ABOUT US
INSPIRE is a cross-sectoral and national partnership at the forefront of STEM education in Asia-Pacific. Technologies reflect the societies that build them and regard for diversity is crucial to avoid continued disparities in our societies. INSPIRE excels in educating diverse, inclusive teams for social impact beyond what any classroom, university or country can achieve alone. A collaboration led by University of Victoria, with other educational institutions, industry mentors and community partners in Canada, Nepal and Singapore, the INSPIRE network empowers students in experiential-learning to tackle UN SDGs through:
- Cross-cultural learning at scale: students learn together in skill development workshops across cultures and languages, and reflect from experience with entire global network
- Comprehensive engagement from early secondary to university students
- Innovation through global expertise and local adaptability; community-driven projects guided by international academic and industry mentors
- Foster diversity and Indigenous reconciliation;
- Program Sustainability from Impact to Advocacy; in a network effect, engaged students return as ambassadors for diversity and social change, and partners to belong to a growing network that shares same values for diversity and impact
Through projects such as online platforms to support women facing homelessness in downtown Victoria, language revitalization in Canadian Arctic, or Blood transfusions in Nepal’s rural areas, INSPIRE impacted more than 20 communities and 700 designers and users.
Our Goals
STEM education leading to advocacy for inclusive technologies and societies
Cultural change in tech education through community engagement, collaborative learning and research contributions for wider adoption
Community-engaged participation to societal change
Transforming lives in communities
The Executive Team
Daniela Damian
Professor, Director & ECS-CAPI Chair in Inclusive Science, Technology and Engineering
Kezia Devathasan
Canada Region Program Manager, PhD Candidate in Computer Science
Bachan Ghimire
Asia Region Program Manager, CTO & Research Consultant
Olena Marun
Communications Officer
Daniela Damian is a Professor of Software Engineering in University of Victoria’s Department of Computer Science, and a PEng in Software. She is the ECS-CAPI Chair in Inclusive Science, Technology and Engineering and a Senior Research Fellow at the Centre for Asia-Pacific Initiatives. She also leads SEGAL, the Software Engineering Global interAction Laboratory at UVic, where she directs research in human factors and diversity in software engineering. As an immigrant to Canada, she has experienced, reflected on and become passionate about diversity and inclusion in software development and now wants to lead changes towards more inclusive STEM fields. Recently she was the recipient of the 2020 REACH Award for Excellence in Teaching for Experiential Learning at UVic, the 2021 Google Award for Inclusion Research, and the 2019 Royal Society New Zealand Catalyst: International Leader Award.
My time in the INSPIRE program was the perfect segue from academic learning to professional exploration. Dr. Damian designed a remarkable program that not only taught me valuable lessons in software engineering and the role of empathy in technology but also helped me understand the true essence of all my learnings. This newfound approach of learning with purpose has become a central theme in my career and has instilled in me the confidence to navigate the ever-evolving technological landscape, ready to embrace new learning opportunities with vigor and enthusiasm. The technical sessions and various interpersonal activities in INSPIRE prepared me for my current job, and the skills I gained there help me excel every day, not just locally but also globally as Daniela was able to connect with Canadian students and projects that opened new ways of thinking and problem-solving.
Working in the IT industry, where objectifying scrutiny, condescending compliments, and sexist biases are common, often left me questioning my career choice. As I was on the verge of changing my whole career, already 3 years in; I found INSPIRE Nepal, led by Dr. Daniela Damian, which finally gave me the clarity I needed. Through INSPIRE, I gained skills in programming, problem-solving, but most importantly, I discovered the essence of good teamwork. Having an opportunity to learn together, without any sexist comments and judgement of my skills, truly made me feel at ease. Each new learning experience made me stronger and boosted my confidence as a woman in tech. Nearly two years later now as a software engineer in a new company; and yet… those four months, with Dr. Damian and the INSPIRE team, back in 2022, still remain pivotal in my life, as a developer and as a person as well. I am forever grateful for Dr. Damian and INSPIRE’s mentorship.
Our Advisory Board
Victor Ramraj
Director, Centre for Asia-Pacific Initiatives (CAPI) at University of Victoria
Meeta Khurana
Associate Director, Coop program Faculty of Engineering
Marco Pimentel
CMO at Redbrick | Co-Founder at Assembly | Host of the podcast Someone Like You
Tara Rush
Cloud Applied AI, Executive Business Partner at Google
Michelle Mahovlich
Board Chair, Engineers and Geoscientists BC | Engineering Consultant
Rachel Greenspan
Executive Director, Network BC, BC Public Service
Mina Hoorfar
Dean, Faculty of Engineering, University of Victoria