Press Release No. 2/2013 - FutureCamp Europe, March 7, 2013

Milan, March 14, 2013 - Great interest was aroused on March 7th , Future Camp Europe: job projects for young people , the interactive meeting, conceived and organized by the Association Women and Technologies , as part of the initiative of the European Parliament "Europe belongs to women". A moment of comparison aimed at young people and parents interested in discovering and understanding how to enter and navigate the emerging professional sectors in Europe in the near future.

The data presented (source Alma Laurea) by the debate moderators, entrepreneurs, and researchers who have managed to turn their passion into a profession, paint a picture that is in some respects surprising.

The scenario is well known to many: women graduate and earn degrees better than their male counterparts, but the top of the ranking remains pink only up to the doctorate title. From there on, the differences narrow and the gap widens as the career progresses. Among those with a two-year specialized degree, the differences between men and women are significant already one year after obtaining the title: 7.5 percentage points. One year after graduation, men can rely more on stable employment than their female colleagues (39% versus 30%). And they earn 32% more (€1,220 versus €924 net monthly). Female graduates with children work and earn less than women without children. After five years, gender differences amount to 6 points: 83 women and 89 men work out of a hundred. Permanent employment, a male prerogative: 80% of employed men and 66% of employed women can count on it.

But here are the news. Let's start with the agri-food sector. Primary production, technological and biotechnological transformations, safety, consumer science, catering: "never like today agriculture is interested in technology," said Marisa Porrini, professor of Applied Nutrition at the University of Milan. "Today we talk about precision agriculture, agrotechnologies, interventions respecting natural resources, environment and health, planning and redevelopment of the territory, designing 'healing gardens'. Experts in environmental certification, bioenergy, designers of new foods are needed, with a keen eye on defending typicality and tradition. Figures related to packaging, consumer science, catering, nutrition."

Good also are the career opportunities in the pharmaceutical sector, both in traditional research (development of new molecules with biological activity), as well as in highly modern and appealing sectors such as nutraceuticals. "A relatively young sector, but in great development worldwide, whose market, despite the economic crisis, shows a constant increase - explained Marina Carini, director of the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences at the University of Milan -. Here are needed professional figures with cross-cutting skills, qualified in the design, development, production, control and commercialization (including regulatory and patent aspects) of nutraceutical products, who know how to respond adequately to the new needs of the extractive, herbal, pharmaceutical, and food industry."

The most promising field remains that of Information & Communication Technology: "Ready to absorb experts in mobile, cloud computing, Business Analytics, social media" - said Anita Longo, Computer Science professor at the Department of Economics and Business Management Sciences at the Catholic University of Milan - but in relation to all sectors, it is essential to combine specialized skills with knowledge of new technologies and awareness of the interconnections between information management, privacy, and globalization of markets.

The numbers do not yet allow us to speak of a reversal in trend, but the trend seems positive. The data from the European Commission, summarized in the "She Figures 2012" report, reveal that the proportion of women among scientists and engineers has indeed grown, between 2002 and 2010, at an annual rate of 5.4%, compared to the 3% of the male component.

"Companies today need a different vision to overcome the crisis; of humanist technologists and educated engineers" - concluded Gianna Martinengo, DidaelKTS and president of the Women and Technology Association. Suggesting to the present students the key to make it: "More than the academic path, the ability of abstraction is important. You are training for professions that do not yet exist today, whose boundaries are not yet known to experts, you will use technologies that have not yet been invented". What to focus on? "The curiosity to know. And learning how to learn".

A special thanks to the young newly graduated and researchers Mattia Aliani, Giulia Giorgi, Carmen Lammi, Francesco Marchetti, Alessandra Marti, Giulia Rinetti, who with their passionate testimony have contributed to building an intergenerational bridge among the participants.

There is no Italian text provided to be translated.