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The contribution of women across all spheres of life is critical to creating a more equitable society, and blockchain is no exception. In celebration of Women’s History Month in March, we explore two initiatives spearheaded by Tezos India to empower women in blockchain.
Tezos India’s commitment to advancing women in blockchain and helping to increase gender diversity in tech is perfectly demonstrated by its recent SheCrypt campaign and collaboration with the Indira Gandhi Delhi Technical University For Women (IGDTUW).
SheCrypt is a series of free online discussions, masterclasses and mentorship opportunities offered throughout March 2022 to inspire and support budding female blockchain enthusiasts in South Asia.
Over 360 people have registered for SheCrypt to learn more about careers in the world of blockchain and how innovation across the sector is taking shape. Participants will receive a certificate of completion and surprise rewards from Tezos India.
Head of Developer Adoption for Tezos India, Poorvi Sachar, said SheCrypt would help the industry benefit from diversity by tackling gender-based issues, sharing knowledge, and showcasing women leaders in tech.
“The way women think and execute is not the same as men; they bring a different perspective — women’s contributions in crypto add a new angle to solving problems,” Sachar said.
“One of the barriers to increasing the number of women in tech is that it’s male-dominated, and therefore they have few examples they can admire and look up to. Having more women in blockchain will uplift other women.”
“If you have role models, you can learn from their experiences. It’s easier to relate to your own gender, and it gives you the confidence to take a risk.”
SheCrypt’s virtual events feature speakers from various roles and businesses to give women in Asia a holistic understanding of the ’next big thing’ in tech.
“We didn’t want to focus only on developers or technical skills. We want to encourage women from all walks of life to understand the fundamentals of blockchain and what their journey could look like.”
Some of the innovative and inspiring women featured include CEO of Bluejay Finance Sherry Jiang, Head of Sales for Elliptic Yvonne Ng, Co-founder of OroPocket Tarusha Mittal, Head of PR and Community for Wazirx Priyanka Sharma, NFT artist Mumu The Stan, and CEO of Drife Firdosh Sheikh.
Sachar said many participants had also opted into the mentoring component of the campaign, offered in collaboration with Pinkstripes, which would enable one-on-one collaboration over a three-month period to help women with their professional goals.
“We’re so proud of the great response to the SheCrypt campaign and hope to build on that momentum going forward as we genuinely want to see more women in blockchain.
“Since the industry is small right now, it’s a great time for women to leverage their strengths and get involved in blockchain.”
She said Tezos India would continue to engage with SheCrypt audiences through a regular e-newsletter and future opportunities tailored for women in tech.
While SheCrypt gives women a broad view of potential career paths in blockchain, Tezos India also believes that nurturing technical talent is key to unlocking the full potential of blockchain technology, and the Tezos ecosystem, in Asia.
Tezos India recently partnered with Indira Gandhi Delhi Technical University For Women (IGDTUW) to empower female students through access to technical workshops, industry experts, and hackathons.
IGDTUW student and tech enthusiast Smridhi Gupta helps plan and implement learning opportunities as the Tezos Student Chapter Lead.
“When this opportunity came along, I was ecstatic to establish my university’s first blockchain-oriented chapter,” Gupta said.
“The main objective is to make blockchain more accessible.”
Having been avidly learning about cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology since 2020, she said there was a shortage of good resources that are also affordable for students.
“Our collaboration with Tezos India is the icing on the cake as it provides us with resources and impeccable guidance that we need for our endeavor,” she said.
“Just a fortnight ago, Tezos IGDTUW also organized a series of very successful workshops which started with a basic introduction to blockchain and concluded with deploying smart contracts on Tezos.”
Gupta said there was a lot of positive feedback and ideas generated for future workshops from the more than 40 students who participated.
“I think the feedback matters the most. As women and their opinions are often silenced, sometimes they develop a mindset that their voice doesn’t matter.”
In April, the IGDTUW Tezos Student Chapter’s first mentorship cohort will begin, giving female programmers the chance to explore the Tezos network, interact with mentors and learn from their experiences.
“There is an inarguable dearth of women programmers in the blockchain community and the tech world in general. I feel that a major reason for this issue is the lack of good guidance,” Gupta said.
She went on to say that education was a powerful tool for improving women’s confidence and inspiring them to push the boundaries, which would lead to better gender diversity and healthier competition in the blockchain field.
“Good education is all about learning how the world has changed and realizing that we can change it too.
“Inclusivity is very crucial for the success of any company, and having more women developers would actually give the community a set of fresh perspectives.”
