winners' circle
ZAINAB AZIM Founder of Global Initiative & Vision for Education Youngest Future Astronaut by Marcus Medford
z Zainab Azim dreams of becoming the next famous astronaut to come from Milton, Ontario, like Chris Hadfield. The 20-year-old is the founder of Global Initiative & Vision for Education (GIVE), which promotes STEM and access to education. Azim is best known for receiving a ticket to a Virgin Galactic space flight as a gift for her 11th birthday. While she’s incredibly excited and grateful for the opportunity to go to space, Azim says she hopes the experience doesn’t only benefit her. She’s using her position to advocate for more people of colour and women to get involved in STEM. Photo courtesy of Zainab Azim
What was it like to get a ticket to a space flight as an 11-year-old? I didn’t fully comprehend it. It didn't feel real — even now. Reflecting on that these last few years, I think there was guilt. I was very grateful, of course, but there was guilt because that’s a lot of money, and I don't know if I’m worthy. Nor did I feel like this was something I needed to do. Eventually, I thought, “This is an opportunity you've been given, deserved or not. It’s an extraordinary privilege.” I began to turn that guilt into, “I have this. What can I do with it?” I didn’t want to use it to benefit myself. One of the ways was advocating to make space tourism more accessible.
What have you heard from members of GIVE about what that opportunity means to them? The whole point of GIVE is to equip people within the education system with the skills to advocate for the policies they want in their communities. There are policymakers creating educational reforms that don't work because they're not evidence-based or research-informed, and they try to impose them on communities they don’t understand. In the University of Arkansas chapter, for instance, they were going through one of the modules we’d developed on STEM and standardized testing. We know from research that people
from different backgrounds perform differently on these tests because of the way that they're designed and what they're really measuring. Feeling empowered, instead of disheartened, when it comes to creating quality education and more accessibility — is giving that power to young people and having them know that they can be a part of the solution if they care enough. One of the fundamental pillars of change is to start where you are. If we all worked in our local communities, things would be a lot better.
Why do you advocate for more women to get involved in STEM careers? A lot of the developments and advancements in society come from STEM innovations. It shapes the policies, programs, practices, and institutions we have. It’s imperative that, as we move forward, STEM plays an even greater role in our world when we have diverse groups represented. When we don't have diverse groups at the table, then blind spots and biases come in, and the things that we make aren’t designed for the people they serve. In a global context, these groups are not minority communities; they are the majority of the world. //
Spring 2023
the EDGE
41
