HIGHL IGHTS A D V A N C E D M A T E R I A L S & P R O C E S S E S | A P R I L 2 0 2 1 6 8 Part of Dr. Todd’s presentation, this photo represents the growth in women in leadership roles and as awardees. From left, Diana Essock, FASM, introduces 2019 ASM Bronze Medal winner Danielle Cote with David Furrer, FASM, presenting the plaque. CHAPTERS IN THE NEWS Pune Chapter Celebrates International Women’s Day WOMEN ARE THE LARGEST UNTAPPED RESERVOIR OF TALENT IN THE WORLD. On March 6, to celebrate and salute women in the materials field, a special program was arranged by the ASM Pune Chapter, under the guidance of Udayan Pathak, chapter chair. With 44 enthusiastic attendees, the virtual event coincided well with International Women’s Day and March as Women’s History Month. Pune’s Women’s Day Celebration also presented a global platform for highlighting some exceptionally impressive materials professionals. Dr. Judith Todd, FASM, ASM vice president (2020-2021), department head, P.B. Breneman Chair, and professor of engineering science and mechanics at Penn State University, briefed participants on ASM International’s journey in building diversity, equity, and inclusion. She stated that 8 years ago, Diana Essock (current ASM president), FASM, founded and led ASM’s Women in Materials Engineering Committee to build a community of women across the society—from students to senior leaders. Some initiatives along the way included an annual women’s breakfast; increasing the number of female Fellows, award winners, and board/ committee leaders; and the formation of the IDEA Committee (Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and Awareness). Anuradha Das, head of human resources, Engineering & Research Centre (ERC), Tata Motors Ltd., shared her experiences of increasing the participation of women on the shop floor. She spoke about efforts in creating the brigade of “women in blue” by sourcing and training rural and urban girls. Mukta Kulkarni, managing director, Industrial Enterprisers, gave an inspiring talk about how she motivated many women to learn finances along with obtaining a formal technical education. An important part of programwas the panel discussion on “Diversity and Inclusion” in which panelists Anuradha Das, Dr. Judith Todd, Dr. Kanyakumari Datta (proprietor, Data Metallurgical Co.), Dr. Sarika Verma (principal scientist/ associate professor, AMPRI), and Mangesh Shetye (sr. general manager, Carraro India) expressed valuable insights on the importance of diversity and how to create an inclusive culture at the workplace. The programwas hosted by Nutan Niharika, moderated by Jaswandi Gotmare, and concluded with remarks by Debbie Aliya, FASM. Aliya was invited to speak due to her to strong connections to the Pune Chapter and as a rolemodel of U.S. women entrepreneurs. She has traveled to India multiple times, making presentations at the Pune and Chennai Chapters and teaching her famous Failure Workshop, once to a standing-room-only crowd of 100. The timely and impressive event, hailed as a success by all, serves as a role model not only for women in materials events but also for ASM’s global interactions. Special thanks to reporter Samiksha Choudhary for her contributions to this piece. The panel discussion was a highlight of the Pune Chapter’s Women’s Day Celebration. INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY
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