On March 22nd & 23rd, 2019, the local seattle community of the AnitaB.org hosted a mini Grace Hopper Celebration style event for women in the technology field in the Seattle area. What is the Grace Hopper Celebration? Check out my article on it that goes in depth about that event: Everything About Grace Hopper Celebration
This event was called Hopper x1 Seattle 2019 and was hosted in the Amazon Meeting Center for two whole days. There were 30 sponsors for the event from both for-profit and nonprofit organizations. There were over a 1000 attendees from all over the country. There are 50 scholars chosen to attend this event with complimentary registration fees, and I am thankful to announce that I am one of the 50 scholars!
The first day of the event was filled with different keynotes and panels for inspiring industry professionals. The panels and speakers ranged in different topics like Career, Products with Inclusive Design, Software Engineering Systems & Security and Data science & AI (Artificial Intelligence) There was a scholars lunch where all the scholars were given a chance to meet with each other. The day ended with a friday night celebration.
The second day was similar to the first day, but there was also an all day career fair along with the panels. The career fair was hosted by all the 30 sponsors of the event. This included Amazon, Google, Facebook, Microsoft, Oracle, Snapchat, HBO, UW Seattle, UW Bothell, UC Berkeley and so many more. The panel that I enjoyed the most was called Transforming Towards Digital Experiences by Rebecca Norlander. We discussed how technology has developed over the last 20 years. We also discussed how startups and old companies could use diversity to advance into the future and create a product that is useful for everyone and not just one target group.
Overall, I had an amazing time and I hope to see more local events like this hosted by AnitaB organization. It was refreshing and inspiring to see hundreds of amazing women in one room, being a part of the community they believe in. Special shoutout to the Hopper x1 Seattle team for making this event accessible to every woman by providing scholarships, access to Mother’s Room and Quiet Room.