USM lecturer selected as mentor for UN's Space4Women programme

GEORGE TOWN: Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) 's School of Aerospace Engineering lecturer, Dr Norlimi Amilia Ismail has been selected as the sole Malaysian to participate as a mentor in the Space4Women programme.

The programme is a project under the purview of the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA), established to provide women around the world with educational and career opportunities in space and STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics).

The project aims to ensure equal inclusion and participation in space exploration, science, and technology to achieve the fourth Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) - quality education - and the fifth SDG - gender equality.

Norlimi Amilia said she is among the 100 participants selected from all over the world, who will be sharing experiences and guiding young women (mentees) interested in STEM for them to move ahead in the space field.

The mentees will be selected by the UNOOSA secretariat, she said in a statement today.

Norilmi Amilia, who has been with USM since 2012. said becoming a mentor is indeed a recognition for her, as to become one, requires deep knowledge and experience in the area, while yielding results for all her efforts.

"Alhamdulillah, I am excited about being able to expand my network in the field relating to space after working hard to put the name of the country in the international arena in the past 10 years," said Norlimi Amilia, who hails from Kuala Selangor, Selangor.

The selection process done by UNOOSA was based on applications from all who are related to space studies.

Norilmi Amilia was recently involved in mentoring 11 USM engineering students in creating a record as the first team from Malaysia to take part in a rocket-launching competition organised by Spaceport America Cup 2022 on June 21 to 25 this year.

It was the biggest conference and competition among universities to launch high-powered rockets into the atmosphere.

-- BERNAMA