The g4g / Covestro global partnership
History and goals
Covestro and g4g are working together to help inspire the future leaders of STEM!
In June of 2015, our global partnership began with an inspiring mission to get more girls in the STEM fields across the world. Since then, we've launched together in Covestro's headquarter city of Pittsburgh, PA, as well as in Houston, TX, crossed seas to New Delhi and Mumbai (India) and took on one of the biggest cities in the world: Moscow, Russia! In addition, Covestro and g4g collaborated in Brussels and Barcelona for our signature "g4g Day" events, allowing girls to become "Covestro Future Scientists"!
Together, we link science to the innovative materials technology Covestro is renowned for, especially with hands-on workshops that demonstrate the fun in polymer chemistry. All this and more with one incredible team to show us how curious, courageous, and colorful the future can be!
Our global partnership in numbers
Our past events with Covestro
#STEM4Girls Festival, g4g Day @Mumbai - Dec. 2019
Last stop of our 2019 #STEM4Girls Festival in India : Mumbai! Over the course of six days, we hosted hands-on workshops for more than 1000 girls from 20 different schools and were incredibly lucky to have wonderful scientists coming to inspire the girls : Dr Manasi Rajadhyaksha, Dr Kamakshi Bhate, Dr Nishigandha Naik, Acharya Donde Marg, Dr Sunali Khanna, Dr. Vidita Vaidya, Prof. Shubha Tole. Have a look at our Facebook Album here!
#STEM4Girls Festival, g4g Day @Cuddalore Dec. 2019
For the act 4 of our 2019 #STEM4Girls Festival in India, we were very excited to host this STEM festival in the city of Cuddalore for the first time ever. Together, we hosted hands-on workshops for more than 200 girls and their 20 teachers! Have a look at our Facebook Album here!
g4g Days @Mexico City - Dec. 2019
In December, our g4g Days @Mexico gathered 130+ greenlight girls. Over two days, these girls explored everything linked to Polymer Chemistry, (from slime to polymer worms, we can say we had fun with goo!), learnt about electrical engineering, and enjoyed a thinking and creative session about sustainability! Have a look at our Facebook Album here!
#STEM4Girls Festival, g4g Day @Ankleshwar - Nov. 2019
For the third step of our #STEM4Girls Festival in India we went to Ankleshwar for 4 days of STEM activities. We were joined by 15 schools, more than 800 schoolgirls and their 25 teachers! The girls had the opportunity to meet with inspiring role models, from the Indian Space Research Organization, and experience fun and hands-on STEM workshops. Check out our Facebook Album!
#STEM4Girls Festival, g4g Day @Dharampur - Nov. 2019
Second stop of our 2019 #STEM4Girls Festival in India : Dharampur for three days of science fun! We were joined by 30 schools, 1000+ girls and 65 teachers. The words we will remember are the ones of Dr Krishna Rajput, a Zoology professor who opened her session saying - "I don't need a mic. Girls' voices can reach wherever it must". What a powerful statement for social change! ". Facebook Album here!
#STEM4Girls Festival, g4g Day @Noida - Nov. 2019
In November, we kicked-off our annual #STEM4Girls Festival in India by heading to Noida with more than 800 girls joining us from 10 different schools over the course of three days! Together, we explored with polymer chemistry and putty, we had fun with biology while extracting our own DNA, and we learned about electricity and circuits with LED activities. Have a look at our Facebook album here!
In October we headed to the UAE for our first g4g Day @Dubai and had invited 100 girls to join us! Together, we dived into polymer chemistry thanks to an incredible fun wormy workshop developed by Covestro, and we explored with robotics, biology, chromatography with some of our signature workshops (hello bristlebots, bath bombs and DNA extraction)! Check out our Facebook Album!
g4g Day @Birmingham - Mar. 2019
In March we rode to the UK for our first g4g Day @Birmingham, at the ThinkTank Museum. 100 girls came, explore the museum and…dived into hands-on workshops! We explored polymer chemistry, had fun building scribblebot, interacted with a robot, solved a jewelry thief thanks to forensics and explored through the whole museum! Check out our Facebook Album!
For the last step of our 2018 #STEM4Girls Festival, we stopped in Nagpur, in the center of India. The delight and the smile on the 357 faces after they succeeded in the experiment, reminded us why we planned this festival! The highlight of this event? When Mrs. Kanchan Gadkari, social worker, paid tribute to all the great women who made India’s history - warriors, academics, politics. Read more here!
