Overview of my experience Illuminate's conference for Women in STEM and Leadership

Hi everyone! My name is Khushi Gandhi and I am a Grade 11 student at Woburn CI. Today, I had the pleasure to attend Illuminate x Durham’s regional conference. Here are my thoughts highlighting what I learned in the STEM and Leadership conference!

I enjoyed all of the keynote speakers and the workshops! I learned a lot from this conference, especially from Ilona Dougherty and Mackenzie Clark.

Ilona talked about how, as youths, we often don’t tap into the amazing abilities. We often get shut down while taking risks even though young people are the ones who come up with complex solutions to complex problems. I also learned from Ilona that mentorship is when the adults around you support you in who you are, and I think that Ilona made some really good points!

Mackenzie talked about something that affects all people, no matter the age: imposter syndrome. Imposter syndrome is when you feel like you aren’t good enough to be among your peers. Mackenzie assured us all that it’s okay to feel like this, that it’s normal. She gave us some tips on how to overcome this imposter syndrome such as stop comparing yourself to others, stop talking down to yourself, and practice some power poses!

All in all, I think that the Illuminate x Durham conference was an amazing experience and I learned so much about leadership and STEM!