has a different lived experience, you realize everyone is unique in their own way.
About 8 years ago, I was promoted into a marketing role without having any business classes or experience under my belt. My technical background has proven to be invaluable in commercial roles in a business focused on overcoming technical problems in pharmaceuticals. I am now a Global Strategic Manager for Pharma Solutions at IFF, managing a portfolio comprised of over $500 MM in sales. 1 out of every 3 oral solid drugs globally contains a product in my portfolio. This job requires deeply understanding customer needs and applications, as well as the problems they are trying to solve in drug delivery, to create products that solve their issues and safely deliver medicine as desired inside the human body. I would not succeed in this role, or any of my previous roles (manufacturing, research, technical sales) without my solid engineering background.
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In recent years, you have been an advocate for underrepresented women in STEM careers. How have you broken barriers, and how has this impacted your life and your influence on young people?
In 2019, I was chosen by the American Association for the Advancement of Sciences as 1 out of 125 STEM women across the country to serve as a role model to young girls across the country as an IF/THEN Ambassador. Our efforts in this space are multi-faceted, including intimate events such as virtual visits through classrooms and after school organizations (last year alone, I worked with 24 clubs) - to more public representation of women, like an upcoming exhibit of life-size statues of all of the chosen women, in the largest display of women statues in the country. A study found that in the top 10 US cities combined, there are less than half a dozen statues of women in public places – this exhibit in Dallas, Texas will shatter that as being the largest display of women in one time in one place – and they will all be women in STEM!
Through my IF/THEN ambassadorship, I’ve been given unique opportunities to help re-define what an engineer looks like. My image is openly available to schools and museums across the country through the IF/THEN collection, the world’s largest free digital collection of women in various STEM fields. I am featured in a permanent exhibit at the International Museum of Surgical Sciences in Chicago, to serve as an example of an engineer in the pharmaceutical field. I have been asked to partake in several projects, including Instagram campaigns, upcoming books featuring women in STEM fields and the 2020 Princesses with Powertools calendar, where I’ve already received responses from younger girls through Instagram on the inspirational power of seeing an engineering “princess” who can solve her own problems and help society.
I am extremely passionate about this work – I did not have any female role models growing up. Not seeing someone who looks like you can cause many moments of self-doubt, so I find it really important to be an example to girls and Latinas, so that they know there is a place for them in STEM and their perspectives are critical to solving world problems. I always make myself available to provide guidance to the younger generation – and I encourage them to remember to do the same as they grow in their careers.
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Be confident and humble – ask for what you want and identify the gaps to fill to get you there. Be inquisitive and open-minded – never stop learning. Be brave to both share your perspective and listen to others with consideration. Don’t compare your Chapter 1 to some else’s Chapter 10 – everyone goes through a journey of achievements, don’t belittle yours by allowing “imposter syndrome” to creep in. Surround yourself with a community of supporters – their voices will be louder than the doubters you encounter. Be thankful for the mentors and sponsors who help you along the way – and don’t forget to take on that same role for someone else as your progress, there will always be someone who can learn from you. Lastly, diversity drives innovations, if you don’t feel valued where you are, find another place with a culture that will accept you and reap the benefits that you bring.
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Watch our Earth Week sessions:
International Youth: Strategies for Inclusive, Just, and Equitable Climate Leadership Ash Pachauri; Co-Founder and Senior Mentor, Protect Our Planet Movement and Drishya Pathak; POP Movement, India lead this panel of international students including Summer Benjamin; POP Movement Peter Gruber International Academy, US Virgin Islands, Caroline Sandberg; Tahoe Expedition Academy, USA, Tsague Dongfack/Willy Endelson; POP Movement, Cameroon, Ricardo Delgado; POP Youth Mentor, Arturo Michelena University, Venezuela, and Zoe Ricardo Rivera; CEI University, México
How Environmental Justice and Equity Can Help Solve the Climate Crisis Part 1 Courtney Knight; Founder and Managing Member, Capstone Capital Advisors and Susan Kidd; Executive Director, Center for Sustainability , Agnes Scott College lead this panel discussion with Anamarie Shreeves; Environmental Education Programs Manager, West Atlanta Watershed Alliance, Eriqah Vincent; Network Engagement Director, Power Shift Network, Dr. Dana Williamson; EPA Environmental Health Fellow, Assoc of Schools and Programs of Public Health, and Gwendylon P. Smith; Executive Director, Collier Heights Association for Revitalization, Resilience, and Sustainability.