For the 5th step of our 2018 #STEM4Girls Festival, we stopped in Goa, known for its beautiful beaches with swaying palm fronds, intriguing vernacular architecture and coastal cuisine. Our two days, we reached out to 405 girls from 20 schools. The highlight of this event? When Dr. Neha Phadke, shared her journey from being the daughter of a farmer to a scientist, or when KR Anupama concluded the day telling the girls they need to be themselves, be assertive, listen and act on constructive criticism… while talking about Hermione Granger (which struck a chord with all the girls!). Read more here!
g4g Day @Dharampur - Nov. 2018
For the 4th step of our 2018 #STEM4Girls Festival, we headed to Dharampur, a more rural area, where girls often have to help their families in the farms in addition to going to school.Over two days, we met with 340 girls ! The highlights of this event? When the girls met with Dr. Kusumben Rawal, the Gynecologist who started the first maternity hospital in Dharampur, when Dhruti Mehta, explained to the girls that “knowledge is the real weapon”, or when Aparna Kadikar, talked about her journey of being the only girl in her class . Read more here!
3rd step of our 2018 #STEM4Girls Festival, this time, we went to the Greater Noida. More than 400 girls, coming mostly from slum areas, braved the plummeting morning temperatures to join us at the Covestro factory. The highlights of this event? When Sunita Durrani, coming from a small town in Kashmir, told the girls she recently joined the World Health Organisation as a health care professional. The room, full of girls coming from less privileged areas, resonated with shared emotion that “girls can do anything once they've made up their mind”. Read more here!
g4g Day @Mexico City -Nov. 2018
In November we hosted our first g4g Day @Mexico City! 65 girls and 20 volunteers joined us to see an insider's look into a day in the life of a polymer chemist as they tested out polymer worms, coding, DNA extraction, and engineer paper planes with their sustainable wish for the future on it. Girls were amazed to discover all the different things that we could do with chemistry and they also shared with us that the focus on sustainability inspired them to build a brighter and greener world. Have a look at our Facebook Album here!
For the 2nd stop of our 2018 #STEM4Girls Festival we headed to Calicut for two days, where we engaged 378 young girls from 13 schools, and taught workshops in both English and Malayalam. The energy and enthusiasm of all these girls (that our first guest speaker of the day couldn’t help but notice and applaud!) was fabulous! The highlights of this event? The words Dr. T.R Resmi, Scientist: “Think where you want to reach, the path will then form automatically” Read more here!
Mumbai was our first step for our annual #STEM4Girls Festival in India. And what a step! With more than 1200 girls and 10 inspiring guest speakers, it was an exciting couple of days for the girls. Our favorite moments? When Ms. Harpreet shared her journey of becoming the first woman pilot with Air India, when Dr. Surekha Zingde illustrated her speech with stories of prominent Indian women achievers in the field of STEM (past or current), or, when our talented girls taught us a few dance steps to have the entire auditorium grooving! Read more here!
We were thrilled to launch our first event in São Paulo, at the Catavento museum! Bringing together 80 girls from various communities and backgrounds we spent the morning exploring STEM!
In Mumbai we didn't just have a g4g Day... but a g4g Week! During this period, over 1300 girls experienced fun, interactive workshops related to STEM!
In October 2017, we teamed up with Covestro to organise a g4g Day in Moscow, in the context of the annual Science Festival Nauki. 100 girls got the opportunity to experience everyday science and technology through fun workshops.
“We are always looking for like-minded partners who endorse our activities in countries all over the world, so it’s fantastic to have a global company like Covestro on board. It’s scientists, technicians, strategists, and marketers that can provide first-hand experience of what it’s like working in an innovative and forward-thinking environment, and can demonstrate how rewarding it is being involved in the exciting world of science.
- Melissa Rancourt, Founder & Chairman, g4g”
In May 2017, we welcomed 250 girls from local communities for a g4g Day at the Houston Space Center. Not only did they have an amazing day full of STEM inspired workshops, they also got to be astronauts for a day!
In October, Covestro and g4g had the pleasure of crossing seas to launch and inspire 100 girls in New Delhi, India! The special day was commemorated by a special visit from the CEO of Covestro, Patrick Thomas, in person! Click here for the full album!
In May, Covestro joined us as we launched g4g Day in Barcelona! Thank you Eva Tejada and Berta Vega Sanchez for coming and inspiring greenlight girls in Barcelona with polymer fun and reminding us that Anything is Possible!
In February 2016, we hosted one incredible launch inspiring 125 girls with the dedicated Pittsburgh team, one famous chef-scientist, Covestro President Jerry F. MacCleary, The County Councilman and the Mayor of Pittsburgh making it all official! Click here for the full album!
Meet our partnership lead
“I am passionate about communicating the cool science behind a multinational company and how this translates into getting more girls inspired by STEM subjects!
Rachel Owen - Covestro Head of Communications and Covestro’s Coordinator of the g4g partnership
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