Barbie celebrates International Women's Day and wants to inspire more girls to pursue STEM careers
Barbie wants to help girls realize their limitless potential. To do so, the brand is honoring seven female STEM leaders from around the world with their very own doll - including German marine biologist Antje Boetius.
Women are still significantly underrepresented in STEM professions. In Germany, the proportion of women is just 15.5 percent.* Studies show that young girls are systematically denied access to STEM subjects at school or are not given further support in this area.**
For many years, Barbie has therefore made it its business to draw attention to this and to provide girls with role models - in the truest sense of the word. For International Women's Day on March 7, Barbie is introducing seven new dolls modeled after successful women in STEM professions. Role models - so-called Role Models - from STEM industries are crucial for children to spark their interest in and access to math, computer science, science and technology.
Barbie helps close the Dream Gap.
The seven women selected will encourage girls to believe in their abilities and reach their full potential - like German marine biologist Antje Boetius, who has participated in more than 50 expeditions on international research vessels and is actively involved in climate protection. "I am honored to be a Barbie Role Model for polar and marine research and to inspire children about these areas of science. Research shows that toys are an important factor in fostering children's creativity and imagination. Barbies should therefore also reflect the diversity of a wide range of professions - including those that explore the polar and ocean worlds and those that work to protect wildlife and the environment," says Antje Boetius.
In addition to her, Barbie is honoring the following women with their own doll:
• Susan Wojcicki (USA): special advisor to Google and Alphabet.
• Anne Wojcicki (USA): CEO of 23andME
• Janet Wojcicki (USA): professor of pediatrics and epidemiology at the University of California, San Francisco
• Kat Echazarret (Mexico): Electrical engineer and science show host
• Maggie Aderin-Pocock (United Kingdom): Space scientist and science educator
• Li Yinuo (China): co-founder of ETU Education.
Mattel had already launched the "Dream Gap" project in 2018. The global initiative raises awareness of the factors that prevent girls from reaching their full potential. Since its launch, the brand has donated more than $1.5 million through the Barbie "Dream Gap" project to nonprofit partners working to promote equality by fostering educational, mentoring and leadership opportunities for girls.
In this context, Mattel also collaborated with the Cognitive Development Lab at the prestigious New York University. The goal was to better understand how children's perceptions of leadership roles affect their own leadership aspirations and how this differs by gender. The researchers found that portraying a leadership role as "typically male" can signal to girls that the field of leadership is not for them. If, on the other hand, they encounter female leaders, it can increase their interest in a leadership role - showing how important female role models are to girls.
*Source: MINT Autumn Report 2021 Cologne Institute for Economic Research (as of March 2021).
**Source: American Association of University Women