Blarjana Bino
STEM field: Women in STEM supporter and enabler.
Blerjana is the Executive Director and Co-Founder of the Center Science and Innovation for Development (SCiDEV) that hosts the Network of Albanian Women in STEM (NAWSTEM) in Tirana, Albania.
Dr. Blerjana Bino is a researcher in social sciences with a particular focus on media, democracy, and participation. She is a research member of the Safe Journalists Network in the Western Balkans with extensive experience in assessing media landscapes in the Western Balkans with specific focus on Albania and coordinating research projects at national and regional level. She has a PhD in Communication Sciences and a Master of Science from the London School of Economics and Political Science – LSE. She is a former Swedish Institute Fellow at the Department of Media and Informatics, Uppsala University.
Through SCiDEV she is working closely with academia, civil society, policy, and media and leading a network of outstanding scholars and policy researchers. She is a strong supporter and promoter of increased participation and representation of girls and women in STEM.
What attracted her to STEM and her message to young girls
One of the closest collaborators of SCiDEV initiated the establishment of the Network of Albanian Women in STEM back in 2019. That’s how I started to get more engaged in supporting girls and women in STEM. In a sense I was hooked by her commitment and passion to make the Network of Albanian Women in STEM a success and we at SCiDEV embraced the initiative and are happy to do our bit in the social and economic empowerment of girls and women through increased participation and representation in STEM.
Simply do it. It is a rewarding path. It will require a lot of work and strong will, but it is worth the while.