Ada Lovelace Day - the 3 Natalias

I thought that it would be easier to write about a technical woman for Ada Lovelace Day. Last year I wrote about Dr. Monique Frize. She inspired me after one of her talks at McMaster University about how she was helping deserving women receive scholarships. This year I can't choose between the many awesome women I got to know in the past year. So after thinking about it all day, I finally decided to write a little bit about the 3 Natalia's I know.

The first Natalia I met was a fellow CU-WISE executive. She is really something. I admire how honest, selfless, smart, friendly and hardworking she is. Today she is expecting a baby and has taught me that there are much more difficult things in life than to do a PhD and to make it in a male-dominated field. I guess I forget about things like that sometimes and she's the one who brings me back to Earth.

The second Natalia I got to know is what I call a super woman. She has been finishing her PhD in mechanical engineering, working full time and working out with a personal fitness trainer... all at the same time! Yeah! Superwoman! And yet, when I meet her for dinner, we spend all evening laughing, as if life was easy-peasy. I admire this beautiful lady.

And last but not least is the third Natalia. I recently met her at a green exhibit at Algonquin College but never got in touch with her until my mentor recommended we meet. She e-mailed me and we met for coffee. Now I will admit that I was too chatty and diverted from talking about green energy. Now that I think about it, I think I stuck to cars (because I'm looking to buy one for myself) and boys (because I'm a girl I guess). But I promised her that the next time we meet we'll talk more business. Natalia has experience in politics and environmental science. She's close to completing a degree in each... with experience! She currently works at OneChange where she helps create a gateway to broad public participation in conservation and efficiency programs using community-based social marketing. Boy am I glad I met her! And this lady has such a bubbly personality, I feel like a young girl again around her. Hmm, maybe that's why I diverted from business so much.

So here are the 3 Natalia's I know. All 3 quite amazing, hardworking and fun. This year is for you ladies!