How Environmental Justice and Equity Can Help Solve the Climate Crisis Part 2 Dr. Kyle Whyte; Professor of Environment and Sustainability, University of Michigan leads panel discussion with Ka’illjuus / Lisa Lang; Executive Director, Xaadas Kil Kuyaas Foundation, Dr. Kelsey Leonard; Assistant Professor, Faculty of Environment, University of Waterloo, Brittany Judson; Just Growth Consultant Partnership for Southern Equity, and AJ (Andrea) Grant; President, Environmental Communications Associates.
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Click below to watch the Inclusive Leader Award Ceremony featuring inspirational messages from the diverse Award Winners
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GlobalMindED and the SDG Impact Fund are delighted to announce GlobalMindED's Donor Advised Fund. 2020 is the 75th Anniversary of the United Nations and the 25th Anniversary of the Beijing Women's Declaration and Action Platform. Many from around the world are thinking of 2020 as the gateway to our most vital decade for delivering equity, the Sustainable Development Goals, and a world where all can thrive. Our key time for these outcomes is 2020-2030.
GlobalMindED DAF and the SDG Impact Fund are a powerful combined force for good as the 2019 year comes to a close and we reflect on the gratitude and the commitments we make to the causes we care most about. The DAF offers immense power and flexibility for giving prior to the year's end as you plant seeds of generous intention for 2020 and the decade ahead.
When you contribute to GlobalMindED, you support First Gen students. We have served more than 400 students by connecting them to role models, mentors, internships and jobs. Your generous support will allow us to take our work 10x and reach these talented students at scale who lack the resources and support we provide. Your support also helps teachers who can't afford the conference fees, faculty at colleges which are under resourced and students who persist at those universities despite food insecurity and/or housing insecurity.
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Links to read about Inclusive Leaders, many of whom are African American and people of color:
Curated sessions from GlobalMindED 2020 YouTube channel:
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From the Center for Positive Organizations:
From the Economist:
From Forbes:
From Harvard Business Review:
From the World Academy of Art & Science and UN; Geneva Global Leadership in the 21st Century econference:
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Listen here for an interview with Pam Newkirk, GlobalMindED speaker and author of Diversity Inc.: The Failed Promise of a Billion- Dollar Business.
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Meet GlobalMindED Founder, Carol Carter as interviewed by Tim Moore on his podcast Success Made to Last: From Success to Significance
Listen to Part 1 of Carol's interview
Listen to Part 2 of Carol's interview
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Recent GlobalMindED Newsletter Profiles:
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Since 2006 when the flagship TGR Learning Lab opened its doors in Anaheim, CA, TGR Foundation has had a lot to celebrate, including its most recent milestone of one million students impacted by TGR EDU: Explore, alone.
Developed in partnership with Discovery Education, TGR EDU: Explore is a free digital resource library that offers interactive web experiences, lesson plans, training videos and tools for educators, students and families to explore new disciplines and gain skills for a modern and expanding workforce.
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As you start the New Year, are you looking for ways to re-engineer your classroom culture? Check out Designing the Future: How Engineering Builds Creative Critical Thinking in the Classroom. The associated website has lots of activities, projects, and resources you can implement immediately. Our fall workshops using the book as a roadmap for change have been highly successful. Start designing the future today - try using the customized Study Guide for a book study in your PLC. Or contact ProjectEngin or Solution Tree to learn how you can bring professional development based on Ann's book to your school, district, or conference.
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THE FLYOVER NATION
Energy's Role in a Troubled Heartland
By J.C. Whorton
A unique and timely discussion of the challenging issues facing the country’s troubled Heartland.
Since the beginning of westward expansion into the Heartland’s vast regions, natural resource development has played a historic role in shaping its communities. Today, domestic oil and gas development offers one of the strongest prospects for the Heartland’s present and future prosperity as well as the nation’s re-emergence as a dominant player in the global energy economy.
The U.S. is now the world’s largest producer of crude oil and natural gas, two circumstances that are universally disrupting international geopolitical order. The earth has a finite supply of natural resources and a rapidly growing and over consuming population.
As America positions itself for a very uncertain and constantly evolving global marketplace, will the Heartland become America’s “great connector” or “great divide”?
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J.C. Whorton is a senior level energy and financial professional with over forty years of essential experience. Having a ranching and Native American heritage, Mr. Whorton is a strong advocate for rural education and economic development initiatives.
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