E-commerce platform Wish has joined forces with Black Girls CODE (BGC) to encourage more women of colour into STEM fields.
The strategic partnership will support initiatives to bring more women of colour to STEM fields; and support their progress in STEM and tech careers. The partnership will focus on driving three key initiatives:
- Volunteering: Wish will host virtual seminars on a variety of topics relevant and useful to the BGC cohort.
- Internship programme: Wish will incorporate BGC candidates into its talent pool for internships and actively support their applications.
- Financial sponsorship: Wish will be sponsoring the BGC annual alumnae summit in 2021, which attracts hundreds of attendees.
SUPPORTING WOMEN OF COLOUR
Commenting on the partnership, Dawn Nott, VP of People from Wish, stated: “Fostering a diverse and inclusive workplace is a key priority for the team at Wish. We are very excited to partner with pioneering non-profit organisations like Black Girls CODE to support our community. As a global marketplace that aims to democratise access to e-commerce, we want to broaden the talent pool and support women and people of colour. This partnership is an important step towards this goal.”
DRIVING DIVERSITY
Adding to her comments, Kimberly Bryant, Founder & CEO of Black Girls CODE, said: “We welcome the support of e-commerce and technology giants such as Wish to help us in our mission to empower women of colour to strive for successful, long-term careers in technology. The internship programme in particular offers a foot in the door for the women we work with. We look forward to working with Wish to drive diversity and meaningful change.”
Since 2011, Black Girls CODE has been committed to providing girls from underrepresented communities access to technology; and the 21st century skills necessary to become tech leaders. Black Girls CODE’s vision is to increase the number of women of colour in the digital space by empowering girls of colour aged 7 to 17 to become innovators in STEM fields; and builders of their own futures through exposure to computer science and technology.
The partnership with BCG is part of Wish’s overall commitment to support diversity and inclusion through practical initiatives, such as its Black Empowerment Fund; a $2 million fund to support independent, Black-owned retail businesses across the US. Eligible business owners can apply for a $500 to $2,000 grant to help rebuild or reinvigorate their business.
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